Happy Holidays: A Reflection on 2011

The holidays are always a time for reflection. We think about our dearest family, friends, neighbors, and co-workers. We consider all that we and our loved ones accomplished in the past year. And we generally find ourselves feeling truly grateful for all the above.

Not everyone in our community has been so fortunate that they can reflect positively on 2011. We all know that this year has not been kind to everyone and has provided many with new struggles and challenges due to the economy and unemployment. However, there is a lot to be thankful for too in terms of the resources and services available to those in need.

Here are just a few reasons the Health Center is celebrating 2011:

· 13,000 patients now call Community Health Center of Cape Cod their medical home and 55,000 total patient visits were provided, from physical exams to teeth cleanings to counseling sessions. This was a record high! Most of these patients turned to the Health Center because they were unable to access this high-quality, affordable care elsewhere due to financial, cultural, and other barriers.
· Each month 200 to 300 new patients are registered. To better meet their needs, a New Patient Access Team was created to enroll, educate and connect our patients to care much quicker than before. The Team also helps patients understand, plan and advocate for their health and well being.
· 50 more dental patients are served each week since our Dental Clinic expanded its operating hours to include additional evenings and Saturdays. There are now a total of 5,100 active dental patients.
· 1,100 people in schools, youth organizations, law enforcement as well as emergency responders, clergy, and clinicians have gone through life-saving suicide prevention training by the Youth Suicide Prevention Project, a program of the Health Center.
· Women’s Health visits are up 30%, meaning an increased number of cervical cancer screenings.
· 788 students are enrolled at the School Based Health Center at Barnstable High School. An amazing 90% of the students cared for at the SBHC actually returned to class—instead of going home sick and missing school days. On average 30 mental health visits are provided there each week, which shows the great need for these services among our adolescent population.
· The year-long planning and start of construction on our 22,000 sq/ft addition in Mashpee has created much excitement and anticipation. Upon completion, 5,000 additional patients will have access to expanded programs and new services including imaging, optometry, a low-cost pharmacy, and a much larger dental clinic.

Support for our capital campaign is essential in completing this addition, but as we build it please remember it is critical that we also sustain our operating budget, which funds all of our programs and services. To make a gift to the Annual Fund to help with day-to-day operations that allow us to care for the neediest children, adults, and families, please call 508-477-5990 or visit http://www.chcofcapecod.org/.

Looking Forward to a New Women's Health Suite

While primary care, mental health, and dental care are well known tenants of Community Health Center of Cape Cod’s continuum of care; Women’s Health Services is another hugely important and growing program. In fact this year Women’s Health patient visits were up 30% according to Program Director Megan Luizzi. We also exceeded enrollment capacity in CHC’s Care Coordination Program, which provides prevention, early detection, screening, and case management services for eligible patients at risk for breast cancer, cervical cancer, heart disease, and stroke. The disproportionately high rates of breast cancer on Cape Cod make early detection an essential part of our program.

Our Women’s Health Services will soon be expanding further to its own new suite in our Building for the Future. On the main floor of the new addition will be women’s health, expanded primary care, with additional room for future services including medical imaging. This new wing will be connected to the existing building by an enclosed walkway. We look forward to the ability to care for a greater number of patients while keeping an emphasis on the neediest populations.

Currently the Women’s Health staff work out of the Falmouth office, including Dr. Dale Weldon, OB/GYN and Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner Beth Homand. Here, women are cared for at every stage of their lives; from the teenage to child-bearing and into the senior years. We offer a team-based approach to help women achieve and maintain good health which includes a program of education, screening, prevention, and ongoing gynecological care - regardless of age, income, or insurance status.

These services can be integrated with other Health Center services, but please note that people are not required to be CHC patients to enroll as a patient in Women’s Health, which is currently accepting new patients with public or private insurance. Patients who are uninsured may seek assistance in attaining appropriate and affordable coverage through our insurance specialist, Joan Dowd (508-7090 ext. 155). Please call 508-540-2949 for more information about Women’s Health Services or to register as new patient.

Naming Opportunities Announced for the New Addition

Thank you to everyone that has already made a gift in response to our Annual Holiday Appeal. A yearly gift funds specific programs, helps us purchase equipment, and supports daily operating expenses. We know there are many worthy charities all making asks this time of year. Please know how appreciative we are that you have chosen Community Health Center of Cape Cod as a local cause that you feel good about supporting this year. With 1 in 6 Falmouth and Mashpee residents being patients—along with many others from surrounding towns—the positive impact of your generosity can be seen throughout this community.

While the holiday appeal helps fund day-to-day operational needs of the Health Center, the Building for the Future Expansion Campaign is underway to raise $3.25 million to complete our new 22,000 sq/ft addition which is now well underway!

