Erie Family Health Center

Originally posted in EXTRA Newspaper- July 22, 2009

Top Ten Doctors
by Silvana Tabares

Castillo, top left, was selected as one of the top ten doctors

Welcome to EXTRA’s special health supplement insert commemorating some of the top doctors in our communities. Last month, EXTRA accepted nominations for Latino doctors who go over and beyond to serve the community. We were looking for doctors that do double duty, volunteer their time outside their medical practice, have developed programs or work with free clinics or nonprofits. We were looking for special traits that put these doctors in a different category than what is considered the norm.EXTRAreceived many nominations from hospitals, clinics and members of the community. Below, you will read the profiles of 10 extraordinary doctors who are clinicians, treat patients and go beyond their responsibilities to help the community and the next generation of Latino physicians.

EXTRA would like to thank everyone who submitted a nomination for a doctor.

Frank M. Castillo, M.D., M.A., FAAFP

Committed to His Mission

Castillo, a family physician that focuses on the healthcare of the underserved, has been serving the Latino community for over 15 years.Since 2001, he’s served as the medical head of family practice at Erie Family Health Center, a community health center in Humboldt Park. As a board certified family physician, he pursues his passion of improving the health of Latinos.

“My passion to work with the Latino community stems from my own family and from my undergraduate academic work in Chicano Studies at the University of Notre Dame,” Castillo said.

He is looking forward to serving in his new position as director of medical student education for a new family medicine residency program. The program is a family practice training program in partnership between Northwestern Hospital, Erie Family Health Center and Norwegian American Hospital. As director, Castillo will train residents from local medical schools such as the University of Illinois at Chicago and Northwestern University.

“My commitment to my community is by caring for Latino patients at Erie Family Health Center, regardless of their ability to pay, and by serving as a role model for Latino medical students who are at the crossroads of choosing their career,” Castillo said.

Specialty: Family Practice

Medical School: University of Wisconsin-Madison

Experience: 19 years

Fluent in Spanish: Yes

Clinic/Hospital: Erie Family Health Center

Address: 2750 W. North Ave.

Appointment information: (312) 666-3494

Web site: eriefamilyhealth.org

Originally posted in the July 13, 2009 edition of ADA News

By Stacie Crozier

Just a short motor coach ride from ADA Headquarters, the Association’s Board of Trustees started their Monday morning June 15 with a trip to Chicago’s Humboldt Park neighborhood to visit the Erie Family Health Center and its state-of-the-art dental clinic.

	Clinic close-up: Dr. Gus Souri (left to right) discusses dental care at Erie with ADA 11th District Trustee Mary Krempasky Smith, ADA President-elect Ronald L. Tankersley and ADA 13th District Trustee Russell I. Webb during the ADA Board of Trustees June visit.

“The ADA Board’s recent visit to the Erie Family Health Center was a real ‘eye-opener’ for many of us,” said Dr. Ronald L. Tankersley, ADA president-elect. “The Erie Family Health Center represents an outstanding collaboration between policymakers, community health advocates, physicians and dentists with the common goal of providing quality care to the underserved. The synergy of that collaboration maintains the pride and dignity of the patients, physicians and dentists.”

Hosted by Erie President and CEO Lee Francis, M.D., the trip to the city’s northwest side was planned to acquaint Board members with how dental care fits into the picture at this federally qualified health center.

Erie has community clinics at nine Chicago sites, including three family health centers, three school-based health centers, a teen health center and two dental centers, said Dr. Francis. Its oral health program focuses on dental education and prevention as an important part of its patients’ good oral and overall health and most of its patients are women and children.

Under the guidance of its experienced dental director, Dr. Ghassan “Gus” Souri, who oversaw advanced planning for the oral health program, both Erie dental clinics were open within a few months of receiving state funding.

Outside on North Avenue, the morning sunshine showcases the health center. The building, circa 1923, formerly housed a chain drug store in its ground floor. The upstairs still retains several doors with transoms, behind which were “mom and pop” medical and dental offices with small waiting areas to the front and treatment areas to the back.

