Spoken from the Heart: You should be alarmed.

by Kerri Hodges, Development & Marketing Director

I recently read a statistic that only 8% of adults over 35 are up-to-date on their recommended clinical screenings. You would think that everyone was living a happy and healthy life. However, in our society, people are dying from cancer, heart disease, diabetes, and obesity complications every single day. Why are we not alarmed?

If I didn't work in healthcare, I might not know when I needed each of these screenings; I may be like the countless other Iowans who don't go to the doctor unless something has hurt for too long. I will admit I often power through my aches and pains, even though I should not. However, I know that if I regularly see my provider, they will keep me on track. It's really that simple. All I need to do is schedule an annual well visit.  

We're pretty good about getting our kids in when they are infants for their exams and vaccinations, but at some point, the majority of us (as statistics dictate) fall off the preventative healthcare wagon. Preventative healthcare includes a carefully timed set of services that screen and sometimes identify health issues before symptoms develop. Screenings can point out heart disease, diabetes, and an array of cancers. They can easily detect high blood pressure and high cholesterol. Health screenings can help you live a longer and more robust life. Sometimes, a "cure" is possible through provider-recommended preventative counseling in the form of lifestyle changes. Most insurance plans cover the full cost of preventative healthcare services with no co-pays.

Mortality rates in southwest Iowa are higher than not only the state average but also the national average. Pottawattamie County's health outcome score, as determined by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, ranks us at 95 out of 99 counties in Iowa. This means only four counties have worse health outcomes, and one is our neighbor – Montgomery County. There are schools of thought that point to individuals of southwest Iowa being exceptionally resilient. Our rural generations grew up working hard and caring for the land. Nothing got in their way, not aches, pains, or illness. 

My dad died at age 74 from complications surrounding heart disease and diabetes. I wonder how long he went through his days "not feeling well" until he was diagnosed with diabetes. I wonder if he simply didn't know what it felt like to feel good. I'm pretty sure when the heart attacks started, he was seeking emergency care, but was it too late to start getting care, then? Was he one of those proud men who was not going to let an ache or pain inconvenience his daily farming routine? I believe he was.

It's not just the older generations waiting to seek preventative healthcare. It can happen at any age. A good friend of mine recently illustrated this resilience (or maybe stubbornness). She has four active children, works full-time, and manages her family's livestock operations. For years, she has not prioritized care for herself, just her family and farm. She waited until age 50 to get her first mammogram, where she was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer.  

A lack of access to health care is a real concern – it is a health emergency. For our communities of southwest Iowa, healthcare must be of the utmost convenience to take time to seek the care they need. No one wants to wait for an available appointment or has the means to travel a long distance. It also has to be affordable. And folks may need a little convincing, too. This is what makes All Care Health Center perfect for "the job." All Care is focused on increasing access to care. Increasing access to care is our strategic plan's number one high-level initiative. Increasing access to care can mean many things. This can mean opening new doors in communities that lack any healthcare resources. It can mean sending our mobile medical clinic to local schools, expanding transportation resources, or helping rural residents understand how to use telehealth. It can even mean connecting care coordinators with folks who have never scheduled an annual exam. All Care is weighing a lot of options. Expect to see change for the better, one step at a time.

We are past New Year's resolution season, but there is always time to set a goal. If you are part of the 92% who have not had an annual wellness visit in the last year, please take some time and schedule an appointment with your primary care provider. Then, commit to this annually; consider adding an annual scheduling reminder to your calendar. 

Do you need to establish a primary care provider? All Care can help. Establish care with us. We will see you soon so you can live a long, happy, and HEALTHY life.

Margaret Chipendo, APRN-PMHNP, FNP, has a passion for whole-person health. After growing up in Harare, Zimbabwe, Margaret took her educational journey to the United States, where all her nursing training occurred. Margaret earned her Master of Science in Nursing from Clarkson College in Omaha to become an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse – Family Nurse Practitioner. Margaret soon expanded upon her skills to earn a post-masters certificate from Maryville University in Saint Louis as an Advanced Practice Registered Nurse - Psych Mental Health Nurse Practitioner while receiving Dean's List Honors for academic excellence.  

With her dual licensing, Margaret has worked as a family practice provider in an urgent care setting to prescribe appropriate pharmacologic and non-pharmacologic treatment to patients with acute and chronic illnesses. She coordinated with physicians, specialists, and other medical staff in this role to develop continued treatment and care plans. While working in an urgent care setting, Margaret simultaneously provided internal medicine/psychiatry for prison mates at the Nebraska Department of Corrections. In this setting, she provided direct quality care to patients after assessing their needs and implementing treatment plans. Working with this population allowed Margaret to monitor, record, and evaluate psychiatric conditions and coordinate care with multiple disciplinary teams.  

Her intense practice has given her the ability to utilize multi-modal diagnostic tools to diagnose and treat patients with anxiety, depression, bipolar, schizophrenia, schizoaffective disorders, ADHD, memory difficulties, and dementia. Her passions surround disease management, prevention, mental health maintenance of patients across the lifespan, and effective collaboration with other providers to manage acute general medical illnesses.  

