Health
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
CLEARLAKE, Calif. — Adventist Health is pleased to announce the addition of Marcie Morton, DC, Siqi Ma, DO and Kwang “Jason” Kim, DDS to the Clearlake community and the care team at Adventist Health Clear Lake Medical Office - Clearlake at 15230 Lakeshore Drive in Clearlake.
Marcie Morton, DC, is an experienced, board-certified chiropractor, committed to supporting patients on their health and healing journey. Her passion for good health underscores her efforts to find the best approach for each patient, to help them make the quality-of-life improvements that matter most to them.
Dr. Morton emphasizes individual treatment plans, developed by hearing each patient’s story and understanding their health values and goals. She provides important education about basic lifestyle choices to help patients achieve their best possible physical wellness.
Siqi Ma, DO, is a board-certified family medicine physician providing comprehensive healthcare for children and adults. Her practice encompasses wellness exams, immunizations, and management of common health care concerns such as colds and flu, diabetes, hypertension and anxiety.
Dr. Ma was inspired to practice medicine to connect with patients and discover their unique needs, so that she would be able to support their individual journey to better health. She believes her mission is to help others to feel better after helping to address their concerns. Dr. Ma speaks fluent English, Mandarin and some basic German.
Kwang “Jason” Kim, DDS, is a doctor of dental surgery with significant experience in general dentistry practice. Dr. Kim offers fillings, dentures, sealants, fluoride varnish and more for his dental patients. He sees all ages, from young children to adults and older adults.
Dr. Kim chose his career based upon his passion to use his skills and knowledge to help others maintain a healthy smile and to alleviate dental discomfort. His interest in making a positive impact in the lives of his patients is the driving force in his journey as a dentist. Dr. Kim is fluent in English and Korean and is involved with several dental professional organizations.
To learn more about all Adventist Health providers, visit www.AdventistHealth.org/ClearLake.
To make an appointment with Dr. Morton, schedule it directly from our website at www.AdventistHealth.org/MMorton or call the clinic at 707-995-4545.
To make an appointment with Dr. Ma, schedule it directly from our website at www.AdventistHealth.org/SMa or call the clinic at 707-995-4500.
To make an appointment with Dr. Kim, contact the clinic directly at 707-995-4540.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
AB 659 will ensure that more young Californians receive this cancer-preventing vaccine through an advisory that 8th-grade students and students entering higher education institutions should be vaccinated against the human papillomavirus, or HPV.
Schools will notify students and parents of the ideal age range for the vaccine to be effective to be included in the school’s existing orientations and updates.
The bill also guarantees that all health plans cover the vaccine.
The Center for Disease Control and Prevention reports that teen girls are the most likely to contract the infection and show symptoms.
Seventy-five to 89% of all people in the United States contract one or more types of HPV throughout the course of their lives.
Each year, over 37,000 Americans find new cases of cancer attributable to HPV. These cancer cases affect both male and female patients, with women most often developing HPV-related cervical cancer and male patients more often diagnosed with HPV-related cancers, the most prevalent being HPV-related oropharyngeal cancer.
The vaccine will prevent thousands of these cancers and deaths.
“I appreciate the many stakeholders and the Newsom Administration for helping to get to this point. We actually have a vaccine that can prevent cancer. AB 659 will alert parents and young people that they can save their lives and those of others. This bill creates more awareness and access and will prevent more cancers and deaths from HPV,” said Aguiar-Curry.
“By closing gaps in health care, we can make this life-saving vaccine more available to everyone. We’re going to have this conversation with California families and do everything we can to help them choose to protect their kids. This vaccine will result in fewer people contracting or spreading this cancer-causing virus,” Aguiar-Curry said.
While HPV vaccination has been available for over 20 years, vaccine uptake continues to lag
far behind other vaccines.
The CDC recommends HPV vaccination for girls and boys ages 11 to 12, and it is widely available through pediatricians and family doctors.
However, the CDC reports that over 60% of eligible adolescents have not received the HPV vaccine.
Assemblymember Aguiar-Curry represents the Fourth Assembly District, which includes all of Lake, Colusa, Napa and Yolo counties, and parts of Sonoma County.
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- Written by: Elizabeth Larson
NORTH COAST, Calif. — MCHC Health Centers is pleased to expand access to care with the arrival of its newest telehealth therapist: Jani Benitez, a bilingual licensed clinical social worker.
Benitez will provide telehealth to patients in both Lake and Mendocino counties while continuing to reside in her home state of Maryland.
Having grown up as part of an immigrant family from El Salvador, Benitez understands the cultural barriers people face when seeking treatment for mental health challenges.
Not only does social stigma prevent people from reaching out for support, but the idea of trying to explain complicated, emotional issues in a second language can be daunting for many.
About a quarter of Lake and Mendocino County residents identify as Hispanic or Latino, and many of them speak Spanish as their primary language.
Benitez explained how challenging it is to have a limited vocabulary when trying to explain thoughts and feelings that would be difficult enough to discuss in one’s primary language.
“When patients know they can express complex feelings in their own language, it is so powerful,” she said.
Benitez has provided case management and advocacy as well as direct counseling and therapy.
She worked for an emergency shelter helping victims of domestic violence and in a primary care setting helping patients learn to manage their depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress disorder, insomnia, and other behavioral health challenges.
When the pandemic hit, she was working as a behavioral health advocate rather than a therapist. She noted an enormous increase in the need for therapy and a significant lack of services in Spanish, so she began looking for an opportunity to get back into direct care. This is when she discovered the opportunity at MCHC Health Centers.
Working in a setting where she can work as part of a care team appeals to Benitez. She explained that working with a clinical team can provide a more complete picture of what is affecting a patient’s health and more tools to help the patient improve.
“If someone is having trouble sleeping because of their anxiety, this can make their diabetes symptoms worse, for example. So, the medical team can monitor a patient’s physical health and educate them on nutritional needs, while I focus on helping the patient with healthy sleep habits. There is definitely a mind-body connection. Medical and behavioral health go hand-in-hand,” she explained. She also noted the importance of working in partnership with a staff psychiatrist for patients who need psychiatric medication.
When she read about the job opportunity at MCHC, MCHC’s approach to care sounded familiar and welcome. Once she met the Behavioral Health team, and Department Director Ben Anderson, she knew she had found a good match.
She said she likes the fact that many of the providers have worked together for years, and that she will be part of a team committed to providing excellent care. She also wants to continually grow her own skills and believes she can learn from Anderson and others.
Benitez encourages anyone struggling with mental health issues to reach out for help if the issues are interfering with daily life.
“I’ve had plenty of calls where a patient says, ‘I’ve been sad. I’m not myself.’ or ‘I’m so irritable.’ or ‘I’m not well. This isn’t who I am.’ Those are all good reasons to consider therapy,” she said.
As a telehealth provider, Benitez will be able to provide care remotely. Appointments can occur via video chat or phone, which can lower barriers to care for those who cannot travel to a health center.
“This is your time to say whatever you want to say. I am here to support you, never to judge,” Benitez said. “I remind people, ‘You have survived. You are capable.’ I show them they can do this. They have been able to overcome adversities. We focus on strengths, and build good coping skills. I tell them, ‘You are more than your trauma. You deserve to live a healthy, happy life.”
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- Written by: ANY POSITIVE CHANGE
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.
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