Erie Family Health Center

Beats this week:  

1) Summertime in Chicago is ramping up and with it comes barbeques, summer cocktails and outdoor sports! Make sure you take the month of June to get your annual check-up; June is National Men’s Health Month!  The purpose of Men’s Health Month is to heighten the awareness of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of disease among men and boys

2) The story on the source of the E. coli outbreak in Europe that has killed at least 26 people and sickened over 2,700 others continues to unfold. The newest tests have found the E. coli strain in a cucumber from an unknown country. Meanwhile, consumers across Europe are shunning fruit and vegetables, and the German warning against eating cucumbers, tomatoes, lettuce and sprouts is still in place.   

3) With the summer heat Chicago also experiences an uptick in violence throughout. It is only natural, then, that the Huffington Post Chicago section was asking this week, What Can Make Chicago Safer?

4) A study released this week by the World Health Organization has found that mental health problems account for nearly half of all disability among young people between the ages of 10 and 24. Researchers looked at data from 191 countries and estimated that among adolescents and young adults, 45 percent of disability was related to depression, bipolar illness, schizophrenia, and other mental disorders, including alcohol abuse.

5) The United States Department of Agriculture made a big announcement this week: there’s a new food pyramid in town, and it’s a plate. The new graphic is meant to replace the old food pyramid in an effort to provide a simple “how-to” for making food choices by providing a clear breakdown of what our plates should look like.

On June 2, 2011, Erie Family Health Center was honored to host U.S. Senator Dick Durbin at Erie Humboldt Park Health Center. During the visit, Erie had the opportunity to share our new Family Practice Residency Program and the importance of the Teaching Health Centers funding for the sustainability of the program. Erie’s Family Practice Residency Program, which is carried out in partnership with Northwestern Feinberg School of Medicine and Norwegian American Hospital, is a community-based residency program that aims to train primary care physicians to meet the health care needs of the millions of Americans that will be insured through health care reform.

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Americans agree that eyesight has a huge impact on day-to-day living and is one of the senses they fear losing most. Unfortunately, people often do not pay attention to their eye health unless they notice a problem. Many common eye diseases that can lead to vision loss and blindness, such as diabetic eye disease, glaucoma, or age-related macular degeneration, often have no early warning signs or symptoms. Having regular eye exams to make sure the eyes are healthy and seeing their best is important for everyone. However, the risk of vision loss and blindness is higher for some people based on race, ethnicity, and other demographic and socioeconomic factors.

You might be at higher risk for eye disease if you have a family history of eye disease; have diabetes; are African American, Hispanic/Latino, American Indian, or Alaska Native; or are older than 50. Some diseases affect certain populations disproportionately.

- Glaucoma, which affects your side or peripheral vision first, is three times more common in African Americans than in Whites. It is a leading cause of blindness in African Americans.

- Diabetic retinopathy, a leading cause of blindness caused by uncontrolled diabetes, occurs more often in Hispanics/Latinos than in Whites.

- American Indians and Alaska Natives are 35 percent more likely to have diabetes than the average adult in the United States, putting them at increased risk of diabetic eye disease.

- Older adults are at higher risk of developing age-related eye diseases and conditions such as age-related macular degeneration (AMD), glaucoma, or cataract. AMD is a leading cause of blindness in Whites. 

“If you are at higher risk of eye disease, having a comprehensive dilated eye exam is the best thing you can do to protect your vision,” says Paul A. Sieving, M.D., Ph.D., director of the National Eye Institute, part of the National Institutes of Health.

 “A comprehensive dilated eye exam is a painless procedure where your eye care professional puts drops in the eyes to dilate, or widen, the pupil so he or she can get a good look at the back of the eye to check for signs of eye disease. With early detection, treatment can slow or stop vision loss and reduce the risk of blindness.”

 In addition to having regular eye exams, eating a healthy diet, not smoking, and wearing protective eyewear are just a few other things you can do to protect your sight. For more information on eye exams, common eye diseases and conditions, and finding financial assistance for eye care, visit http://www.nei.nih.gov/healthyeyes. Remember, when you take good care of your eyes, you take good care of yourself.

