Health Fundamentals Newsletter

An online newsletter published by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.

Volume 1 - Issue 2 - July 22, 2004

Access to Health Care

Working to make professional health care available to all

Kansans Take Part in Cover the Uninsured Week, May 10-16, 2004

For one week in May, more than 70 diverse organizations in Kansas joined together as part of the national Cover the Uninsured Week to raise awareness about the number of Kansans without health insurance. From May 10 – 16 events took place throughout the state, from Wyandotte County to Russell, ranging from health fairs, to a small business seminar to interfaith activities.

In conjunction with many of the events, news articles and segments appeared in many media outlets throughout the state, including the Kansas City Star, Wichita Eagle, Hutchinson News, Topeka Capital Journal, and TV stations in Pittsburg, Topeka and Wichita.

Other highlights included:

The KPTS/Smoky Hills/KTWU documentary, “Kansas Uncovered: Living Without Insurance,” which aired on May 9th and 16th. The program told the story of who the uninsured are in our state, and how precarious many of us are when it comes to health insurance coverage. A second call-in program provided advice and resources for people without health insurance and promoted discussion of the health insurance crisis by policymakers.
Nurse dramatist Julie Russell from the Kansas City area performed at three events, bringing to life the stories of Kansans without health insurance.
Two press conferences – one with Governor Kathleen Sebelius and Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger in Topeka and another in the emergency room at Via Christi-St. Francis in Wichita, anchored the week’s activities. In addition, Bob Day and Karen Braman, with the Kansas Office of Health Planning and Finance, responded to several media inquiries throughout the week. And teams in Topeka and Wichita visited with editorial boards at their local newspapers, discussing the complexities of the health care crisis in Kansas and the country.
A Small Business Seminar provided options for employers when it comes to providing health insurance to their employees.
In Wichita, five of the six “safety net” clinics provided free screenings for almost 50 people during a Health and Enrollment Fair at the Center for Health and Wellness. Free giveaways and treats, and a live remote with a local urban radio station, provided a friendly backdrop for reaching people who were in need of care.
From the Muslim, Jewish and Christian faiths, there was a time for prayer and reflection about the moral and ethical struggles of having so many neighbors, families and friends without health insurance. The goal was that faith leaders who attended these breakfasts would take the “call to action” back to their congregations to continue to raise awareness that will lead to action in the coming months.

Cover the Uninsured Week is the largest nationwide effort to promote the goal of affordable health care coverage for all Americans. Kansas activities were part of a non-partisan effort to make it a priority to find solutions for the nearly 44 million Americans, including 317,000 Kansans, who have no health insurance. In Kansas, the events were supported by grants from the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund and the Kansas Health Foundation.

For more information, visit the project website at:

www.covertheuninsuredweek.org

Kansas Uncovered Documentary Available

The KPTS/Smoky Hills/KTWU documentary "Kansas Uncovered: Living Without Insurance" mentioned in the above article is available to interested viewers. To receive a copy, contact the Health Fund at 620-662-8586. We will arrange for a copy of the video to be sent to you.

Oral Health

Working to improve oral health through education, prevention, and access to care

Hutchinson Approves Water Fluoridation Ordinance

The Hutchinson City Council this month took action to improve the oral health of Hutchinson residents by approving an ordinance to fluoridate the city’s water. The ordinance, which was approved by a unanimous vote of the council members, is contingent on the receipt of a Health Fund grant to cover the start-up costs of fluoridation. The Health Fund has offered Hutchinson a $247,534 grant to pay for the equipment and related costs to bring the public water supply to the optimum level of fluoride for the prevention of tooth decay. Fluoride, long proven to help prevent tooth decay, is naturally present at some level in almost all water supplies, but often needs to be supplemented to bring the fluoride up to the optimum level for the prevention of tooth decay. The fluoridation ordinance will take effect on receipt of the Health Fund grant unless opponents are able to come up with sufficient signatures to force a referendum ballot and persuade enough citizens to vote against the benefits of fluoridation.