Young patients and their families have already arrived at the dental clinic, and some children are receiving care as Board members stroll through the sleek, paperless operatories. Patients—both in the operatories and in the waiting room—can watch the clinic’s flat screen TVs projecting dancing penguins in the movie “Happy Feet,” and most patient communications seem to be in Spanish or a combination of English and Spanish.

“My goal in designing the clinics,” said Dr. Souri, “was to offer a welcoming, clean environment. A community health center should be as good or better than the facilities patients would find in a private practice.”

Erie opened its first dental clinic in the Albany Park neighborhood of Chicago in 2005 and the Humboldt Park location opened in 2007. The Humboldt Park clinic staff includes two full-time dentists and a full support staff. The Albany Park clinic staff includes two full-time dentists, one parttime dentist and one full-time dental hygienist. In addition, private practice dentists are contracted at an hourly rate as needed.

Dental students from the University of Illinois at Chicago College of Dentistry spend three months in rotation at Erie, performing a wide range of preventive and restorative dental procedures under the supervision of a staff dentist.

“From day one, dentists, pediatricians and OB-GYNs have worked together to help our patients have better oral and overall health,” said Dr. Souri. “Our physicians offer oral health messages to patients at their medical visits to help educate pregnant women and mothers of young children about the importance of oral health in overall health.”

Erie also treats patients with AIDS and HIV—most who have dental problems but no dental insurance, and would otherwise be likely to forgo dental care because they couldn’t afford it, said Dr. Francis.

Erie has grown by 70 percent in the past five years, he added. Its revenues in 2008 were about half Medicaid reimbursement (49 percent), supplemented by federal, state, local and private grants (44 percent), and a small amount from self-paying patients, private insurance and Medicare. Most of its patients (84 percent) are Hispanic and two-thirds (67 percent) are best served in Spanish. Most (83 percent) come from households with incomes below the federal poverty line and 37 percent are uninsured.

In May, Erie raised more than $145,000 for its oral health program as well as awareness about the city’s oral health needs with its first Golden Toothbrush Awards luncheon. More than 300 corporate, civic and community leaders attended, and Erie honored Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn and Mary Burgess, Chicago Department of Public Health director of School Based Oral Health, with awards for their work to help find ways to meet the growing oral health needs of local citizens.

“If every dentist had the opportunity to observe, first hand, a community health center so well managed, they would better understand how community health centers can be a valuable part of the solution to the access problem,” Dr. Tankersley added. “It’s too bad that everyone can’t have that experience.”

The ADA Council on Access, Prevention and Interprofessional Relations will host a special course at annual session to help dentists and their staff learn how federally funded health centers work and how private practices can collaborate with them to improve the community’s oral health.

The ABCs of FQHCs: Increasing Understanding and Collaboration Between Private Practitioners and FQHCs will be held Oct. 1, 11:30 a.m.-2 p.m. at the Hawaii Convention Center.

The free 2.5-hour course will be presented by Dr. Skip Homicz, CAPIR member, FQHC dental director, retired private practice dentist and past chair of the Coalition for New Hampshire Oral Health Action; Dr. Jane Grover, past ADA vice president and FQHC dental director in Jackson, Mich.; and Erie’s Dr. Francis. Dr. Steve Geiermann, senior manager, Access, Community Oral Health Infrastructure and Capacity for the ADA and former FQHC dental director for People’s Health Centers in St. Louis, will moderate. For more details or to register, log on to www.ada.org/goto/session.

Originally posted on the Chicago Tribune website: February 7, 2009

A Chicago clinic cuts fees for uninsured

Some good news for uninsured patients in Chicago: Erie Family Health Center, a chain of clinics on the West Side, has reduced fees for uninsured patients.

The organization’s board of directors voted Thursday to charge patients a minimum of $30 for an initial visit and $10 for any follow-up appointment within 30 days.  Previously, the fee for all visits was $30.

(Fees are calculated on a sliding scale basis, based on income.  Any visit that occurs within a month of a previous appointment will be billed at $10.)

