Archive for category: General Information

By Kelly D. Kreisler, MD, MPH, FAAP, Chief Health Officer and Pediatrician, Health Partnership Clinic

As the weather starts to change, the news is once again featuring pumpkin spice, political turmoil and the upcoming “tripledemic”. The term tripledemic became commonly used in 2022 and refers to the circulation of influenza, RSV and COVID-19 viruses in the community at the same time. The increased hospitalizations from all three viruses can put a severe strain on a healthcare system that is already struggling to maintain appropriate staffing levels. All three of these viruses can be deadly for all ages.

Influenza

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimates that during 2021-2022 flu season, flu vaccination prevented nearly 1,000 deaths. In the 2022-2023 season, more than 100 children died from influenza. Ninety percent of the children who died were not fully vaccinated. A fact that surprises many people is that nearly half of these children had no known medical conditions which put them at risk for serious complications of the flu. Most people know older adults die from influenza, but fewer people are aware healthy children die from the flu every year. Influenza is usually contagious one day before symptoms appear, meaning it is possible to spread the illness to someone at high risk before you know you are sick. The bottom line is vaccination against influenza prevents illness, hospitalizations and saves lives.

Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV)

RSV causes mild cold symptoms in most people, but it can have very serious consequences for many people. Every year in the U.S., more than 50,000 children younger than five years old are hospitalized with RSV, and more than 60,000 adults 65 and older are hospitalized with RSV. The first RSV vaccine for adults ages 60 and older was approved by the FDA in June 2023 and is available locally at some pharmacies. In addition, a new monoclonal antibody was approved for all infants under eight months and certain high-risk infants eight to 19 months during the RSV season. Stay tuned for more information about how HPC is working to get vaccines for all our patients.

COVID 19

Updated COVID-19 vaccines were approved on September 11, 2023. The new vaccine was authorized for six months and older, and everyone ages six months and older is recommended to receive at least one dose this year (if it has been at least two months since your last COVID vaccine). Vaccines will soon be available at HPC for all our patients and staff regardless of insurance status. Remember the best way to avoid severe COVID-19 infection is to stay up to date with vaccines.

Besides getting vaccinated each year, here are good health habits to protect yourself:

1. Stay home when you are sick.
2. Cover your mouth and nose.
3. Clean your hands.
4. A void touching your eyes, nose or mouth.
5. Practice other good habits: Get plenty of sleep, be physically active, manage your stress, drink plenty of fluids and eat nutritious foods.

Once the vaccines arrive, the clinic will notify patients and the community via our patient portal, Facebook and website, hpcks.org.

To schedule your vaccine or for more information, call 913-648-2266.

By Catherine Rice, Vice President of Marketing/Outreach

2022 marked Health Partnership Clinic’s (HPC) 30 years of providing accessible, affordable and quality health care to those less fortunate in the communities we serve. To honor and celebrate our staff, patients, partners, community leaders and supporters, monthly activities were planned.

Activities ranged from distributing specially designed “heart” t-shirts to our staff, volunteers and board, Silly Hat Day, coloring and video contests at Olathe and Shawnee Mission School Districts, Staff Thank You Campaign, Opening Doors Fundraising Luncheon, National Health Center Week, a Time Capsule and a 30-Day Gratitude Campaign. To wrap up the year, staff and board received a 30^th celebration ornament and branded apparel and enjoyed a fun holiday party.

My team and I coordinated all the events. To say the least, it was a huge undertaking but well worth the time and effort! Sharing our story and celebrating our past provides a way to connect with our communities and continue to build awareness of who we are and who we serve.

For me, this last year has been a time of reflection of where we have been and how much we have accomplished. As we welcome a new year, I look forward to the good that is yet to be and encourage readers to get to know HPC if you don’t already. We are an extraordinary organization providing extraordinary medical, dental and behavioral health care to those who are low income and seeking a medical home.