To learn more about water fluoridation, view our Fluoridation FAQ

Oral Health Grants Available from the Health Fund

The Health Fund has recently issued a new Request for Proposals (RFP) offering funding to projects aimed at improving oral health in Kansas. Examples of eligible projects include, but are not limited to:

Dental hygiene projects in public settings
Community water fluoridation
Access to care for unserved and underserved persons
Integration of oral health into medical and other settings
Professional Education and Conferences
Other special opportunities to advance oral health

The next deadline for proposals stemming from this RFP to be submitted is October 11, 2004. Interested organizations should contact Health Fund program staff to discuss project characteristics. If the program officer determines that the project has the potential to be funded, authorization to submit a grant request will be provided. The Health Fund has an online grant request submission system which makes applying for a grant simple and straightforward. Details of the RFP are available at:

http://www.healthfund.org/oralhealth/htkrfp04.php

Kansas Mission of Mercy (KMOM) Pittsburg Follow-up

The third Kansas Mission of Mercy event, which took place from April 30 through May 2 in Pittsburg, KS, was a success in bringing free dental care to 2,158 patients who in many cases would not have otherwise been able to receive treatment. The huge numbers of people attending the event and the sometimes lengthy travels they endured to get to the clinic help illustrate the profound need for improved access to oral health care in Kansas. Over 900 dentists, dental assistants, dental hygienists, and other volunteers generously gave of their time to make the KMOM - Pittsburg possible.

The exit study gathered 1,632 surveys representing 2,048 patients who attended the event (patients traveling together completed one survey together). The Health Fund engaged the Kansas Health Institute to analyze and report the data from the surveys. The study was conducted to help gauge the effectiveness of the clinic and provide feedback for future events while providing a snapshot of the need for, and barriers to, oral health care access in Kansas.

The exit survey data from the KMOM Pittsburg clinic, now available on the Health Fund website, indicate a strong need for improved access to oral health in Kansas:
73 percent of clinic patients had not had a dental visit in over a year
56 percent had not seen a dentist in over two years
7 percent had never visited a dentist before
Over 50 percent of patients reported having pain prior to the clinic, with many of those having experienced pain exceeding 30 days in duration
Two-thirds of the patients traveled less than an hour to attend the clinic, but 10 percent of patients traveled over two hours to seek treatment. 5 percent of clinic patients traveled from the Hutchinson/Wichita area seeking dental care.
Financial concerns were reported as one of the largest barriers to dental care access.

The Health Fund is pleased to have been able to provide support for the event as part of its Healthy Teeth for Kansans oral health initiative. Since 1998, oral health has been a strategic focus area of the Health Fund. Support for KMOM – Pittsburg included funding of the exit study, providing $10,000 for additional needed equipment, and funding the presence of the United Methodist Hutchinson District Disaster Relief Trailer at the event to provide food for patients.

For additional information, see www.ksdentalfoundation.org

Questions and Answers about Community Water Fluoridation

The Health Fund’s Healthy Teeth for Kansans oral health initiative has offered grants to fund the start-up costs of community water fluoridation since 1998 due to fluoridation’s proven oral health benefits, safety, and practicality. As a supporter of community water fluoridation, the Health Fund frequently fields questions from people seeking to find the facts about fluoridation. We have prepared a list of frequently asked questions (FAQ) we hope will be helpful in sorting fact from fiction.

The Community Water Fluoridation FAQ is available on our website

Healthy Lifestyles

Promoting healthy nutrition and healthy activity to maintain and improve health

Child and Adolescent Obesity Prevention Conference to be held in September

The University of Kansas and the Maternal & Child Health Care Coalition are sponsoring the 6th Annual Conference on the Prevention and Treatment of Overweight and Obese Children and Adolescents, to be held September 9th through 11th 2004 in Kansas City, MO. The conference aims to raise awareness among health care and educational providers of increasing childhood and adolescent obesity and overweight and related health problems, while highlighting school, community, and family strategies for the prevention and reduction of childhood obesity.