The change comes after Erie officials noted that fewer uninsured patients with diabetes, heart disease, and other chronic illnesses were showing up for appointments, said Dr. Lee Francis, the group’s president.

On Thursday, a board member who went out in the waiting room to talk to patients learned why:  “we’re afraid to come because we don’t have the money,” said one person with diabetes, according to Francis’ account.

Although Erie won’t refuse services to people who can’t afford to pay, officials realized patients’ pride and shame about their economic difficulties might be getting in the way.  Many people are losing jobs in this economic downturn, having work hours cut and finding it increasingly hard to make ends meet.

Without ongoing care, patients with chronic diseases risk having those illnesses spiral out of control and developing new complications, severely impairing their health.

Erie’s new policy goes into effect in several weeks.   Currently, the organization serves about 30,000 uninsured, underinsured and low incomes Chicagoans at locations in West Town and Humboldt Park. For more information about its services, click here.

If you know of other Chicago area clinics that have cut prices to help people in this tough economy, please share that information here so other readers can benefit.

PRNewswire
Chicago Dental Society Donated $1.7 million to Support Access to Care Programs, Dental...
01.13.09, 10:08 AM ET

CHICAGO, Jan. 13 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — In 2008, the Chicago Dental Society, a membership organization for dentists in Cook, Lake and DuPage Counties, granted $1.7 million to foundations, clinics, students and a local college to support efforts to improve dental health for all Illinoisans.

The lion’s share of this total, $1.5 million, was earmarked for the new Chicago Dental Society Foundation, which is charged with providing a stable source of income to dental education programs and dental clinics through private and corporate fundraising.

Grant recipients also include programs serving families and the disabled, as well as training programs for dental hygienists and scholarships to students at the University of Illinois-Chicago and Southern Illinois University, the state’s two remaining dental schools.

CDS President Dr. David Kumamoto says, “In these tough times, support for our local dental programs is even more crucial. We at CDS are proud to lead the charge in supporting programs that improve oral health care in Illinois.”

Since establishing a grant program in 2001, the CDS Board of Directors has authorized 79 grants, totaling more than $4.6 million, and 837 scholarships, totaling more than $460,000. Beginning in 2009, the Chicago Dental Society Foundation will take over grant-making for the society. However, the core mission of funding initiatives that strengthen dental education and dental care remains unchanged.

Established in 1864, the Chicago Dental Society has more than 4,000 members in the Chicago area, making it the largest component society of the Illinois State Dental Society and the American Dental Association.

More information on the Web

The Chicago Dental Society: www.cds.org

The Chicago Dental Society’s grant program: www.cds.org/about/grants

The Chicago Dental Society Foundation: www.chicagodentalsocietyfoundation.org

Complete list of grant recipients for 2008:

Advocate Charitable Foundation, $2,000

Alivio Medical Center, $5,000

Chicago Dental Society Foundation, $1.5 million

Community Nurse Health Association, $10,000

DuPage Community Clinic, $10,000

Erie Family Health Center, $10,000

Free People’s Clinic, $10,000

Goldie’s Place Dental Clinic, $2,000

Illinois Foundation of Dentistry for the Handicapped, $10,000

Infant Welfare Society of Chicago, $2,000

Near North Health Services, $2,000

Northwest Community Healthcare Foundation, $10,000

Oak Park and River Forest Infant Welfare Society, $10,000

Prairie State College’s Dental Hygiene Program, $9,421.50

Racing Industry Charitable Foundation, $5,000

St. Bernard Hospital and Health Care Center Dental Clinic, $10,000

Scholarships, $108,500

SOURCE Chicago Dental Society

Copyright 2004 PR Newswire All rights reserved.

May 18, 2007 — Chicago Latino Voice

Erie Receives Aetna Grant to Provide Behavioral Health at Erie Teen Center

ChicagoLatinoVoice: E-Newsletter

Aetna’s 2006 Philanthropic and Community Partners provide generous grants

CHICAGO, May 18, 2007 – Aetna (NYSE: AET) and a host of community and medical leaders gathered at the National Museum of Mexican Art to pay tribute to six organizations receiving Aetna Foundation grants in 2006, and celebrate their contributions to improving the health of Chicago’s diverse communities.