Here are my Top 30 Reasons I Love HPC:

1. We are dedicated to improving the health of the communities we serve through the provision of high quality, affordable, accessible and culturally appropriate care to all individuals regardless of ability to pay. HPC is committed to serving as a vehicle for collaboration among community partners as a critical aspect of meeting our mission.
2. We have nearly 60 employees who give their all for our patients. Working in a federally qualified health center is hard work with daily challenges, including staffing and limited supplies. However, our team is always present and willing to take on the challenge with grace and professionalism. Personally, I am fortunate to work with individuals in my department who are creative and have outstanding communication and follow-up skills.
3. We have a small but mighty group of donors who understand the work we do. The area hospitals, businesses and individual donors support our annual appeal and annual luncheon fundraiser. These dollars help offset our growing uninsured population. In addition, we have individuals and groups who help support our patients through in-kind donations such as backpacks, socks, homeless hygiene kits and flu/cold kits. This giving spirit is inspiring!
4. We serve more than 10,000 patients from across Johnson, Miami and Franklin Counties. It equates to about 24,000 visits each year. That is a lot of individuals coming through our doors to access medical, dental and behavioral health care. It also includes those we serve in our school-based clinic and outreach efforts.
5. The foundations and federal and state agencies that support us with funding are key to our success. We provide more than $3 million in uncompensated care each year. The need is great!
6. Community Organizations. Our success rides on our relationships with community organizations that help support our patients. From Catholic Charities to Mission Southside to Salvation Army and El Centro to United Way, together we work to improve the health of our communities.
7. Refugee Program. In July, we saw our first refugee, a 19-year-old Ukrainian. We provide refugees with general medical exams and evaluate referral needs beyond our clinic walls.
8. We have two outstanding volunteers working in the Marketing and Outreach Department as well as a few who work off-site. We are blessed to have these individuals who do everything from assembling packets and gift bags to attending events to labeling our dental bags and inputting data.
9. Hypertension Initiative. We have a new program that educates and reduces the impact of hypertension among our patients. It is another way we are working to reverse adverse health risks.
10. School-Based Health Clinic at Shawnee Mission West High School. Providing onsite care is filling a huge gap for those who cannot access health care and ensures students are school ready.
11. Portable Dental Outreach. Our Dental Team visited nearly 20 elementary schools in Olathe and Shawnee Mission School Districts providing screenings and fluoride treatments.
12. Responding to COVID. We are still responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic with test kits, vaccines and testing.
13. Dedicated to Improvement. This year staff are working on a Dramatic Performance Improvement (DPI) initiative…all aimed to improve patient care.
14. The clinic received HRSA’s Health Care Program’s Community Health Quality Recognition badges. One of the recognition awards was the Silver Award which recognizes the top 20 percent of community health centers in the nation.
15. Mobile Mammography. The clinic partners with Diagnostic Imaging Center’s Mobile Mammography coach to visit our Olathe site to provide mammograms to low income and uninsured women nearly every month.
16. Adult Vaccines. Thanks to a grant from the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, the clinic now provides free adult vaccines to sliding fee discount qualified patients and homeless adults, 19 and older. These vaccines include hepatitis, pneumonic and tetanus as well as flu and COVID.
17. All Are Welcomed. This year, almost 60 percent of our patients have no insurance. The need is great, and our doors are always open. Since opening in 1992, we have provided an estimated 390,000 patient visits.
18. Peds Walk-In Clinic. We are always looking at ways to improve accessibility. The Peds Walk-In Clinic is open Monday-Friday in the mornings at the Olathe location.
19. Senior Leadership Team. Our team of senior leaders, who are all dedicated to the mission, are always willing to step in and help. My colleagues are professional, flexible and adaptable. It’s a pleasure to be part of this team.
20. HPC is always willing to partner with others to improve or expand the care we provide. From Johnson County Mental Health to Johnson County Corrections to Blue Valley School District and many others, we are all working together toward the same goals—to make our community healthier and more sustainable.
21. QI/Finance Committees. We have dedicated board members and staff who serve on monthly committees…all focused on improving patient care, patient satisfaction and financial sustainability.
22. Community Involvement. Senior leaders and staff members serve on numerous coalitions and committees and are members of the Lions and Optimist Clubs.
23. Our patients, who have often experienced childhood trauma, really look to us for their health care needs and beyond. In addition, we help them whenever possible with wraparound services—serving as a crucial community resource.
24. People Experiencing Homelessness. We are the designated medical home in Johnson

County for individuals and families experiencing homelessness. This means our health services—medical, dental and behavioral health—are available free of charge to those who qualify. This service also extends to unsheltered people in Franklin and Miami counties.

