Health Fundamentals Newsletter

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

January 2005

Access to Health Care

Working to make professional health care available to all

New Access Grants Awarded

The Health Fund has recently awarded $123,740 in new grants to several projects targeting access to health care in Kansas. Improving access to professional health care has long been a concern of the Health Fund and is one of the Fund’s current strategic focus areas. The current round of access grants include the following:

$58,000 to GraceMed Clinic of Wichita for a project to develop new management tools for the non-profit clinic to handle ever-increasing numbers of patients unable to pay for care.
$40,000 to the Kansas Association of the Medically Underserved (KAMU) - a Topeka-based association representing primary care clinics statewide - to develop a health care access advocacy group, to be called the Kansas Health Consumer Coalition.
$25,740 to United Methodist Urban Ministry of Wichita to continue its translator and advocacy services for non-English speaking Hispanics seeking assistance. Translator services are needed for over 250 families at the clinic each month.

Read the full text of the most recent grants news release here.

Governor Sebelius and Insurance Commissioner Praeger launch Healthy Kansas Initiative

The Healthy Kansas Initiative, a continuation of a reform agenda that Gov. Kathleen Sebelius began when she was Insurance Commissioner, is designed to contain runaway health care costs, streamline the health care system, and make health insurance and prescription drugs more affordable for thousands of Kansans and small businesses. Collaboration between Sebelius and Sandy Praeger, the current Insurance Commissioner, produced the Healthy Kansas initiative. The multifaceted initiative includes components designed to improve access to health care and to encourage healthy lifestyles. Access to health care and healthy lifestyles through better nutrition and physical activity are two of the Health Fund’s strategic focus areas.

Elements of Healthy Kansas include:

The creation of a Kansas Health Care Authority, which will oversee all of the state’s major health care programs. Current health care programs will be transferred from the Department of Social and Rehabilitation Services (SRS) to the Authority.
The establishment of a Kansas Health Care Cost Containment Commission, to be headed by Lt. Governor John Moore. The Commission will work to cut unnecessary administrative costs, improve patient care, and help providers expand the use of information technology.
Expansion of access to health care by providing small businesses with new and more affordable private health insurance choices and by providing health insurance for more than 40,000 additional Kansas children and more than 30,000 working parents through the HealthWave program.
Strategies developed through the Business Health Policy Committee to help contain costs for businesses that currently cover their employees by allowing them to pool their risk.
Collaboration between the Kansas Health Care Authority and Kansas pharmacies to provide low-income Kansans with low-cost, generic prescription drugs.
A web-based drug information site will be established to assist Kansans in accessing free or reduced-cost medications.
A program, called “Healthy Kansas: Taking Steps Together,” which aims to reduce obesity and other preventable chronic health conditions through healthy lifestyles. Kansas Department of Health and Environment Secretary Rod Bremby will work with business, education, and community leaders to develop and implement ways to help Kansans take more responsibility for their own health.

Funding for the $50 million reform initiative will be provided by taxes on cigarettes and tobacco products. Most of the Healthy Kansas initiative will require action by the Kansas Legislature to become reality.

Compassion Kansas Introductory Meetings to be held in January

Compassion Kansas is an initiative designed to build and enhance the capacity of Kansas human service organizations to better serve Kansans in need. Compassion Kansas, developed by the Self-Help Network Center for Community Support and Research at Wichita State University, provides qualifying organizations with technical assistance and capacity building grants to help organizations more effectively provide services. Technical assistance available through Compassion Kansas includes: how to seek new funding sources, strategic planning, board development and management, collaboration, staff and volunteer management, outcome measurement, and other aspects of developing and maintaining an effective human service organization.

The introductory conferences, scheduled for January 25 in Wichita and January 31 in Topeka, are designed to ensure that interested organizations have complete information about Compassion Kansas. Attendance at one of the introductory conferences is required in order to be eligible to apply for Compassion Kansas funding.

For more information, contact the Self-Help Network at selfhelpnetwork@wichita.edu or 800-445-0116, or fill out the registration form online at http://www.selfhelpnetwork.wichita.edu/ where you can also read more about the initiative. The Health Fund has provided a grant of $75,000 over three years to support Compassion Kansas.

Oral Health

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

Oral Health Advocacy Day, Feb. 8

Oral Health article In celebration of Children’s Dental Health Month, Oral Health Kansas has organized Oral Health Advocacy Day, which will be held February 8 at the Kansas Capitol building. The event begins at 7 a.m. with an informal breakfast reception for legislators and their staff members. Strategies to improve the oral health workforce in Kansas which will have been developed during a January Oral Health Workforce Summit (see related article) will be announced at a midmorning press conference following the breakfast event. Constituents interested in oral health issues are encouraged to join in and take the opportunity to visit with their legislators regarding oral health issues. For more information, contact Teresa Schwab of Oral Health Kansas at oralhealthkansas@ohks.com or 785-235-6039.

