APRIL 2010 Issue

New safety net clinic opens in the Northland

On March 1, Samuel U. Rodgers, a Federally Qualified Health Center, opened a new safety net clinic in conjunction with Northland Health Care Access. The clinic is located at 4820A North Oak Trafficway in Kansas City, Mo. Daytime clinic hours are 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, and 8 a.m. to noon on Wednesday. Evening hours are Tuesday and Thursday until 7 p.m. Services include primary care for adults and children.   

Northland residents are already making use of the clinic, which is serving approximately 20 patients each day. The clinic is funded through a partnership with Northland Health Care Access and Kansas City Health Levy Funds. Evening hours are funded in part through a grant from the REACH Healthcare Foundation and the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City. The clinic is staffed with a full time physician, nurse practitioner and licensed practical nurse, as well as administrative support staff. Appointments may be scheduled by calling 816-413-0662.

New Health Resource Guides are available now

The free Health Resource Guide provides a wealth of information about free and low-cost health care in Greater Kansas City. The guide is updated every six months and includes area safety net providers listed by state (Kansas and Missouri), along with the services offered by each provider, including the availability of medical services, hours of operation, eligibility requirements and contact information for appointments. The guide offers this information in both English and Spanish.

The updated guide is available online at www.kchealthresource.org. To order hard copies, please contact Traci Rowland, 816-701-8292. 

Dr. Jim Walton to address health care stakeholders in Kansas City

On April 29 and 30, the Health Council of Wyandotte County will sponsor a variety of stakeholder meetings that will provide an overview of the work of Jim Walton, D.O., M.B.A., vice president of health equity at Baylor Health Care System in Dallas. Dr. Walton has worked for more than 15 years to align and expand the Dallas safety net system of health care for the uninsured and medically vulnerable.

His efforts include the development of a comprehensive volunteer health care delivery program for the uninsured; considerable work related to the alignment of hospitals and safety net providers to share resources in caring for patients with chronic diseases; a low-cost pharmaceutical distribution program; utilization of community health workers to help patients navigate the safety net system; and a comprehensive health literacy program with support services for patients with diabetes. Portions of his work have already been replicated by Lawrence Memorial Hospital and a synopsis of his work is available on the American Hospital Association website.
 
For more information on the April 29–30 meeting schedule, please contact Traci Rowland, 816-701-8292. An overview of Dr. Walton’s presentations will be available in our May e-newsletter. 

Saint Luke’s Health System collaborates with local artists to support the homeless

This month, Saint Luke’s Health System launched a collaborative effort with “Artists Helping the Homeless,” a local nonprofit organization with a record of successfully advocating for individuals who are homeless. 

Saint Luke’s helped secure a grant that will pay for a one-year pilot transportation project, said Liz Levin, vice president of charity management at Saint Luke’s Health System. The “Be the Change” van provides homeless persons with transportation to shelters, food assistance locations, and other resources such as legal services and appropriate medical and mental health care. 

In its first month of operation, the van provided a total of 44 rides to 17 individuals in the community. Saint Luke’s initiated 66 percent of these rides to provide transportation to shelters, detox units and mental health facilities. Local artist Kar Woo is the director of the project, which is funded through the generosity of the Homer McWilliams Memorial Hospital Trust, Bank of America, trustee, and the Saint Luke’s Hospital Foundation.  For more information on this project, please contact Kar Woo or visit www.artistshelpingthehomeless.com. 

Swope Health South Clinic to open in South Kansas City

The city of Kansas City, Mo., in partnership with Swope Health Services and the Local Investment Commission (LINC), announced the selection of a site for a new safety net clinic in South Kansas City. The Swope Health South Clinic will be located at 8821 Troost Ave.

The site was chosen from 33 potential locations reviewed by a selection committee that included representatives from LINC; the Kansas City, Mo., Health Department; and Swope Health Services. The selection committee considered a variety of factors, including health indicators, transportation, accessibility and a feasibility study conducted by LINC.

The Swope Health South Clinic will be funded in part by a $320,000 grant from the Health Care Foundation of Greater Kansas City, with another $200,000 provided by the city. The remainder of the funding for the clinic is expected to come from Medicare and Medicaid reimbursements and copayments.

“Meeting the Challenges of Underinsurance” symposium

On April 6, more than 100 people attended a symposium in Topeka that addressed health care reform and the uninsured and underinsured in Kansas. Sandy Praeger, commissioner of the Kansas Insurance Department, was the keynote speaker.

Commissioner Praeger outlined the changes that Kansans can expect to see during the next five years as health reform legislation is implemented. (See fact sheet.) She also specifically discussed the implications of the elimination of pre-existing condition exclusions for children and adults. 

Sharon Barfield, an analyst for the Kansas Health Institute, provided additional information that was gathered from a survey of 100 underinsured Kansans to obtain a snapshot of their experiences. Results indicated that the majority of those surveyed did not realize their health insurance was inadequate until they had trouble paying medical bills or were denied coverage.  Generally, most survey respondents indicated that their plans were inadequate in proportion to their health care needs; others said their benefits were inadequate in relation to their income. For more information regarding this study, please contact the Kansas Health Institute. 

Federal Health Information Technology Strategic Plan update

The Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology (ONC), part of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, is developing a vision for nationwide, interoperable health information technology. The Federal Health IT Strategic Plan was first published in June 2008.  The 2009 Health Information Technology for Economic and Clinical Health (HITECH) Act — part of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act — requires the ONC to update the 2008 plan. 

The updated plan will outline objectives, milestones and metrics related to health information exchange and associated privacy and security protections. It will also address electronic health record utilization and reducing health disparities for underserved populations.  It will primarily address the time period of 2011 through 2015, but also will lay the groundwork for continued innovation and progress beyond 2015.   

The ONC recently asked for public input as they develop a detailed framework that will include goals, principles, objectives, strategies and tactics for this effort. The HIT Policy Committee and the ONC staff will carefully review all comments received and consider how to incorporate public input into the strategic framework and ultimately into the plan update.