Volume 3, Issue 1 Winter 2010

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The HealthCare Connection’s annual jazz concert has become a highly anticipated night – which was clear to CEO Dolores J. Lindsay at the conclu-sion of this year’s event! As

guests were leaving the auditorium, they repeatedly asked her, “Who are you bringing next year?” This year’s artist Al Jarreau brought together nearly 1900 guests and brought wonderful music to the Aronoff stage, as well as supported the services we provide to our ever-grow-ing diabetic patient population. With this support, we are able to track and enhance the self-management of a greater percentage of our diabetic patients.

Honorary Concert Chairs Larry and Barbara Kellar and Honorary Sponsorship Chair J. Phillip Holloman of Cintas lent their support to the organization and event, helping to make the night a great success. Concert co-chairs Carole Rigaud and Merri Gaither Smith expertly led the Steering Committee for the second year in a row. The Steering Committee members, who guided the planning of all aspects of the event, included THCC board trustees Linda Childs-Jeter and Charlotte V. Powell along with Tracey Artis, Kathy Comisar, Faith Daniels, Yvonne Edmonds-West, Ed Felson, Lawrence A. Flemer, Sarah Hale, Lillian Jones, Leslie Kreines, Dolores J. Lindsay, Phyllis McCallum, Arzell Nelson, Edgar Smith, Marcella Trice, and Miriam West.

Steering Committee member Leslie Kreines chaired the VIP Reception and partnered with Gourmet Enterprises and the International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Ohio-Cincinnati to create an exotic array of treats for guests at the VIP Reception. Guests enjoyed a great variety of “jazzy bites” and were able to mingle and relax before the concert at the two-level VIP Reception. They were greeted by emcee Faith Daniels of MOJO 100.3 and the musical styling’s of local jazz groups including the Princeton High School Jazz Ensemble, the CCM Jazztet, and the Wannabees. We would like to thank Rick VanMatre of the UC College Conservatory of Music, Ed Felson of The Blue Wisp, Tim

Smith of the Jazz Studies Department at Princeton High School, Wendell O’Neal of the Wannabees, and Arzell Nelson of L’lezra Entertainment Group for their assistance in coordinating the night’s excellent local jazz!

John Lomax of concert sponsor Local 12-WKRC wel-comed the audience and described the cause behind this wonderful evening. He introduced the video de-tailing The HealthCare Connection’s work and more than 40 year history of service to the underserved as well as related his own more personal experience with diabetes. Jarreau put on an amazing performance, showcasing his unique range and diverse musical talents. As one of the only artists in history to win a Grammy in each of the three genres of jazz, pop, and R&B, guests at this benefit perfor-mance saw a show unlike any other! In an interview with Enquirer arts writer Janelle Gelfand, Jarreau described his musical style as, “I weave throughout the pop and R&B this thread of jazz… So yeah, I’m a

jazz singer with broader notions.”

But the night wasn’t over at the conclusion of the show – guests with VIP tickets moved to The Blue Wisp Jazz Club where local favorite Mandy Gaines wowed the audi-

ence, a perfect end to a wonderfully jazz filled night! As for who we are bringing for next year’s concert – we can’t say just yet! We will announce our next jazz legend in the Spring of 2010, so please stay tuned.

Al Jarreau at the Aronoff: A Great Show for a Great Cause

See page 3 for more photos of the evening.

CEO Dolores J. Lindsay celebrates a suc-cessful evening with Al Jarreau, himself!

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While the path to health reform has not lacked for controversy, both sides of the political divide under-stand and appreciate the value of community health centers like The HealthCare Connection. Studies have also shown that expansion of health centers like ours will reduce health care costs, plain and simple. Each day in the lobbies of our centers, we see the need for health care reform in our growing numbers of unin-sured patients.

At this critical time, we choose to focus on what unites us—for America’s Health Centers that means access to care no matter who you are, where you live, or your insurance status. All individu-als should have the choice of a health center as their medical and/or dental home and every health center should be appropriately reimbursed for the high-value preventive and primary care it provides.

Though there are still final negotiations to take place between the Senate and the House to reconcile their bills on health care reform, we do know that com-munity health centers like The HealthCare Connection will be front and center. Without health insurance, many of the uninsured have put off medical care because they fear the costs associated with it. The proposed plans in the Senate and the House address this fear by expanding health insur-ance coverage.

As millions of Americans who were not previously covered gain health insurance, they will need a place to call their medical home and receive personalized primary care. We anticipate that federally qualified community health centers like ours will be able to fill this need for many of the newly insured, and we hope for continued support and expansion of community health centers to address what will be an increase in demand for our services.

We believe this pending legislation will enhance our ability to better serve more patients – be-cause everyone deserves quality health care!