Oral Health Workforce Summit, Jan. 20-21, 2005

Oral Health Kansas, in conjunction with the Health Fund and the Kansas Health Institute, will convene a dental workforce summit meeting on January 20-21, 2005. The summit will examine the current status of the dental workforce in the state and will explore recommendations for improvements. Principal presenters at the event will include Andrew Allison, Ph.D., of the Kansas Health Institute and Richard Manski, D.D.S., Ph.D. The event will include a press conference, an informational meeting open to the public which will include invitations to legislators and other policy-makers, and an all-day working summit where participants will explore and create work plans to address the current shortage of dental professionals in Kansas. These work plans will provide the foundation of a multi-year advocacy strategy for Oral Health Kansas and its partners. Strategies developed during the summit will be presented at a press conference on Feb. 8 as part of Oral Health Advocacy Day (see related article). The Summit is supported by a $24,860 Health Fund grant. For more information, contact Teresa Schwab of Oral Health Kansas at oralhealthkansas@ohks.com or 785-235-6039.

Fourth Kansas Mission of Mercy Event Feb. 18-20

The fourth Kansas Mission of Mercy (KMOM) event will be held in Salina February 18-20. Organized by the Kansas Dental Association and the Kansas Dental Hygienists’ Association, KMOM offers free dental services to all patients on a first-come, first-served basis. The three prior events served more than 6500 people with $2,294,000 worth of dental services provided by volunteer dentists, dental hygienists, dental assistants, and support staff. The Health Fund has provided support for each KMOM event and is providing a $10,000 grant to the Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation for general support of KMOM in Salina. As in the previous KMOM events, the Health Fund has contracted with the Kansas Health Institute to analyze exit surveys from the event.

For more information, or to find out how to volunteer to help at KMOM Salina, visit http://www.ksdentalfoundation.org/kmom/kmom.htm , the Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation website, for details.

Health Fund President Addresses Oral Health Issues in The Kansas Nurse

The November/December 2004 issue of The Kansas Nurse, the official publication of the Kansas State Nurses’ Association, is dedicated entirely to oral health concerns. The issue includes an article by Health Fund President Kim Moore on oral health progress in Kansas. The article presents an overview of the current state of oral health in Kansas and outlines a number of areas which will require considerable work now and in the future, but also offers glimmers of hope as some pieces of the oral health puzzle slowly begin to fall into place through the sustained efforts of oral health advocates statewide. Moore has guided the Health Fund’s strategic focus in oral health which began in earnest over six years ago and continues today. The article also contains concrete information on what nurses can do to improve oral health. For copies of The Kansas Nurse, please contact KSNA http://www.nursingworld.org/snas/ks at ksna@ksna.net or 785-233-8638.

Healthy Teeth for Kansans 2005 Oral Health RFP Available

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:

Access to Treatment and Prevention Services
Community Water Fluoridation
Integrating Oral Health into Medical and Social Service Settings
Workforce Recruitment, Retention, and Career Education Projects

The next deadline for proposals stemming from this RFP to be submitted is March 21, 2005. 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. The full RFP is available here on our website.

New Oral Health Grants Awarded

The Health Fund recently awarded over $354,000 in grants to improve oral health in Kansas.
Oral health has been a priority for the Health Fund for many years and continues to hold a place of importance as one of the Fund’s current strategic focus areas. The new grants include:

$200,000 to Oral Health Kansas, Topeka, to support development of a new leadership program to provide Kansans interested in oral health with improved leadership skills, personal development training, planning and organizational skills, and up-to-date information about the oral health scene in Kansas and nationwide.
Funding for the program comes from the Health Fund and the Kansas Health Foundation.
$24,860 to Oral Health Kansas to support an Oral Health Workforce Summit January 20-21 in Topeka. The Summit will address trends in the dental workforce of Kansas and policy options to address the declining availability of providers anticipated in coming years.
$66,000 to Southwest Boulevard Family Health Care Service of Greater Kansas City to open a dental clinic. Over 20 area dentists have volunteered their help to make the clinic a success.
$54,000 to support the University of Kansas School of Medicine Medical Practice Association's HIV program. The Wichita-based program provides oral health education, prevention services, and needed dental care to people living with HIV/AIDS.
$10,000 to the Kansas Dental Charitable Foundation to support the upcoming Kansas Mission of Mercy-Salina (KMOM) event Feb. 18-20. KMOM offers free dental services to all patients on a first come, first served basis. The Health Fund has supported the previous three KMOM events, which together have served over 6,500 people, providing $2,294,000 in volunteer dental services.

Read the full text of the most recent grants news release here.

Healthy Lifestyles

Promoting healthy nutrition and healthy activity to maintain and improve health

Our recent activities in this focus area are being developed in partnership with local United Methodist congregations and the Kansas UM Conferences. Please see the Congregational Health Partnership section below for more details.

Congregational Health Partnership

Working together with local United Methodist churches for a healthy Kansas

New Congregational Health Ministry Grant Announced

The Health Fund has recently awarded Congregational Health Ministry Grants to several Kansas United Methodist Churches to support parish nurse ministry programs.