The conference brochure lists several sobering facts about increasing obesity among America’s youth:
Medical problems in obese children and adolescents are common and can result in problems with cardiovascular health, the endocrine system, and mental health.
Ten times as many children had type 2 diabetes in 2002 compared to 1997.
Nearly 22 percent of preschool children in the US are overweight, and 10 percent are obese.
Four cities in the Midwest are listed among the 25 fattest cities in America by ABC News. Those cities include St. Louis, MO; Tulsa, OK; Kansas City, MO; and Wichita, KS.
Overweight adolescents have a 70 percent chance of becoming overweight or obese adults, increasing to an 80 percent chance if one or more parents are overweight.

For more information about the conference, contact Kim Johnson at 785-864-0797 or visit KU's Energy Balance Laboratory site.

The Health Fund is providing a grant of $7500 to support three of the event’s presenters.

Congregational Health Partnership

Working together with local United Methodist churches for a healthy Kansas

Kansas United Methodist Conferences Approve Fitness Resolution

The Kansas East and Kansas West United Methodist Conferences recently approved a resolution creating a joint Healthy Lifestyles Committee to oversee and encourage healthy initiatives in local churches and community outreach to improve community health in Kansas.

The Committee, composed of seven members from each Conference, will seek to:

Encourage self-care by clergy and lay members of the Church
Promote and develop local church and institutional programs to provide accessible exercise venues and healthy eating knowledge and experiences
Assist in developing local partnerships with church institutions and agencies, businesses, health care providers, schools, and other community resources to promote congregational and community health
Increase communication in our churches concerning health—spiritual, physical, mental, and environmental
Assist local churches in development of policies and activities which support and model health
Collect church-specific behavior data as provided by cooperating congregations and other partners, and:
Network United Methodists who are active in these issues for additional training and support.

Save the Date - Fourth Annual Health Ministry Renewal Conference, April 8-9, 2005

The fourth annual Health Ministry Renewal Conference is tentatively scheduled for April 8 and 9 at Rock Springs 4-H Center. Add those dates to your calendar and look for updates as the conference planning progresses!

The conference is designed to provide participants with a number of benefits, including:

Information about what local churches are doing to encourage healthy lifestyles through healthy physical activity and healthy food choices, one of the Health Fund's strategic Focus areas.
Renewed personal energy through shared spiritual activities in a scenic retreat setting
Useful information about current health ministries in Kansas United Methodist congregations
Networking opportunities with others having shared interests and motivations toward congregational health ministries

General/Other News

Health Fund Announces Recent Grants

The United Methodist Health Ministry Fund has announced the recent award of several grants totaling over $420,000 providing funding support to a variety of health-related programs across Kansas.

Two programs receive grants to continue and expand Faith in Action programs. The Kansas programs are part of a larger national Faith in Action program which matches volunteers from the faith community with individuals needing assistance to remain independent in their own homes. The volunteer visitors help the aging, disabled, or chronically ill with transportation, light housekeeping, minor home repairs, meal preparation, and other services in addition to providing a friendly visit.

Inter-Faith Ministries, Wichita, receives a $25,000 grant to grow and continue its Faith in Action program, which currently has more than 38 volunteers. Shepherd’s Center of Kansas City, KS also receives a $25,000 grant to expand its Faith in Action program with the addition of a community outreach coordinator to its staff. Both programs were started in 2002.

Five grants to improve oral health in Kansas were awarded under the Health Fund’s ongoing oral health initiative, Healthy Teeth for Kansans. The awards are part of more than $1 million in oral health grants the Health Fund expects to make in 2004.

A grant of $18,764 has been awarded to the Sedgwick County Health Department to integrate appropriate oral health education and prevention into existing services for patients. The project will first provide information to health care providers on the importance of oral health and resources for addressing oral health in the medical setting. Through Health Department clinicians, an estimated 30,000 children and pregnant women a year will receive oral health education.