Were you unable to make the Geiger Gibson Emerging Leaders Award Ceremony? Have no fears! Here was the speech made that day by Erie’s very own Senior Vice President, Iliana Mora.

Good morning esteemed colleagues, friends and family.

I’d like to thank the George Washington University, School of Public Health & Health Services, for the Geiger Gibson Emerging Leader Award. And the National Association of Community Health Centers for co-sponsoring this symposium. I’d also like to recognize and congratulate all the nominees, finalists and award recipients.    

I receive this honor with great gratitude and great humility. It is an award that not only celebrates our accomplishments in community health thus far but also the accomplishments that we have yet to achieve.

How did this happen?, I thought to myself. I realized, though, that I share the same beliefs as Dr. Jack Geiger and Dr. Count Gibson.

The belief that: health care is a right, not a privilege and that everyone deserves access to high quality culturally competent health care.

It is this strong conviction that energizes me to work harder everyday in a field that is not so easy to work in, where our patients come with complicated medical conditions, we make miracles from the our thin margins and often feels like we are at the mercy of what happens here in D.C.

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Beats this week:  

1) Health Beats was on a slight hiatus in February but now March is upon us and we are back in full swing! Speaking of March, did you know that this month is National Nutrition Month and National Save Your Vision Month? Now you do!  

2) Are you a fan of sugary drinks, such as soda? If so, you might want to rethink that extra soda. A new study published this week has found that there is a link between the excess consumption of sugary drinks and higher blood pressure.  

3) While Health Care Reform will not take effect until 2014, reports already being released on the impact it will have on working families. Families USA released a report this week on the savings that working families will experience when the spending cap limit regulations of Health Care Reform take effect. The report claims that approximately 50,000 Illinoisans will benefit from the new guidelines. 

4) The American Heart Association released new guidelines this week on women and heart disease. The new guidelines expand the list of conditions that place women at an increased risk of developing heart disease. New conditions on the list include systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis and pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia, pregnancy-related hypertension and gestational diabetes.

5) Here’s one competition that the United States did not want to win: the rate of obesity in the United States is significantly higher than in Canada. About 24 percent of Canadians are obese compared to more than 34 percent of Americans, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control.

At the Erie Family Health Center All Staff Meeting on January 26th, Erie was honored as an Illinois Your Healthcare PlusTM (YHP) top performer for excellence in caring for people with diabetes. Erie West Town and Erie Humboldt Park were awarded this honor. Erie Humboldt Park was also bestowed as an YHP Blue Ribbon Recipient.

YHP is a statewide Medicaid program that coordinates care for people living with chronic illnesses like diabetes. YHP promotes and sustains the patient-physician relationship by helping patients manage their total health care. YHP achieves this by empowering a multidisciplinary care team which helps patients make informed healthcare decisions, improve patients’ understanding of their chronic diseases through self-learning and management tools, as well as helping patients receive care coordination for complex health needs.

Dr. Carrie Nelson, Medical Director of YHP, recognizes Erie’s effort to create a diabetes program that enables the patient to take control of their disease to improve their overall health. “These sites (Erie West Town and Erie Humboldt Park) have done outstanding work in diabetes care and YHP recognizes it is a team effort,” says Dr. Nelson.

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This week Health Beats needs your help!

House to Vote on $1.3 BILLION in CUTS to the Health Centers Program TOMORROW!

CALL YOUR Representative TODAY!

The House is currently debating the FY2011 Continuing Resolution (HR 1) that includes $1.3 BILLION in cuts to Health Center funding and is scheduled to vote on this bill TOMORROW. We know that you are aware of the impact these cuts will have (if not, check the bottom of this email) and this is the last chance you will have to weigh in on this bill in the House.

As this bill comes to a vote we need you to CALL your Representative one more time and ask them to:

1)      Go to the floor and talk about their support for health centers

 AND

2)      To continue to oppose Health Center funding cuts and Vote AGAINST the Continuing Resolution

You can call your Representative directly by dialing the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 1-202-224-3121.