In addition to celebrating 2006 awardees, the gathering provided opportunities for non-profit organizations to forge new relationships, strengthen existing partnerships and share their visions of community service.

“In addition to our grant-making, Aetna seeks to be a catalyst of change, serving as a convener of innovative collaboration among community organizations together to collaborate in innovative ways,” said Martin Castro, Aetna’s vice president of external affairs for its diverse markets in Chicago. “If each person attending tonight walks away with one new idea, one new relationship, or one new partnership, imagine what we can accomplish,” Castro told celebrants.

The six organizations Receiving Aetna Foundation Community Grants in 2006 included:

• Bernard Hospital and Health Care Center $50,000 grant for a pediatric oral health clinic to be housed within the hospital that is expected to serve 1,500 children in its first year.
• Erie Family Health Center $50,000 grant to hire a bilingual licensed clinical social worker to provide linguistically and culturally sensitive care for Hispanic patients suffering from depression in the Humboldt Park and West Town communities.
• Illinois Health Education Consortium/AHEC $50,000 for the Whittier Wellness Initiative to reduce obesity and obesity-related illness among the children and families of Whittier School through access to recreational green spaces, whole fresh foods, and opportunities for physical activity including community gardening, walking and bicycling clubs.
• Logan Square Neighborhood Association $50,000 grant for “Growing Healthy at McAuliffe School. This multi-faceted program includes a “walking school bus” that encourages parents to lead groups of children to and from school, a Chicago Public Schools “Cool School” salad bar pilot to offer healthier food choices, and initiatives to bridge school, home and community in a coordinated effort to raise healthier families and children.
• Swedish Covenant Hospital $25,000 to develop a model to improve conversations between patients, doctors and nurses about treatment preferences and end-of-life preferences upon admission to the hospital. The goal of the program is to empower patients to make well-informed decisions on their own behalf and communicate decisions consistent with their own values to hospital staff upon admission.
• University of Illinois Neighborhoods Initiative $50,000 to provide oral health services to Southside children in partnership with the Mile Square Health Center. This early intervention program aims to have infants receive their first dental checkup at age one and teach parents how to eliminate practices harmful to developing teeth.

October 10, 2007 — Chicago Tribune

Clinics offer free prescriptions
Many who do not meet state, county criteria covered

By Judith Graham, Tribune Staff Reporter

Thousands of uninsured, low-income Chicago families will start getting access to free prescription drugs this week with the launch of a new program.

The program, MedAccess Chicago, is the first in the city to secure bulk medications from drug companies and distribute them at no cost through community health clinics.

It promises to become a much-needed alternative, at least for some families, to the beleaguered Cook County health system, where patients often wait in line for hours to fill prescriptions.

In the first year, four companies will donate up to $7 million in medications for conditions such as diabetes and high blood pressure. They are Abbott Laboratories, AstraZeneca PLC, Merck & Co. and Novartis Pharmaceutical Corp.

The program is starting at two of the city’s largest clinics for low-income patients, CommunityHealth and Erie Family Health Center. Together, the clinics serve more than 35,000 patients a year, more than half of whom are uninsured.

Often, these individuals have medical conditions such as heart disease or diabetes that can be controlled only if they take medications daily. Yet few have the resources to buy drugs and, similarly, clinics don’t have the money to foot the bill.

The result is that many patients end up going without needed treatments, becoming sicker and developing more complications.

“Our goal is to remove barriers that keep our uninsured patients from filling prescriptions and create opportunities for better control of chronic conditions,” said Dr. Lee Francis, chief executive officer of Erie Family Health.

A major barrier is the ongoing financial crisis at Cook County’s health system, the largest source of low-cost drugs for poor people in the city. Earlier this year, the county started charging $3 per prescription, more than many poor, uninsured patients say they can afford.

