Thursday, 28 March 2024

Health

Over 60 harm reduction programs part of the California Syringe Exchange Programs, or CASEP, Coalition are taking collective action Aug. 31 on International Overdose Awareness Day to focus on creating a safe space for participants,staff, volunteers, and community members to celebrate and grieve while simultaneously addressing stigma.

Any Positive Change, a syringe exchange program that operates in Lake County, said the group wants to change the narrative and highlight the lives saved by the real first responders and the different roles played by all our intersecting community members.

Overdose deaths continue to rise and the gaps in health equity are not getting any smaller.

There is an overwhelming increase of anti-bodily autonomy legislation, criminalization, harassment, violence, and overall “not in my backyard” attitude across the state.

There has been an expressed need to heal, celebrate the lives of loved ones and, uplift and acknowledge the lives that have been saved by the community.

Syringe service programs, or SSPs, from across the state will host gatherings and memorials Thursday to bring together those who have survived overdose, those who have been affected, and those who are the most frequent first responders to overdose — community members and
peers.

Events will include memorials of those who have passed, celebration of lives saved, and recognition of how the community steps up for and saves one another.

Many look at people who use drugs, people who are experiencing being houseless, people who engage in sex work, and people who have been previously incarcerated as “non-contributing members of society.”

The groups aim to change that tired, stigmatizing narrative and shine light on how most of the time, it is the individuals being looked at in this way who are taking care of one another and truly healing the community.

Recent funding made it possible for the above mentioned “sheroes”/”theyroes”/heroes to reverse nearly 40,000 overdoses over the past three years alone.

Over 22,000 people were trained to reverse overdoses and keep people alive, with 95% of people using life-saving naloxone provided by the programs organizing the day's events.

Funding harm reduction programs has measurable, tangible public health benefits. An evaluation by National Harm Reduction Coalition, or NHRC, found that CHRI grantees offered services at over 1,500 locations across 42 counties serving approximately 75,000 Californians 10% increase since the pilot’s launch.

About harm reduction and addressing racism and other barriers: Racial and ethnic disparities in overdose were rising in California before the pandemic, but COVID-19 exacerbated these disparities leading to a doubling of overdose death among Black Californians and the largest relative increases in overdose death among Latino/x and Indigenous communities (over 60% each).

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, unequal access to substance use disorder, or SUD, treatment and stigma contribute to the disproportionate increase in overdose death rates among Black, American Indian, and Alaskan Native people.

To read more about this, visit this CDC link.

Any Positive Change Inc. has been serving in Lake County since 1995.

Any Positive Change was authorized as a state authorized SSP on Aug. 3, 2023, after many years of existence as a county authorized program.

For additional information call 707-480-7319.

Congressman Mike Thompson (CA-04), Congressman Brian Fitzpatrick (PA-01), Congressman Brian Higgins (NY-26) and Congresswoman Jen Kiggans (VA-02) have announced the introduction of the Nurse Corps Tax Parity Act of 2023.

The bill is meant to ensure tax-status parity between the National Health Service Corps, or NHSC, and Nurse Corps programs by amending the Internal Revenue Code to create parity in tax treatment for these two scholarship and loan repayment systems.

Senators Jeff Merkley (OR), Roger Wicker (MS), Patty Murray (WA) and John Boozman (AR) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate.

“Nurses are the front line of our health care system. We should do everything we can to encourage people to pursue a career in this indispensable field — a field currently facing severe shortage,” said Congressman Thompson. “This commonsense bill eliminates a totally unnecessary tax penalty on people entering the nursing profession, and I look forward to working with my colleagues to advance the bill this Congress.”

“Nurses are dedicated, diligent caretakers in our communities, and we owe it to them to prioritize their ability to obtain financial benefits promised to them by Health Resources Services Administration (HRSA) programs,” said Congressman Fitzpatrick. “Our bipartisan, bicameral Nurse Corps Tax Parity Act fixes an unnecessary disparity between two widely-utilized scholarship and loan repayment programs, and I am proud to lead this effort to support nurses alongside my colleagues.”

“Nurse Corps members working in underserved communities provide life-saving care to people experiencing some of the greatest health disparities. They deserve the same benefits offered to the National Health Service Corps members they work alongside each day,” said Congressman Higgins. “I am proud to join my colleagues in introducing this bipartisan legislation expanding income tax exemptions to Nurse Corps scholarship and loan repayment programs. It is a commonsense bill that will create greater income equity among the frontline workers serving our most vulnerable communities.