*Drawn from resources provided by the National Association of Community Health Centers (www.nachc.org)

Community Health Centers in Health Care Reform

Lincoln Heights Dental Center: Lifeline for Oral Health Needs in Our Communities Dr. Lynda Roberts-Riddle was recently named the Dental Director of The HealthCare Connection’s (THCC) dental center at our Lincoln Heights site. Formerly run by CincySmiles, The HealthCare Connection has assumed direction of the center and retained the staff as THCC employees.

We have seen grow-ing demand for our dental services (a 5.5% increase in patients during the first 6 months of 2009), and nearly 68% of these dental patients do not have insur-ance. The Lincoln Heights Dental Center is one of

the only safety net providers for these “dentally at risk” groups, especially since most other dentists in the service area do not accept Medicaid. Thus, we are a vital lifeline for the underserved in this area to receive dental care. This increase in uninsured patients includes college students or recent graduates who are no longer covered by their parents’ plans but unable to afford their own cover-age as well as adults who have recently lost their jobs, and thus their health benefits, during the recession.

Oral health is critically important to a person’s overall health and wellbeing. Poor oral health is often accompa-nied with severe pain and discomfort and can interfere with a person’s ability to eat, sleep, and work – limiting a person’s overall quality of life. The American Dental Association asserts untreated oral health problems can lead to serious infection throughout the body. Yet, dental disease is often preventable. This is why the services provided by the Lincoln Heights Dental Center are so im-portant to the communities we serve.

Dr. Riddle strives to get our patient population to a point where their oral health is stable and does not prevent them from working or getting hired for a job. She emphasizes an attention to preventive care, espe-cially the basic but critical components of brushing, floss-ing, and regular cleanings. These steps are invaluable to restoring and maintaining oral health. The dental center’s goal is to help to restore healthy smiles so that everyone has the opportunity to lead healthy and productive lives.

Staff of the THCC Dental Center

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Al Jarreau at the Aronoff: A Great Show for a Great Cause 3rd Annual Fall Concert Supports Diabetes

Arzell Nelson, VIP Reception music coor-dinator, with committee member Miriam West and the Honorable John West

Ed Rigaud of the Wannabees enter-tains guests at the Hot Jazz & Cool Nights Reception

Guests at the VIP reception enjoyed an array of treats from Gourmet Enterprises and the International Culinary School at The Art Institute of Ohio-Cincinnati

Honorary Concert Chairs Larry & Barbara Kellar

Ed Felson of The Blue Wisp Jazz Club with Marsha Weston Felson

Committee members Tracey Artis & Marcella Trice

Dr. Myrtis H. Powell with the 2010 Concert Co-Chair Phyllis McCallum

Princeton High School Jazz Ensemble wows guests at the reception

Mark & Winkie Upson enjoy the live local jazz

Page 4A round of applause for our sponsors and supporters – We could not do it without you!

Our SponsorsCintasUS BankSmale Family Fund of

the Greater Cincinnati Foundation

American FinancialCincinnati Children’s Hospital

Medical CenterDuke EnergyHospice of CincinnatiLocal 12 – WKRCThe Pepper Family Fund

of the Greater Cincinnati Foundation

TriHealthUniversity Hospital

The Ascent at Roebling’s Bridge/Corporex

Allstate Insurance – The Lindsay Agency

Buckeye Community Health Plan

The Otto M. Budig Family Foundation

Frame USAThe Lois & Richard Rosenthal

Foundation

Our PromotersThe Blue Wisp Jazz ClubMOJO 100.3Gourmet Enterprises

WVXU 91.7The Westin Cincinnati

In-Kind Contributions and Donations

All Occasions Event RentalLinda Childs-JeterEmpower Media MarketingJohn & Barbara FillionGail Myers Public Relations,

LLCHall-Jordan & Thompson

Funeral HomesJan Kiefhaber DesignJoseph-Beth BooksellersMichael KreinesKroger

Bernard Lenchitz & Marlene Ostrow

Michael MitchellPangea Productions Ltd.Procter & GambleQuality Printing & DesignArmand & Joyce ReWestin CincinnatiDan Yount

And a sincere thanks to all of our “Cool Jazz Hosts!”

Steering committee member Sarah Hale & her husband Dr. George Hale enjoy the reception

John Lomax of concert Sponsor WKRC – Channel 12 welcomes the audience to a wonderful evening

Committee members Kathy Comisar & Larry Flemer with guests Donna & Howard Richshafer, Bo Waite, & Margaret Lafley (right-left)

Merri Gaither Smith with Board Trustee and committee member Charlotte V. Pow-ell, and Dolores J. Lindsay, CEO

Steering committee member Lillian Jones with concert co-chair Merri Gaither Smith, VIP Reception chair Leslie Kreines, concert co-chair Carole Rigaud, and reception mu-sic coordinator Arzell Nelson (left-right)

Honorary Sponsorship Chair J. Phillip Holloman, COO & President of Cintas

Radio personality Faith Daniels of MOJO 100.3 emceed the reception

Board Trustees (from left) Linda Childs-Jeter, LaVerne Mitchell, & Beverly Leonard pose with Al Jarreau

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NEW

New and Notable

NOTABLEThe expansion of our Forest Park site has begun! This renovation will double the space we currently have, enabling us to better serve the families and children that rely on the primary care they receive at this location.