All Care's mental health team welcomes Margaret Chipendo. Margaret looks forward to meeting new patients at All Care Health Center and helping them create a plan to manage their health. She wants to let patients know that although she grew up in Zimbabwe, English is her primary language, but she is also fluent in Shona.

Welcome to our new physician's assistant, Ben Moore.

Ben Moore, P.A., has joined All Care Health Center to fill patient care gaps at the Florence M. Lakin Health Center, our main campus location, and the New Visions Homeless Services private clinic. He brings experience from a larger community healthcare setting and skills in diagnosing and treating primary and urgent care concerns, including acute and chronic conditions. He has special experience in testing, assessing, and educating patients and their families on the pathophysiology of tuberculosis and common treatment protocols.  

After growing up in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, Ben began his higher education through biological chemistry, biopsychology, and Spanish studies at Evangel University in Missouri, where he earned his Bachelor of Science degree. He continued at Des Moines University to become a Physician’s Assistant.  

Ben is available to welcome new patients speaking both English and Spanish at the Florence M. Lakin Health Center, 1415 Avenue J, or at All Care Health Center, 902 South 6th Street.

Have you visited All Care's Mobil Medical Clinic?

As All Care's Mobile Medical Clinic continues to grow, it is now traveling to five Council Bluffs Community School District campuses. 

All Care implemented school-based healthcare, in collaboration with the Council Bluffs Community School District, as a critical role to ensure that our community youth have access to high-quality, affordable healthcare and to support students' academic success. By providing this care, school-based health programs are proven to positively impact student health and learning. 

All Care's Mobile Medical Clinic addresses financial barriers. For uninsured and underinsured students, All Care's services are available at minimal out-of-pocket cost, using a sliding fee scale. All Care can also help enroll these eligible students in much-needed health insurance, such as Medicaid or the Children's Health Insurance Program. Enrollment assistance is free.  

Parents benefit from school-based care with the knowledge that their child can receive health care without leaving school. Employers of parents appreciate reduced employee productivity losses because of missed work time to care for sick children or transport them to medical settings. Parents appreciate not missing hours of pay. School communities benefit because healthcare needs can be addressed on-site, reducing missed class time and absenteeism.  

All Care's mobile medical clinic services include health maintenance supervision or well-child care, immunizations, sick visits, and laboratory services. Services can help students with chronic medical concerns with the goal of improving their academic success. 

All Care joined the school-based healthcare movement because they believe in improving access to care, improving health outcomes, and reducing health disparities. School-based healthcare is not only a benefit to students but is also available to staff and student families. If you and your favorite student have not peeked inside All Care's mobile medical clinic, it is time to take a look. Schedule an appointment at (712) 325-1990.

All Care Receives Inaugural Iowa Primary Care Association Communicators Award

All Care’s communications team of Kerri Hodges, Development and Marketing Director, and Stephanie Laubscher-Steele, Marketing and Outreach Specialist, brought home the first-ever Iowa Primary Care Association Communicators Award from the Iowa Community Health Conference. The award recognizes organizations for their outstanding communications, including patient engagement, social media, and other forms of marketing.

Katie Owens, Senior Director of Engagement for the Iowa Primary Care Association, wrote, “We believe that your communication and marketing embodies the spirit of the Community Health Center Movement and our vision of ‘health equity for all.’ Your impact has not only made a difference but has also inspired others around you.”  

Hodges and Steele accepted the award at the Iowa Community Health Conference on January 22 at the Des Moines Marriott Downtown’s Iowa Ballroom. Joel Dougherty, All Care’s Chief Executive Officer, attended with the team, among state-wide peers, colleagues, and representatives of All Care’s management team.

Advocating for the Community Health Center Movement.

All Care is grateful for the efforts of The Iowa Primary Care Association, which plays a vital role in the education of our local, state, and national policymakers surrounding community health centers. As healthcare leaders, they amplify the voices of our patients and communities to request support for our vision of health equity for all. Community health centers are proud to have a long history of elected official bipartisan support.

Grassroots advocacy is foundational to the community health center movement. Our work focuses on providing access to high-quality, affordable healthcare in under-resourced communities. Fourteen community health centers across Iowa serve nearly 250,000 patients annually, but there are still more to serve.  

VoterVoice is our online advocacy tool, which allows staff, board members, patients, partners, and community members to connect with elected officials and share the positive efforts of our local community health center. Anyone can be a part of this network. Sign up for VoterVoice today to support community health centers as we work to increase access to healthcare!

Nationally, All Care looks to the National Association of Community Health Centers to share even more messages about our larger footprint. Through their Health Center Advocacy Network, we invite stakeholders to take action through email, social media, and other avenues by joining this network. In addition to mobilizing efforts, great information is shared to understand community health centers' needs better.  

For ongoing updates, events, shout-outs, and celebrations, please like us on Facebook and follow us on Instagram. Please share with others who can benefit from our mission of affordable, comprehensive, and high-quality healthcare for the entire community.