“It’s our duty to explore every avenue to address the healthcare workforce shortage facing our nation,” said Congresswoman Kiggans, vice chair of the Congressional Nursing Caucus. “As a geriatric nurse practitioner, I’m well aware of the level of dedication it takes to work in healthcare. Discouraging aspiring professionals who are willing to step up and serve their communities as healthcare providers is the last thing we should do. I’m proud to join my colleagues to introduce this bipartisan, bicameral bill which will tackle these barriers and improve patient care across the country!”

“As the husband of a nurse, I know frontline nurses are the backbone of communities, helping patients and families through both joyous and challenging times,” said Sen. Merkley. “Nurse Corps members build healthier communities in the areas of greatest need, and it is terrible public policy and frankly offensive that nurses are singled out for extra taxation as compared to other health professionals — it’s long past time to put an end to this.”

The bill is endorsed by the American Nurses Association (ANA), the American Federation of Teachers (AFT), the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN), the American Association of Nurse Anesthesiology (AANA), the American Association of Nurse Practitioners (AANP), the Association of Public Health Nurses (APHN), the Association of Rehabilitation Nurses (ARN), American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees (AFSCME), the Commissioned Officers Association of the USPHS (COA), Friends of the National Institute of Nursing Research (FNINR), and the Oncology Nursing Society (ONS).

Read the text of the bill here.

Thompson represents California’s Fourth Congressional District, which includes all or part of Lake, Napa, Solano, Sonoma and Yolo counties.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. — An estimated 24% of residents in Lake County are 65 years or older, and that number is expected to grow over the next decade.

Adventist Health Clear Lake has achieved Geriatric Emergency Department Accreditation from the American College of Emergency Physicians, or ACEP, a professional organization of emergency medicine physicians in the US.

This accreditation means that the hospital’s emergency services provide the necessary expertise, equipment, and staff to deliver excellent care to older patients.

As an accredited geriatric emergency department, Adventist Health Clear Lake’s protocol-driven approach to treating geriatric patients ensures superior, tailored care.

To achieve accreditation, Adventist Health Clear Lake’s emergency department staff focused on standardizing approaches to care for common geriatric issues; ensuring optimal transitions of care from the emergency department to other settings, including inpatient units, home or rehabilitation and long-term care centers by accomplishing a series of geriatric-focused quality improvements.

“We are very proud of the tremendous work that our team did to receive this accreditation as a Accredidated Geriatric Emergency Department that provides quality care for our communities older adults population,” said Misty Cantrell, patient care executive at Adventist Health Clear Lake. “Following best practices and added measures in mind, our Emergency Department is here to ensure compassionate, specialized care to this population that we are dedicated to supporting.”

Requirements for the Geriatric Emergency Department accreditation begin with demonstrating that the participating emergency department includes both a physician and nurse with specialized geriatric training on staff, meets environmental criteria such as easy patient access to water and mobility aids, and has a geriatric quality improvement program.

Studies show that approximately 60% of Medicare patients admitted to the hospital arrive through the emergency department, and multiple studies also note the vulnerability of older adults after an emergency visit.

Adventist Health Clear Lake leadership said these accreditations continue to raise the bar for care in rural communities across Lake County.

LAKEPORT, Calif. — Sutter Lakeside Hospital was awarded 5-stars for overall quality, the highest designation available for hospitals from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, or CMS.

Sutter Lakeside Hospital is also the only critical access hospital in the state to receive a five-star rating this year.

Introduced in 2016 to give consumers a summary of hospital performance, the CMS overall hospital star ratings are widely considered the gold standard for measuring quality and safety.

“We are so proud to be among the fraction of organizations that rank this highly for patient safety, patient experience and outcomes,” said Tim Stephens, chief administrative officer for Sutter Lakeside Hospital. “Only about 10% of hospitals received a five-star rating this year. This achievement underscores our relentless commitment to delivering exceptional health care services for the benefit of our patients and communities. This further motivates us to continue striving for excellence in all aspects of our organization.”

In 2022, Sutter Lakeside Hospital received four stars from CMS, which is higher than the national average of three stars. The CMS star rating is based on hospital performance across five categories: mortality, safety of care, readmission, patient experience and timely and effective care.

Five stars in staff responsiveness

Patients can use hospital ratings to help decide where to receive planned care, such as a surgery or birth. Patients also have a role in influencing how well a hospital is rated.