The project should be completed by the Spring of 2010, greatly enhancing our capacity to see more patients.

Want to support the work of The HealthCare Connection? Contribute to our Friends & Family Campaign by visiting us online at www.healthcare-connection.org/giving.html or send a check to:

1401 Steffen Ave. | Attn. Development Office | Cincinnati, OH 45215

One of our practice managers, Shirley Smith, was nominated for the Business Courier’s 2010 Health Care Heroes award in community out-reach. The winner will be announced on March 4th, and we are crossing our fingers for her! To view the other nominees, please visit http://cincin-nati.bizjournals.com/cincinnati/event/13671.

Dr. Bernard Lenchitz (right): Initiative: recogniz-ing what needs to be done before I am asked to do it.

Dr. Lynda Roberts-Riddle (middle): Patience: accepting a difficult situation without giving a deadline to remove it.

Eva Tonya Webb (left): Responsibility: knowing and doing what is expected of me.

Congratulations to our Character Award Winners!

We hope you can join us for another walk in the park on Saturday, May 15, 2010, at Glenwood Gardens. Jack Atherton with WLW and Lincoln Ware of WDBZ the Buzz return as Honorary Walk Chair and Walkmaster for the event; we hope you can join us for another great walk!

Call for Volunteers! We are looking for 1-2 new members to energize and add new ideas to our walk committee. The time commitment is minimal (1 hour meeting once a month from February – May).

Please contact Megan Wright in our Development Office at (513) 483-3081 or meganwr@healthcare-connection.org if you are interested in helping to make our fifth 5K the best yet!

May 15, 2010

Save the DateComprehensive Care – Meeting Physical and Mental Health Needs Under One RoofThe HealthCare Connection just finished its third year of providing primary health care services to severely men-tally disabled (SMD) patients in four community mental health center sites: Centerpoint Behavioral Health-Hamilton Ave; Centerpoint Behavioral Health-Glenway Ave; Greater Cincinnati Behavioral Health Services; and the Central Community Mental Health Board. Studies have shown that persons with severe mental illness often:

• Have physical illnesses that frequently go undiag-nosed and untreated

• Have difficulty finding and utilizing routine primary care services with which they are comfortable

• Use hospital emergency rooms when they are ill

• Receive little or no preventive health care services

• Have difficulty communicating their physical symp-toms; and

• Die 25 years sooner than the general population

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The HealthCare Connection 1401 Steffen Avenue Cincinnati, Ohio 45215

Dolores J. Lindsay Chief Executive Officer

Megan Wright Development Office

Editor

Partners for Health is published quarterly.

The mission of The HealthCare Connection is to provide quality, culturally sensitive, and accessible primary health care services focusing on the medically underserved, underinsured, and uninsured residing in northern Hamilton County and surrounding areas.

www.healthcare-connection.org

...because everyone deserves quality health care.

Lincoln Heights Health Center1401 Steffen Ave.Cincinnati, Ohio 45215513.554.4100

Mt. Healthy Family Practice8146 Hamilton Ave.Cincinnati, Ohio 45231513.522.7500

Forest Park Health Center924 Waycross RoadCincinnati, Ohio 45240513.589.3014

Few physical health services are tailored to meet the needs of this population, but THCC has done just that! This would not have been possible without our commit-ted community mental health agency partners, and our dedicated and caring staff. The success stories are many. Here are a couple of examples reported by mental health agency staff:

• One of my clients had been having some chest pain, so Dr. X ordered blood work and it was drawn at the office. Dr. X asked that the lab get back to her as soon as possible because she was concerned about the client’s symptoms. When she got the results, at FIVE AM, she called the client PERSONALLY to tell her to get to the ER! The client was then kept for observation at the hospital, and thankfully she was spared a heart attack or stroke as a direct result of Dr. X’s intervention!

• Another of my clients is schizophrenic and as a result can be disorganized and can forget details quickly. He also has chronic asthma. Dr. X takes the time to re-educate him on using his various inhalers correctly every time she sees him, and will squeeze him in when he comes in with breathing problems at any time.

We served nearly 1650 patients in 2009, compared to 796 the first year the program began—and expect to serve more than 2000 in 2010!

Physical and Mental continued from page 5