A grant of $51,000 goes to the Kansas Association of Resource and Referral Agencies (KACCRRA), Salina, to sponsor educational events statewide for child care providers on the importance of improving oral health practices for young children. Up to 48 workshops are planned through KACCRRA’s network of 16 independent resource and referral agencies. The curriculum to be used for the workshops was developed by Kansas Child Care Training Opportunities through another grant provided by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund.

Kansas Action for Children, Topeka, will receive $200,000 over the next two years to increase awareness and knowledge about children’s oral health through a coordinated communications campaign. A well-established children’s advocacy group, Kansas Action for Children regularly reports on child well being through the Kansas Children’s Report Card, Kansas KIDS COUNT Data Book, and special reports. “Oral health is a key component of school readiness,” said Gary Brunk, executive director of Kansas Action for Children. “We believe when Kansans are presented with the facts about the consequences of children’s oral health problems and opportunities to address them, good decisions will be made to benefit our children and our state.”

Cottonwood, Inc., Lawrence, plans to host a part-time dental clinic late this summer to serve persons with developmental disabilities receiving Cottonwood Residential services. The clinic, expected to be open one day a week initially, is being funded by a $43,872 Health Fund grant. Staffing and technical support for the on-site clinic will be provided by the Douglas County Dental Clinic. Services will be limited to cleaning and other preventive care. Phyllis Hess, Nurse Manager for Cottonwood, Inc., will provide oversight for the new dental clinic. Hess said the on-site service will make important preventative oral health care accessible to Cottonwood Residential consumers. “The individuals we serve at Cottonwood often have high need for dental care, but experience many barriers to receiving it,” she explained. “Most have low incomes, have difficulty making arrangements to go to a dental office on a regular basis, and often have some fear of dentist’s offices.” The result, according to Hess, is that persons with developmental disabilities go to a dentist when there is a problem and don’t seek the preventative care the new clinic will provide. “This will certainly not replace any service already being provided by other dental professionals, but should add an important component of care to reduce the need for acute care down the road,” said Hess. “We are very appreciative of the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund and the Douglas County Dental Clinic for participating in this innovative partnership with Cottonwood.”

A grant of $55,090 has been awarded to Oral Health Kansas, Topeka. Oral Health Kansas, a coalition of more than 130 agencies and individuals interested in addressing oral health issues, plans to raise awareness concerning the implications of the Expanded Practice Act. Passed in the 2003 legislative session, this law allows dental hygienists to provide services without the direct supervision of a dentist in some public health settings such as schools and long-term care facilities. Teresa Schwab, executive director for Oral Health Kansas, said the Expanded Practice Act has the potential of improving access to preventative oral health services in Kansas. The problem, she explained, is that there is confusion about the law and few resources in place for implementing a program involving dental hygienists in an expanded practice. This project will provide workshops, materials, and technical assistance to address these barriers.

Marquette United Methodist Church has been awarded a $5,000 grant which will be used to purchase equipment to start a community fitness center. The center, located in a building provided by the city, will be available to the community for a small monthly membership fee. A wellness supervisor will be hired to staff the facility. In addition to making exercise equipment available, the new community program will also offer a variety of exercise classes.

Higher Ground Receives Janet Sevier Gilbreath Award

An innovative adolescent substance abuse treatment program received the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund’s Janet Sevier Gilbreath 2003 Special Project of the Year award. The award, with a check for $2,500, was presented to Higher Ground, Wichita. The award recognized Higher Ground’s Learning the Ropes adolescent treatment program, a program started in 1998 with support of a grant from the Health Fund.

Learning the Ropes offers prevention, early intervention, and substance abuse treatment each year to more than 400 adolescents, most from culturally diverse, low-income families in Wichita and Sedgwick County. The service blends experiential programming—such as a ropes challenge course, weekend excursions, and camping trips—with traditional counseling.

The program was selected from more than 150 grant projects supported in 2003 by the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund as its Project of the Year.

“Each year, in memory of our first Chairperson—Janet Sevier Gilbreath—we recognize one project that exemplifies the highest standards of nonprofit work in health,” said (Mr.) Kim Moore, president of the Health Fund, in announcing the award.