What’s more, only patients registered at county facilities can buy low-cost drugs through the county’s prescription program, a requirement that excludes most families who seek care at independent health clinics. For instance, only 600 of CommunityHealth’s 6,000 patients are able to get prescriptions through Cook County.

MedAccess Chicago steps into the breach with a plan to solicit donations from drug companies and distribute the medications without charge at community clinics. “Our model is the Great Chicago Food Depository, which asks restaurants to donate unused products to needy populations,” said Judith Haasis, executive director of CommunityHealth.

Although the program is starting off small, officials hope it will fill as many as 100,000 prescriptions a year by 2012, she said.

“We realize that many people are uninsured and have trouble affording their medicines. We are committed to helping these patients gain access to the medications they need,” Kevin Rigby, vice president of public affairs with Novartis, said in a written statement.

To qualify, people must be patients of participating clinics, uninsured and meet drug companies’ financial criteria. Generally, families with incomes up to double the poverty level – about $40,000 for a family of four — will be eligible.

A new, central pharmacy at CommunityHealth will dispense the medications directly or send them by van to Erie Family Health. Eventually, the goal is to have MedAccess “telepharmacies” scattered at clinics across the city. These vending machine-like units would be stocked with commonly used drugs to be released electronically when a prescription is filled, Haasis said.

The new program won’t fill every need, Francis said. Some patients will continue to get low-cost generic drugs at Target or Wal-Mart. Some will apply for aid directly through drug companies and qualify for their patient assistance programs. Others will pay cash for items, such as insulin, that haven’t yet been donated. And still others may choose to go to Cook County, if that option remains available, he predicted.

Consumers may wonder how the new MedAccess Chicago program differs from other pharmaceutical initiatives. To begin with, it’s targeted at the uninsured, a group that by definition isn’t enrolled in Medicaid or Medicare, government programs that have strong pharmacy benefits.

Unlike the state program Illinois Cares Rx, MedAccess isn’t limited to people who are disabled or at least 65 years old; younger families will qualify. In contrast to Cook County’s drug program, it doesn’t charge a fee and it opens up new avenues for patients to get free drugs at community clinics.

Copyright © 2007, Chicago Tribune

2008 Polk Bros. Foundation annual report excerpt

Polk Bros. Foundation Spotlights Erie School-Based Health Programs

Erie Family Health Center’s School-based Health Programs were featured in the Polk Bros. Foundation’s 2008 Annual Report. Generous support from the Polk Bros. Foundation supports school-based health at Ryerson and Henson Elementary Schools in the Humboldt Park / North Lawndale communities.

The Foundation’s support for health initiatives gives priority to programs that make services available to children and families in their communities and schools.

Children and youth face many barriers in accessing preventive health care services. They may lack insurance. Their parents may be uninformed about the need for routine check-ups. Teens may worry about confidentiality, preferring to avoid seeing a doctor rather than risk a parent finding out they have engaged in risky behavior. Recognizing these barriers, Erie Family Health Center operates school-based health centers that make high-quality, confidential, culturally competent care accessible for hundreds of Chicago public school students.

Erie’s health center at Ryerson Elementary School in Humboldt Park has served students and the surrounding community since 1993, providing more than 2,725 clinical visits in 2007. Recognizing that it may often take more than medical care to improve children’s health, the health center’s nurse/case manager also assists families with other pressing needs. She helps with enrollment in public benefit programs and links families with services to address housing and employment needs. She provides extensive health education, reaching every student in the school on topics including oral health, hygiene, fitness, reproductive health and asthma management.

For many years, Erie’s health center at Frazier Elementary School in North Lawndale provided expert medical and mental health care services to students and their families. When the school was closed, Erie worked quickly to ensure that students could continue receiving health care, moving the health center to nearby Henson Elementary. The Polk Bros. Foundation’s support for the Henson health center targets mental health services provided by a full-time social worker, who logged more than 600 visits in 2007. In addition to therapy for students, the social worker consults with teachers on classroom management techniques appropriate for students with ADHD and other behavior disorders and conducts parenting programs.

