CHAD Connection November 17, 2023

In early November, CHAD’s Board of Directors and senior staff reconnected in beautiful Spearfish Canyon to consider our long-term goals and how to work together more effectively – also known as strategic planning. The mood of the conversation reflected a sense that we have weathered the pandemic and are ready to turn our attention to new challenges and opportunities. There was also a sense of having been a bit battered by the events of the last three years, resulting in a need to rebuild internal systems, figure out how to sustain the salary increases that were needed to retain staff and respond to community needs, and meet the challenge of doing our work in an environment of a depleted workforce.

We’ll look forward to sharing a finalized strategic plan over the next few months, but I thought I would share a few themes that emerged. As expected, ways to respond to the workforce shortages in the Dakotas dominated the conversation. We discussed ways to grow our own through apprenticeships and career laddering and ways to keep good staff through leadership development. There was a lot of pride expressed in the care models that we have built, but also a need to be strategic about how we sustain that model over time. Continuing to grow access to care was a theme along with the idea of keeping health equity as a north star through quality improvement and whole-person care. Finally, it was great to see a commitment from the board to the continued development of CHAD as an organization by investing in our staff.

I came away from the conversation with a better understanding of what health centers in the Dakotas are facing and with tons of ideas for what we can do next. I look forward to expanding the conversation with our network teams, partners, and the rest of our staff to develop innovative strategies for the months and years ahead.

The Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) has announced the 2023 Community Health Quality Recognition (CHQR) badge awardees. CHQR badges recognize Health Center Program awardees who have made notable achievements in the areas of access, quality, health equity, health information technology, social risk factors screening, and COVID-19 public health emergency response using Uniform Data System (UDS) data from the most recent reporting period. This special recognition honors the health centers across the country that have attained the best overall clinical quality performance.

Congratulations to the following CHAD members for receiving 2023 CHQR badge awards:

The House of Representatives has passed a laddered continuing resolution (CR) which includes an extension of community health center mandatory funding through January 19, 2024. At the writing of this newsletter, Senate leaders have vowed to pass the CR quickly. Health centers rely on federal funding to fulfill their mission of providing high-quality primary and preventive care to all individuals, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay. CHAD continues to advocate for Congress to re-invest in long-term health center funding. To learn more and get involved:

Follow @HCAdvocacy on Twitter & Facebook
Join CHAD’s Health Center Advocacy Action Team
Contact James Craig, Policy and Partnership Manager with CHAD, at jcraig@communityhealthcare.net

Joining in October, Brandon develops and implements CHAD’s branding and communications strategy and manages creative and cross-departmental projects. He develops innovative communications plans, marketing initiatives, and strategic awareness campaigns to support staff and member health centers. Brandon’s passion for quality of life and wellness/well-being for all is what he loves about being with CHAD. 

Before joining CHAD, Brandon worked for the City of Sioux Falls where he led marketing and communications efforts for the parks and recreation department and other city departments and helped garner multiple awards and accolades. Brandon has also led marketing and communications at WrapAbility, Carsforsale.com, Sanford Health, and the City of Grand Prairie, Texas. He also works as a freelance graphic designer, illustrator, and photographer.

Since joining in October, Anh has been developing communications and marketing content for CHAD. Currently, she is developing and implementing communications and marketing content that includes graphic design, copywriting, and social media. Anh will work with community health centers and internal CHAD staff to effectively share health center stories that will successfully evolve community needs and experiences.

Prior to joining CHAD, Anh worked in the entertainment industry, where she conducted extensive research on newsworthy events, established and grew social media presence, built relationships, and consulted with clients during pre and post-production to fulfill their needs.

CHAD invites members and partners to raise awareness and recognize diabetes this November. The National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) focus for 2023 is on taking action to prevent diabetes health problems. Diabetes is a disease that occurs when your blood glucose, also called blood sugar, is too high. It affects about 37 million Americans, including adults and youth. Diabetes can damage the eyes, kidneys, nerves, and heart, and it is linked to some types of cancer.

Health centers play a vital role in the communities they serve to screen, address social determinants of health, and provide diabetes education, resources, and self-management tools for patients to achieve better outcomes and healthier living with diabetes. About 9 percent of adults in North Dakota and 11 percent of adults in South Dakota live with diabetes. Of these, an estimated 21,000 have diabetes but don’t know it, greatly increasing their health risk. The prevalence of diabetes has been steadily increasing for the past several years in both states.

North Dakota Diabetes Prevention Program and the South Dakota Diabetes Prevention Program work to educate the public and promote healthy choices. They address

Self-assessment of the risk factors for pre-diabetes and diabetes;
Diabetes self-management strategies and resources; and,
Awareness of recommended care options, including evidence-based programs like the National Diabetes prevention program and the Diabetes Self-Management Education and Support (DSMES).

Diabetes Fact Sheets

North Dakota Patient and Provider Resources for Diabetes

South Dakota Diabetes Program | South Dakota Department of Health (sd.gov)

Since their founding, health centers have responded to the social drivers of health – those non-medical factors that directly impact health outcomes. More recently, many health centers have begun proactively screening patients for these social risk factors utilizing tools such as PRAPARE, which includes questions about housing stability.