CMS uses a standardized survey to collect experience ratings from patients after they are discharged from a hospital. The survey, known as HCAHPS, stands for Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems, and it is designed to score topics that are most relevant to patients.

Two questions on this survey focus on staff responsiveness and here again, Sutter Lakeside Hospital earned a perfect five stars. Only 16 other hospitals in the state received the same.

“We thank our remarkable team members for their excellent work and congratulate them on this achievement,” said Pauline Orr, chief nursing executive, Sutter Lakeside Hospital. “These ratings are a direct result of their dedication to quality, responsiveness to patient feedback and embodiment of Sutter’s values of integrity, compassion and excellence.”

Staff responsiveness star ratings are based on surveys completed between October 2021 and September 2022.

The overall star rating is a composite of 46 measures that reflect a hospital’s performance between April 2018 and March 2022, depending on the measure.

Additional accolades

Sutter Lakeside Hospital proudly adds the CMS five-star accolade to an already impressive list of awards and achievements earned to-date in 2023:

• Labor and delivery: In June, Sutter Lakeside Hospital was applauded for performing C-sections only when medically necessary. Sutter Lakeside Hospital has maintained a C-section rate that is at or below the state’s goal for the past seven consecutive years, earning the hospital a Quality & Sustainability Award from the California Maternal Quality Care Collaborative.

• Healthcare-associated Infections: In May, Sutter Lakeside Hospital was recognized for its prudent use of antimicrobials (including antibiotics) to treat patients while still reducing microbial resistance and decreasing the spread of infections in healthcare settings. Sutter Lakeside Hospital reached silver level status on the Antimicrobial Stewardship Honor Roll, published by the California Department of Public Health.

• Patient safety: In March, Sutter Lakeside Hospital was included on the Patient Safety Honor Roll published by Cal Hospital Compare. Only 24% of California’s acute care hospitals had a high enough safety profile, which considers safety events, sepsis management and more, to make the list this year.

• Reputation: In February, Sutter Lakeside Hospital earned gold for Best Hospital and Best Emergency Care from Bicoastal Media readers in the annual Best of Lake & Mendocino 2023 survey. Sutter Lakeside Hospital’s clinics also earned silver in the Physical Therapy and Walk-In Clinic / Urgent Care categories.

• Critical care: In January it was announced that Sutter Lakeside Hospital had earned five stars from Healthgrades in the treatment of heart failure, sepsis and respiratory failure. This five-star rating places Sutter Lakeside among the top 15% of hospitals nationwide for the quality of care provided when treating these critical conditions.

Sutter Lakeside Hospital has also been named a Blue Distinction Center for maternity care from the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association and a LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader from the Human Rights Campaign. These multi-year recognitions must be reapplied for — and earned — on a regular basis.

Exceptional emergency care

As the only trauma center and certified stroke center in Lake County, Sutter Lakeside excels in emergency medical services. CMS data revealed that 76% of patients who came to Sutter Lakeside’s emergency department with stroke symptoms received brain scan results within 45 minutes of their arrival. This is better than the state average of 72% and the national average of 69%.

“Beyond the numbers are lives that have been impacted by our team. This team serves with an unparalleled standard of excellence and a mission to enhance the well-being of each person we care for because each life matters,” said Dr. Christina Lasich, chief medical executive for Sutter Lakeside Hospital.

Sutter Lakeside Hospital is a member of the Sutter Health integrated, not-for-profit system. Founded in 1945, the hospital is located at 5176 Hill Rd E, Lakeport, California. To provide patients with greater access to physicians, Sutter Lakeside Hospital also operates two outpatient care centers: Sutter Lakeside Medical Practice (967 Parallel Drive, Suite C, Lakeport) and Sutter Lakeside Community Clinic (5196 Hill Road East, Lakeport).

SACRAMENTO — The California Department of Public Health, in collaboration with local health departments, is alerting the public and health care providers to a potential increased risk for valley fever in California.

Because many valley fever infections take place during the summer, August has been designated as Valley Fever Awareness Month.

“California’s dry conditions, combined with recent heavy winter rains could results in increasing valley fever cases in the coming months,” said CDPH Director and State Public Health Officer Dr. Tomás Aragón. “To protect yourself and your family, know the symptoms of Valley fever, which will help ensure early detection. Individuals with lingering cough and fatigue should talk to a health care provider about Valley fever, especially if they have been outdoors in dusty air.”

Valley fever, also known as coccidioidomycosis or “cocci,” usually affects the lungs and can cause prolonged respiratory symptoms including cough, fever, chest pain, and fatigue or tiredness. These symptoms can result in people missing work, school, and activities they enjoy.