In bringing this wealth of services to students’ doorsteps, Erie can truly make a difference in their lives. Amy Valukas, Erie’s Director of School-Based Health and Health Promotion, stresses that school health centers are able to reach the most vulnerable students and their families, who might not otherwise receive health care. She explains, “by working in elementary schools, we are able to impact the health of young students, help them build resilience and coping skills, and support the entire family. Our goal is to help people learn to make healthy choices, which will benefit them throughout their lifetime.”

Article reproduced with permission from the Polk Bros. Foundation

October 7, 2007 — Un buen doctor

Centro de Salud Erie de Chicago Cumple 50 Años

Erie Celebrates 50 Years of Health Care for Chicago’s Communities

Erie Family Health Center está celebrando, con trabajo, medio siglo de vida atendiendo a la comunidad de bajos recursos, principalmente a los no asegurados… e inaugurando un nuevo centro de servicio dental en Humboldt Park.

Eduardo Alegría

Más de 35 mil pacientes al año desfilan por sus ocho centros médicos primarios, incluyendo tres centros de salud instalados en escuelas elementales, un centro para la salud del adolescente y otro de salud dental que se inaugurará en octubre de 2007 ubicado en el centro de salud de Humboldt Park, según anunció a UnBuenDoctor, Luz Jiménez, Vice President Clinical Operation del Erie West Town Health Center.

La misión del Erie Family Health Center es proporcionar cuidado médico primario a la comunidad con calidad sin importar color, credo, género, edad, lengua, o capacidad de pago de sus pacientes. Más allá del tratamiento de la enfermedad, este centro trabaja con la comunidad en la promoción del cuidado de la educación, capacitación del consumidor y otras formas de apoyo que fomente formas de vida más sanas.

Fundado en 1957 como un proyecto voluntario de la casa y de los médicos de la vecindad de Erie, este servicio de salud nació para servir a los residentes mayores de la ciudad del oeste. Con el paso de los años, con los cambios en la comunidad y una población cada vez más joven, el centro de salud se transformó en un centro de salud para toda la familia. En 1970, Erie fue incorporada formalmente y en 1983, fue señalado como un centro federal calificado de la salud (FQHC) después de recibir su primera concesión federal del departamento de Salud del gobierno de los Estados Unidos, como un centro de cuidado médico primario.

En estos momentos debido a los recortes del presupuesto del Condado de Cook, el Erie Family Health Center vio afectado su financiamiento por lo que fue uno de los afectados en recortar algunos de sus servicios.

“No se han recibido pacientes adultos nuevos para medicina interna, aunque hacemos excepciones según el caso del enfermo”, dijo Luz Jiménez, Vice President Clinical Operation del Erie West Town Health Center. “Por ahora no podemos por el número de doctores ya que hay demasiados pacientes. Hace dos años tuvimos estuvimos tratando de aumentar el número de pacientes, pero ello significó que se poblara de pacientes sin seguro médico y nos produjo un problema financiero. En ese entonces se tuvo que cerrar el servicio por un tiempo. Pero ahora ya estamos planeando reabrir las puertas en este periodo junio 2007-2008”, informó.

La representante reveló que sin embargo continúan recibiendo pacientes en otros servicios como pediatría, ginecología, programas sobre el sida y otros. “Sobre todo recibimos a las embarazadas”, acotó.

En Erie Family Health Center las especialidades que más demanda tienen son las del cuidado de la mujer y pediatría. Y en todos sus servicios los pacientes, los hispanos representan casi el 90% de la totalidad. “Y de ellos tenemos un alto número de no asegurados, más del 35%”, informó la entrevistada.

Los fondos que recibe esta institución provienen del condado de Cook, donantes privados como Aetna y otras empresas. Muy poco porcentaje de Medicare y seguro privados. Sin embargo, 66% de sus pacientes tienen Medicaid.