This weekend we will begin the “shoring” process which involves installing forms and other materials into the embankment to hold the land (and our existing building) in place during site preparation and construction, explains CEO Karen Gardner. We are accomplishing the shoring over the weekend to avoid the most significant vibrations during patient care hours. However, the process may go in to Monday morning. After this shoring process, we can anticipate the same level of current minor vibration during the next two months. At that point, the foundation will be poured and steel framing will start going up for the new space!

There are plenty of naming opportunities for the new addition available for those who make gifts of $5,000 or more. What better Christmas gift—and family legacy—than making affordable, comprehensive healthcare accessible to all by naming a room or department after a loved one or even your entire family! Take a look at the Capital Campaign Naming Opportunities list for all the options. If you are interested in making a gift of any size to the Building for the Future Expansion Campaign please contact the Development Office at 508-477-5990. We can’t thank you enough for your help!

Hope for Those Needing Dental Care

Conventional wisdom has it that no one really wants to go to the dentist. Not so for many people in our region who are in urgent need of quality, affordable oral health services. People in need of dental care will benefit greatly when the Mashpee addition is completed.

Despite opening earlier and closing later during weekdays, adding Saturday hours, and the outstanding work of our dental staff and providers, the wait times for appointments for both new and established patients at our Marion Jordan Center for Dental Health are longer than we would like them to be.

A significant portion of the 22,000 square-foot project will be devoted to the expansion of the dental clinic, which will go from three dental chairs to ten! We are confident that when the expanded dental clinic is fully operational, wait times will decrease.

In addition to enabling us to see more patients more quickly, one of the new chairs will be specifically designed for disabled patients. Currently, there are no handicapped-specific dental operatories in our region and we look forward to providing this specialized service.

Another highlight of the increased space is that it will enable us to partner with educational institutions to serve as a training site for prospective dentists and dental hygienists. Cape Cod is designated by the federal government as a dental Health Professional Shortage Area and this lack of providers is a significant barrier to people receiving care in a timely fashion. We are currently in discussions with Boston University School of Dental Medicine and Cape Cod Community College to create externships to expose students to the rewards and challenges of dental care in the community health center setting.

The dental clinic will encompass approximatley half of the ground floor of the addition, as you can see on the left side of the drawing. The pharmacy, vision services, and patient financial services will also be located on the ground floor.

Thanksgiving Thanks

With Thanksgiving just days away it feels like perfect timing to reflect on those who make the wheels turn here at the Health Center. We could not care for so many of our friends and neighbors in need without our hard-working providers, tireless staff, dedicated Board of Directors and volunteers, and of course our generous and caring community.

Our donors—and donations—come in all shapes and sizes. Grateful patients, well-known philanthropists, family foundations, and you! All understand and embrace our mission and help us carry it out each day. We are grateful for them all.

Without the ongoing support from so many, we could not provide affordable primary and preventive care, mental health services, and dental care to the most needy children, adults, and families in our community. The majority of our patients have turned to the Health Center because they could not access this care elsewhere due to financial, cultural, and other barriers. In about a year, our new addition will allow 5,000 more patients to turn here.

We are so pleased to provide a shoulder to lean on for those in need, and proud of this community that has allowed us to do so. Thank you.

We have lift-off!

Christy Murphy, JK Scanlan’s project manager, gave us a brief update last week and reported that the Health Center received its final building permit on November 2, which gave the green light to officially begin!

Last week things got going in a hurry as the site work subcontractors cleared the area of all the trees and brush. A silt fence for erosion control will be installed next and then the site will be enclosed by the construction fence. Our total construction timeline will be about 9.5 months. Building construction will begin in early December and JK Scanlan hopes to have the building “weather tight” by late February. The construction process should be concluded in late July. Once the certificate of occupancy and all licensure approvals are received, we will move in! We hope to be settled into our new space by late September 2012.

“Stay tuned…. the big hole in the ground is coming in the next couple of weeks,” Murphy says.

News from the Campaign Committee

The Health Center’s Campaign Committee met last week after Philanthropy Day on Cape Cod, an annual event for local non-profits and their staff and volunteers, businesses, and community members to get together, share, learn and celebrate philanthropy. We were thrilled that committee members Joel Peterson and Jim Franklin, as well as a Board Member Brenda Swithenbank and CEO Karen Gardner attended the event.

While the day overall was a huge success and very positive, there was a common feeling that fundraising was very difficult for organizations across the board this year and numbers were down. This is no surprise due to the current economic climate. While raising the funds for our new addition has proven challenging this year, we know that our community needs this facility more than ever.

Thanks to many philanthropists, friends, foundations, and businesses we have raised nearly $2 million for this project. With about $1.2 million left, we are confident that our entire community will come together to see that this goal is met, and that our friends and neighbors in need have a place to receive high-quality, affordable healthcare for years to come.

If you would like to help us reach our goal for the Building for the Future Expansion Campaign, please call the Development Office at 508-477-5990 to discuss your wishes and how you can help. Thank you for your support!