25. Free Insurance Enrollment. We have a great team who provides help in enrollment for Medicaid (KanCare) or Marketplace. And it’s free!
26. Mobile Integrated Health. A clinic nurse practitioner and a firefighter/paramedic staff the Olathe Mobile Integrated Health Team. They help match people with the right resources at the right time, including making connections to government and other resources for food and transportation services. They also provide non-emergency health services to Olathe residents for free. This is a partnership between HPC, Olathe Health and Olathe Fire Department.
27. SafeHome and Growing Futures. A team of staff provide direct patient care at Safehome monthly, and we also provide physicals, immunizations, lead screenings and dental screenings to preschoolers at Growing Futures Early Education Center.
28. Dental Care in Ottawa. We provide dental services to our pediatric patients twice a month at our Ottawa location. Most of our dental services are provided at the Olathe location.
29. Community Outreach. Each year, our Marketing team and other staff members attend nearly 50 community health fairs and events—with the goal of educating the community about our services and the impact we are making. Events include back to school nights, Paola’s SOS event and resource fairs.
30. The future looks bright at HPC. I am looking forward to developing new relationships and partnerships and strengthening those we already have and most of all, continuing to live our mission. I love that we make a difference in people’s lives!

HPC will observe the following holiday hours:

Monday, Dec. 26 (Christmas Day) CLOSED
Monday, Jan. 2, (New Year’s Day) CLOSED

 

 

By Catherine Rice, Vice President of Marketing/Outreach

With the flu already on the rise, concerns for another wave of COVID-19 cases and a spike in RSV (common respiratory virus), it’s critical to keep hands clean and prevent viruses from spreading. It’s one of those everyday precautions besides covering your coughs and sneezes and avoiding close contact when you are feeling unwell.

At Health Partnership Clinic, we follow several proactive steps to ensure the safety of our staff and patients. On the top of the list is frequent handwashing. At home, it is equally important. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) provides several useful tips and reminders to keep you and your family healthy.

Remember, handwashing is one of the best ways to protect yourself and your family from getting sick—that goes for COVID, the flu, RSV and colds!

How Germs Spread

Washing hands can keep you healthy and prevent the spread of respiratory and diarrheal infections from one person to the next. Germs can spread from other people or surfaces when you:

• Touch your eyes, nose, and mouth with unwashed hands
• Prepare or eat food and drinks with unwashed hands
• Touch a contaminated surface or objects
• Blow your nose, cough, or sneeze into hands and then touch other people’s hands or common objects

Key Times to Wash Hands

You can help yourself and your loved ones stay healthy by washing your hands often, especially during these key times when you are likely to get and spread germs:

• Before, during, and after preparing food
• Before eating food
• Before and after caring for someone at home who is sick with vomiting or diarrhea
• Before and after treating a cut or wound
• After using the toilet
• After changing diapers or cleaning up a child who has used the toilet
• After blowing your nose, coughing, or sneezing
• After touching an animal, animal feed, or animal waste
• After handling pet food or pet treats
• After touching garbage

It is also recommended that you should clean hands:

• After you have been in a public place and touched an item or surface that may be frequently touched by other people, such as door handles, tables, gas pumps, shopping carts, or electronic cashier registers/screens, etc.
• Before touching your eyes, nose, or mouth because that’s how germs enter our bodies.

Follow Five Steps to Wash Your Hands the Right Way

Washing your hands is easy, and it’s one of the most effective ways to prevent the spread of germs. Clean hands can stop germs from spreading from one person to another and throughout an entire community—from your home and workplace to childcare facilities and hospitals and clinics.

Follow these five steps every time.

1. Wet your hands with clean, running water (warm or cold), turn off the tap, and apply soap.
2. Lather your hands by rubbing them together with the soap. Lather the backs of your hands, between your fingers, and under your nails.
3. Scrub your hands for at least 20 seconds. Need a timer? Hum the “Happy Birthday” song from beginning to end twice.
4. Rinse your hands well under clean, running water.
5. Dry your hands using a clean towel or air dry them.

Washing hands with soap and water is the best way to get rid of germs in most situations. If soap and water are not readily available, you can use an alcohol-based hand sanitizer that contains at least 60 percent alcohol. You can tell if the sanitizer contains at least 60 percent alcohol by looking at the product label. Remember to keep hand sanitizer out of reach of young children and supervise their use. Swallowing alcohol-based hand sanitizer can cause alcohol poisoning.

Get the whole family involved in handwashing.

HPC has developed an easy-to-follow tip sheet for children. Check it out!