“Tenemos que tener un balance pero no se le niega atención a nadie aunque no pueda pagar. Pero por ahora se tuvo que cortar el ingreso de nuevos pacientes para poder seguir funcionando eficientemente”, agregó Jiménez.

El personal especializado casi en su totalidad habla español, así como las enfermeras, los trabajadores sociales, empleados administrativos, recepcionistas y operadoras telefónicas.

Como dice su slogan; “¡Estamos celebrando 50 años en un acontecimiento de una sola vez, pero con el año entero en nuestros centros de la salud!”

“Creemos que esto es una idea mejor que llevar a cabo en una sola fecha grande con una gala donde los patrocinadores corporativos no recibirían necesariamente la oportunidad directa de conectar a la comunidad”, dice en su página web al tiempo que pide a la comunidad ayuda para la continuación y la extensión de tres programas vitales: Programa prenatal, programa del cuidado de la diabetes y salud oral para los niños.

Para atender mejor

Erie West Town Health Center (1701 West Superior Street, 312-666-3494).

Erie Humboldt Park Health Center (2750 West North Avenue, 312-666-3494).

Erie Helping Hands Health Center (4759 North Kedzie, 773-588-9640).

Erie Teen Health Center (1523 West Chicago Avenue, 312-666-3494).

Erie Westside Health Center at Ryerson Elementary School (646 North. Lawndale, 312-666-3494).

Erie Henson Health Center (1326 South Avers, Rooms 106 & 107, 773-565-6909).

Jose de Diego School-Based Health Center (1313 N. Claremont, 312-666-3494).

Erie Dental Health Center (4751 North Kedzie, 312-432-4360)

Erie Family Health Center brinda atención sin importar su capacidad de pago en:

• Asistencia médica primaria
• Cuidado médico del comportamiento
• Cuidado médico oral
• Educación de salud
• Servicios de la gerencia del caso

Más información sobre todo tipo de enfermedades en la Biblioteca Nacional de Medicina en: http://medlineplus.gov/spanish/

Más información sobre el Control de enfermedades en: http://www.cdc.gov/spanish/

Más información sobre la Mejor forma de alimentarse en: http://www.mypyramid.gov/sp-index.html

Más información sobre la Alianza Nacional para la Salud de los Hispanos en: http://www.hispanichealth.org

Más información sobre el Cáncer en: http://www.cancer.org/docroot/ESP/ESP_0.asp

Más información sobre la Diabetes en: http://www.diabetes.org/espanol/default.jsp

Más información sobre Enfermedades renales en: http://www.kidneyfund.org/fpa_spanish.asp

Más información sobre el Programa de donantes de órganos en: http://www.giftofhope.org/espanol/index.htm

Más información sobre Enfermedades del corazón y el pulmón en: http://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/

Más información sobre Enfermedades mentales en: http://www.nimh.nih.gov/

Más información sobre Enfermedad del Sida-AIDS o HIV en: http://www.nia.nih.gov/HealthInformation/Publications/hiv-aids-sp.htm

Más información sobre Salud del Niño en: http://www.nichd.nih.gov/

Más información sobre Abuso de drogas en: http://www.nida.nih.gov/

Más información sobre Abuso del alcohol en: http://www.niaaa.nih.gov/

Más información sobre Alergias y enfermedades infecciosas en: http://www3.niaid.nih.gov/

March 2008 Un Buen Doctor

Erie Celebrates Grand Opening of New Humboldt Park Oral Health Center

Erie Family Health Center will celebrate its 50th anniversary with the grand opening of the first community oral health clinic in Humboldt Park on March 6; the clinic expects to provide 3,600 visits to uninsured or underserved patients in its first year.

written by Eduardo Alegrí­a
translated by Rachel Dziallo

This grand opening will be a true celebration, as the dental center has been long awaited by the local Puerto Rican community. The guest of honor is State Representative Cynthia Soto, who helped Erie Family Health Center obtain $650,000 from the Illinois Department of Public Health to open the dental center.