While valley fever shares many of the same symptoms with other respiratory diseases (including COVID-19), valley fever symptoms can last a month or more, and laboratory tests are needed to know whether symptoms are caused by valley fever or another illness.

If a person tests negative for COVID-19 but continues to have respiratory symptoms that last more than a week, they should talk to a doctor and ask if their symptoms could be valley fever. If valley fever is diagnosed, your doctor will determine if you need treatment.

Because valley fever is caused by breathing in a fungus from dust in outdoor air, it can be difficult to prevent infection.

Practical tips may help prevent valley fever in areas with high rates:

• When it is windy outside and the air is dusty, stay indoors and keep windows and doors closed.
• Before digging, wet down soil and dirt to prevent stirring up dust into the air.
• Consider wearing a properly fitted N95 mask if you must be in dusty air outdoors in these areas.

CDPH encourages people who live, work, or visit in areas where valley fever is common to learn about the signs and symptoms of valley fever and the ways to help reduce the risk of infection.

Employers with employees working outdoors in these areas should train workers about valley fever symptoms and take steps to limit exposure to dust, such as watering down soil before digging.

A potential increase in cases

New research by the University of California, Berkeley and CDPH shows that during drought, the fungus that causes valley fever can become less active. However, when the rains return, the fungus can grow, leading to increases in infection.

Cases of valley fever in California have historically been lowest during years of drought and highest during years immediately after a drought.

The wet winter season California experienced could lead to more valley fever cases this summer and fall.

About 20,000 valley fever cases are reported in the U.S. each year, mostly from Arizona and California, and the number of cases is increasing.

Rates of valley fever in California continue to be highest in the Central Valley and Central Coast regions, including Kern, Kings, San Luis Obispo, Fresno, Tulare, Madera, and Monterey counties.

However, as the climate changes, valley fever has increased in other areas of the state as well. Specifically, more cases have been reported in the Northern San Joaquin (Central) Valley and Southern California in recent years.

With cases reaching their peak during the summer and fall months, August is Valley Fever Awareness Month. The department has developed a valley fever toolkit complete with resources to equip local agencies with key messaging to help expand Valley fever awareness and educate communities. It is important for all Californians to know the signs and symptoms of valley fever.

While anyone can get valley fever, people most likely to get valley fever include individuals who live, work, or travel in areas with high rates of valley fever, especially if they participate in outdoor activities that involve close contact with dirt or dust.

Other groups are at higher risk of severe valley fever if they become infected, including people who are Black or Filipino, adults 60 years or older, pregnant women, and people with diabetes, cancer, or conditions that weaken the immune system.

For additional information on Valley fever, please visit CDPH’s Valley fever website.

CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Adventist Health is pleased to expand services to Lake County with the opening of a Rapid Care clinic in Lakeport.

Rapid Care clinics offer quick attention for minor medical conditions, such as allergic reactions, bug bites, body and muscle aches, colds, flus, fevers, coughing and wheezing, cuts and lacerations, persistent headaches, eye and ear infections, sprains, rashes, itching and much more.

Rapid Care clinics are staffed with quality health care professionals who are trained and have extensive experience with managing those minor health concerns that may not require a visit to the emergency room, but need immediate attention.

The Rapid Care clinic in Lakeport is the second Rapid Care clinic opened by Adventist Health Clear Lake this year, following the January opening of Rapid Care in Clearlake.

The Lakeport Rapid Care clinic is open weekdays from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is conveniently located inside the existing primary care and pediatric clinic suite at 487 S. Main St.

More information about Rapid Care and the differences between Rapid Care services and the full-service Emergency Department at Adventist Health Clear Lake, visit www.AdventistHealth.org/LakeCountyRapidCare.

Upcoming Calendar

28Mar
03.28.2024 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Vision resource group
30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 11:00 am
Second annual Bunny Brunch
30Mar
03.30.2024 9:00 am - 2:00 pm
Lakeport Community Cleanup Day
30Mar
03.30.2024 1:00 pm - 3:00 pm
Lake County poet laureate inauguration
31Mar
03.31.2024
Easter Sunday
31Mar
03.31.2024 1:15 pm - 1:45 pm
Lakeport Rotary Club Easter Egg Hunt
1Apr
04.01.2024
Easter Monday
1Apr
10Apr
15Apr
04.15.2024
Tax Day

Mini Calendar

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