While this bill is being debated the BEST way to demonstrate the broad support for Health Centers is for as many Representatives as possible to speak about the value and importance of Health Centers from the House floor. So far only a very few Representatives have mentioned Health Centers in their statements so we need you to urge YOUR Representative to talk about why cutting health Center funding is the wrong thing to do for their constituents and for the country!

Beats this week:  

1) Health Beats was out last week due to a major blizzard that hit the Chicago area but now we are back and getting ready for Valentine’s Day! Not sure what candy to get this year? Listen to what this nutritionist has to say about dark chocolate and perhaps you’ll have your answer!

2) A new study suggests that diets high in fat, sugar and processed foods are lowering the IQ scores of children in the United Kingdom. The study found that a predominantly processed-food diet at the age of three is directly associated with a lower IQ at the age of eight and a half.

3) Patients living with HIV/AIDS in Illinois may find it a little more difficult to receive the medications they need through the AIDS Drug Assistance Program. Illinois has reduced the number of medications available to patients or has capped how much can be spent on the drugs through a state assistance program. Officials also have added layers to the process of how to sign up for and stay enrolled in the program.

4) Did you wear your red on Friday, February 4? No? Then wear red today to support awareness for heart disease among women. About 267,000 women die each year from heart attacks, which kill six times as many women as breast cancer.  

5) Who can believe it – a whole year has passed since the launch of Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move program. Here are a few things that the program has accomplished over the past year: beverage makers, food manufacturers and most recently, Wal-Mart, have promised to cut the levels of salt, fat and sugar in their products. A new child nutrition law also puts Washington in charge of deciding what kinds of foods are sold during the school day.

If You Don’t Want Health Center Funding Cut You Need To Call Your Representative NOW!

Key decisions about health center funding will be made this week. The U.S. House of Representatives is currently in the process of determining the funding level for the entire Health Centers Program for FY2011 and your Representative needs to hear from you TODAY to ensure health center funding remains whole.

Members of House Leadership have sent the message that they want 1) to bring an appropriations bill to the floor for a vote within one week and 2) to cut nearly $43 billion from non-discretionary programs in that bill.

That means YOUR Representative is deciding NOW which program he or she wants to cut and by how much and that means Health Center funding for the next year is at risk!

If you don’t want to see health center funding cut then YOU need to send your Representative a message asking them to keep health center funding at its current level for FY2011 IMMEDIATELY.

You may also call your Representative and be connected to their office directly by dialing the U.S. Capitol Switchboard at 1-202-224-3121

Every member of the House needs to hear immediately from health center advocates what a cut in funding will mean for YOUR Health Center and your community. Please contact your Representative TODAY and ask them to level fund the health centers program in FY2011.

Beats this week:  

1) The Chicago Mayoral elections have been a hot topic this week – particularly whether or not Rahm Emanuel will be on the ballot. Earlier this week several hundred ballots were printed without his name only to have the presses stopped by the Illinois Supreme Court, who are expected to make what will likely be the final decision on the matter.

2) New research out this week contradicts recommendations on breast cancer screening by the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in 2009. Using the same data set, researchers at the University of Colorado and University of Michigan found that annual mammograms starting at age 40 save around 65,000 more women from breast cancer than mammograms done every other year in women 50 and older (which the USPSTF recommended). Read more here.

3) Did you watch President’s Obama’s second State of the Union Speech last night? No? Interested to know what he said about health care and reform? Then check out this review of his points on the issue.   

4) The long-standing debate on the charter school system in Chicago continued today at the Chicago Public Schools board meeting. Hundreds of individuals – both supporters and critics of charter schools – lined a four block radius around the CPS headquarters as officials debated opening more charter schools in the city.

5) Warning: your mouth may drop on this one. It is estimated that 1 in 12 Americans have diabetes. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released their new estimate today that 26 million Americans have diabetes. The new figure marks a 9 percent increase from the 2008 estimate of 23.6 million.