The day of the grand opening (March 6, 2008) will be one of many emotions, especially since the project has long been a goal of Erie Family Health Center. With the support of Representative Soto and other contributions, like that of the Illinois Children’s Healthcare Foundation, the dream of a quality community oral health clinic has been realized.

Since health centers financed by Cook County and the City of Chicago are limited in their ability to open their services to everyone, this dental clinic hopes to help those who are missed by the system, and give them quality health care.

Many studies have revealed that Hispanic children in Illinois have the lowest cavity-free rate. Therefore, the clinic will aim to serve low-income, Hispanic children. Additionally, Erie’s Oral Health Needs Assessment conducted in 2007 showed that 82% of pregnant women served by Erie had cavities, with an average of 6 cavities each. Therefore, pregnant women will be the second focus of the clinic.

Erie Dental Health Center in Humboldt Park will offer a very important service, given that only 25% of dentists in Illinois accept Medicaid as a form of payment. There is a scarcity of dental health clinics in the health care safety net. In fact, only four Chicago Department of Public Health dentists offer services to uninsured or underserved patients.

Furthermore, 19% of adults in Chicago have not seen a dentist in over a year, which inevitably takes a toll on medical visits.

“Erie is committed to expanding access to quality oral health care for the underserved. Erie’s new dental center in Humboldt Park will change the lives of our patients—from the child who misses school due to pain caused by an untreated cavity, to the pregnant woman whose gums will not stop bleeding. This new dental center will stabilize the oral health of patients and improve their quality of life,” said Lee Francis, MD, MPH, President and CEO of Erie Family Health Center.

Erie Family Health Center was founded in 1957 by doctors from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The sixteen members of their Board of Directors include nine community residents, who are also patients of Erie.

To see the full article in Spanish, go to:
http://www.unbuendoctor.com/detalle_articulos.asp?idenfermedad=624&tipo=4

April 2008 IPHCA oral health release

Healthsource Highlights Opening of Erie Dental Health Center in Humboldt Park

Erie Family Health Center celebrated the opening of its new community dental center in Humboldt Park—the first of its kind in the community—at a celebration on Thursday, March 6, 2008. The center is expected to provide over 3,660 dental visits in the first year to hundreds of low-income women and children.

The event honored State Representative Cynthia Soto who was instrumental in obtaining $650,000 from the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to open the dental center. IDPH and the Illinois Children’s Healthcare Foundation were also honored for their roles in the project.

“Erie is committed to expanding access to quality oral health care for the underserved. Erie’s new dental center in Humboldt Park will change the lives of our patients – from the child who misses school due to pain caused by an untreated cavity, to the pregnant woman whose gums will not stop bleeding. This new dental center will stabilize the oral health of patients and improve their quality of life,” says Erie Family Health Center’s President and CEO, Lee Francis, MD, MPH.

As health care resources in Cook County and the city of Chicago become scarce, Erie’s new dental center is a direct response to the need for high quality, affordable oral health services on Chicago’s west side. Hispanic children in Illinois have the lowest “cavity free” rate (Illinois Department of Public Health, 2004). Furthermore, Erie’s Oral Health Needs Assessment conducted in 2007 revealed that 82 percent of Erie’s pregnant women have cavities, with an average of six cavities each. Erie Dental Health Center-Humboldt Park fills a tremendous service gap in the community.

As the first community dental center in the community, Erie Dental Health Center-Humboldt Park will provide children and pregnant women with the oral health care they so desperately need, regardless of ability to pay. “It is not easy for me to trust just anyone, especially when it comes to my health. The staff here has made me feel very comfortable, everyone makes me feel important, and I am given the best care and attention – more than I could ask for,” said Maria, a patient of the center in Humboldt Park.

Erie Family Health Center was founded in 1957 by physicians from Northwestern Memorial Hospital. Its 16-member board of directors includes nine community residents, who are patients of Erie.

Reference: Illinois Department of Public Health. (2004) Oral health: A link to general health. Retrieved March 5, 2008, from http://www.idph.state.il.us/HealthWellness/oralhlth/BurdenDocument.pdf.