A recent article highlighted that North Dakota has, “the largest racial gap in the nation when it comes to owning a home.” According to the High Plains Fair Housing Center, North Dakota’s gap is more than 20 percent higher than the U.S. average. The Center’s intake specialists assist people across North Dakota who are experiencing housing discrimination of any kind. This includes landlord mediation and other forms of assistance. To learn more or make a referral, visit www.highplainsfhc.org.

A new funding opportunity is available for South Dakota-based organizations working to abate and alleviate the impacts of the opioid crisis and co-occurring substance use challenges in South Dakota communities. This funding is part of the National Settlement Agreement involving a number of pharmaceutical companies. Allowable activities must align with the Approved Uses for the Settlement Funds.

Applications will be accepted beginning March 1, 2024. In the interim, the “Preparing to Apply” and FAQ document are available online.

In a Senate Finance Health Subcommittee hearing on November 14, Senator Thune highlighted the important role of health centers as telehealth providers. “During the pandemic, Congress suspended Medicare’s distant site requirement for Federally Qualified Health Centers and rural health clinics in South Dakota that enabled our health clinics to strengthen local access to care by building telehealth connectivity between remote, rural, and frontier sites,” stated Senator Thune. CHAD was appreciative to see the Senator’s comments, and we will continue to advocate for the permanent elimination of distant site restrictions on health centers.

Health care organizations confront a dual challenge as the holiday season approaches: meeting increased patient care demands while safeguarding sensitive health data from cyber threats. With the surge in online activities and remote work, cybercriminals are exploiting new tactics, underscoring the need for heightened vigilance.

Key Cybersecurity Threats:

Phishing Scams: Cybercriminals use holiday-themed emails to deceive recipients, leading them to malware-infected sites or phishing pages that steal login credentials.
Ransomware Attacks: The prevalence of ransomware in health care is rising, disrupting patient care and causing substantial financial losses by encrypting data until a ransom is paid.
Supply Chain Attacks: Third-party vendors serving health care organizations become targets, allowing cybercriminals access to sensitive patient data or disruption of critical services.

Protective Measures:

Employee Education: Regularly train employees on recognizing and avoiding phishing, ransomware, and other online threats.
Strong Password Policies: Enforce robust password requirements and implement multi-factor authentication (MFA) to prevent unauthorized system access.
Regular Software Updates: Keep software and systems current with the latest security patches to address vulnerabilities.
Cybersecurity Assessments: Conduct routine vulnerability scans and penetration tests to identify and address potential security weaknesses, including physical documents containing sensitive information.

Additional Tips:

Exercise caution with email attachments and links, even from trusted sources.
Avoid using public Wi-Fi for accessing sensitive health care data.
Immediately report any suspicious activity or cybersecurity incidents to the IT department.

By adopting proactive measures and staying alert, health care organizations can safeguard patient data, ensuring uninterrupted quality care throughout the holiday season and beyond.

Azara MAP Learning Series

Are your patients’ blood pressure control rates plateauing or trending in the wrong direction? If so, this is the learning series for you. AMA MAP™ BP is a leading evidence-based quality improvement (QI) program that provides a clear path to significant, sustained improvements in blood pressure (BP) control. Learn how to leverage the components of the program, aligned with complimentary workflows available in DRVS to produce improved BP control for the population you serve.

AMA MAP BP Overview - Access Recording here

Describe how the AMA MAP™ BP metric bundle can be used to guide improvement in blood pressure control
Demonstrate DRVS functionality that can assist in managing your hypertensive population

Measure Accurately & Partner with Patients
Identify how the AMA MAPTM process metrics for measuring BP accurately and partnering with patients work in conjunction with interventions to improve BP control
Apply DRVS functionality to guide improvement with these processes

Thursday, November 30
1:00 pm CT/12:00 pm MT
Register here

UDS Open Q&A – Table 6A

Join Azara to review your UDS questions!

Tuesday, November 28
1:00 pm CT/12:00 pm MT
Register here

CMS Marketplace Open Enrollment Period Partner Webinars
December 13, January 10, January 31 | 2:00 pm CT 

Join CMS for the 2024 Marketplace Open Enrollment Webinars. CMS will provide partners, stakeholders, and Champions for Coverage with critical information, resources, and updated materials to successfully help consumers navigate the Health Insurance Marketplace Open Enrollment Period. Open enrollment runs from November 1, 2023 to January 15, 2024. This series includes three webinars, each scheduled for 2:00 pm CT, on the following dates: December 13, 2023, January 10, and January 31, 2024. To register for the webinars in the series, please click here.

CHAD Network Team and Workgroup Meetings

Tuesday, November 28 @ 3:00 pm CT/2:00 pm MT – CFO and Finance Manager Roundtable
Wednesday, November 29 @ 12:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT – DAETC Lunch and Learn

Monday, December 4 @ 1:00 pm CT/12:00pm CT – Operational Excellence/Compliance Workgroup

Tuesday, December 5 @ 12:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT – Behavioral Health Work Group

Wednesday, December 6 @ 12:00pm CT/11:00am MT – Health Center Advocacy Action Team
Thursday, December 7 @ 12:00 pm CT/11:00 am MT – Clinical Quality Network Team