Beloit United Methodist Church has been awarded a $3,975 grant to help establish a Parish Nurse Program to serve the congregation and community. Grant funding will be used to purchase medical equipment, supplies, and other health ministry resources. The grant project director is Gayle Sewell, and the pastor is Rev. Ken Parker.

Under the Health Fund’s Congregational Health Ministry initiative, start-up grants of up to $5,000 are available to local Kansas United Methodist churches to stimulate the development of comprehensive congregational health and wellness ministries. The Health Fund has recently extended the initiative through 2005, committing an additional $100,000 in funding to the initiative. It is the hope of the Health Fund that these one-time grants, added to local church resources, will mobilize strong volunteer efforts to address many facets of health, healing, and wholeness in congregations and communities throughout Kansas.

Read the full text of the most recent grants news release here

New Faith in Action Grant Awarded by the Health Fund

A grant of $25,000 has been awarded to the Volunteer Center at Hutchinson Community College to continue its Faith in Action Volunteer Caregiver Service. The program matches volunteers with elderly people living in Reno County who need assistance in order to remain independent in their own homes. This might include transportation to doctor's appointments, help with grocery shopping, or just a friendly visit. The program currently has 43 volunteers. Faith in Action Coordinator Patsy Lovett said the program is expected to continue to grow as more people become aware of the service.

Kansas Faith in Action projects are part of a larger national Faith in Action program, funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 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.

Read the full text of the most recent grants news release here

Healthy Congregations Report Forms now Available

The Healthy Congregations program, now in its ninth year, recognizes what Kansas United Methodist congregations are doing to nurture, reach out and educate through ministries of health, healing and wholeness. In addition to recognition, Healthy Congregations shares information about what is being done with the ultimate goal being to encourage more health ministries in Kansas United Methodist Churches.

Congregations are invited annually to submit reports about their health ministries throughout the year. Congregations reporting at least the minimum required number of these activities for their membership size are selected as "Healthy Congregations." These congregations are recognized at Annual Conference and receive a choice of free health resource to further their work. Three congregations in both the Kansas West and Kansas East Conferences receive $1,000 honorariums for exceptional health ministry.

Changes for 2004 include:

Completely revised and simplified report forms focusing on four key dimensions of holistic health (spiritual health, physical health, mental/emotional health, and social health).
A new Special Recognition Award will be presented to one church in each Conference with narrative highlights best exemplifying the connection between spiritual health and the three other holistic health dimensions. A $1,500 honorarium is included with each Special Recognition Award.
For more information, visit the Healthy Congregations area of our website

Congregational Health Ministry Grants Program Extended

The Health Fund continues its commitment to health ministry in Kansas United Methodist churches with the extension of its Congregational Health Ministry Grants program. The program offers one-time grants of up to $5,000 to help start or expand church-based health ministries. Since 2002, the Health Fund has made 27 grants supporting congregational health ministries across Kansas. The Health Fund has committed $100,000 to this grant opportunity. Applications will be accepted until December 31, 2005 or until all committed funding is awarded in grants, whichever occurs first. Visit the Congregational Health Ministry Grants area of our website for more information.

Save the Date - 4th Annual Health Ministry Renewal Conference, April 8-9, 2005

The fourth annual Health Ministry Renewal Conference is 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!

Dr. Richard Swenson is scheduled to deliver the keynote address at the event. Swenson, the author of Margin: Restoring Emotional, Physical, Financial, and Time Reserves to Overloaded Lives, has worked to alert people to the dangers of overextending and overloading, taking on so many activities and responsibilities that quality of life is diminished. Dr. Swenson spoke earlier this year at the Kansas East and Kansas West Annual Conferences about ways to “restore the margin to our overloaded lives” and to restore our physical and emotional energy.

Arrangements are in progress to make nurse and pastor Continuing Education Units (CEUs) available to attendees.
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; and,
Networking opportunities with others having shared interests and motivations toward congregational health ministries

Find out more about the 2005 Health Ministry Renewal Conference on our website.

General/Other News

Staff and Trustee News

Health Fund staff member Virginia Elliott recently received a promotion to Vice President for Programs in recognition of her years of outstanding service and her increasing responsibilities within the organization. Since joining the organization in 1997, Virginia has been increasingly responsible for both grant administration and for identifying and realizing funding opportunities which allow the Health Fund to maximize the benefits produced through our available resources. We salute Virginia for her many contributions to the work of the Health Fund.

The Health Fund wishes to welcome its newest Trustee, Ted Bannister, who joins the Board in 2005. Ted runs a farming and ranching operation in Bison, is currently President of the Board of Smoky Hills Public Television, and is an active member of Bison United Methodist Church. He brings to the Health Fund an educational background including a B.A. in economics from Fort Hays State University and an M.A. in applied economics from American University. Ted’s wife is the Rev. Kathy Bannister. Ted has served the Health Fund as a non-trustee member of the Investment Committee for two years and we are pleased that he will be contributing his knowledge and talents in a greater scope as a full Trustee.