Health

Details: Written by: Elizabeth Larson; Published: 20 March 2021; Created: 20 March 2021; Last Updated: 20 March 2021

Mendocino County announced that County Deputy Health Officer Dr. Noemi Doohan has been appointed co-chair of the Health Equity Committee for the California Conference of Local Health Officers, or CCLHO.

The CCLHO advises the California Department of Public Health, as well as other state health entities on all public health matters.

“I am delighted and honored to be appointed to such an important committee,” said Dr. Doohan. “It is my goal to ensure that health equity is strongly represented in state public health policies.”

“To have someone who has Mendocino County’s best interests at heart in this role gives our county a special opportunity to have our voice heard at the state level,” said Health Officer Dr. Andy Coren. “Moreover, Dr. Doohan's strong commitment to equity, proven here in Mendocino County, will now benefit all of California.”

Through this new appointment, Dr. Doohan will be able to bring the needs and perspectives of rural counties forward.

She will continue her long-standing advocacy and support of health equity throughout California with an awareness for the diversity of needs of counties such as Mendocino.

Additionally, she will share these differences with state health officials, which ultimately can affect each and every resident of rural counties throughout the state in supporting access to medical care.

Details: Written by: Elizabeth Larson; Published: 19 March 2021; Created: 19 March 2021; Last Updated: 19 March 2021

Pictured from left to right: Danielle McCallum, Nancy Goodman (faculty), Peggy Goebel (director), Heather Eldridge, Jill Bartolomie (administrative director, Adventist Health Ukiah Valley), Summer Norbury, Erin Henckell, Andrea Maples (seated). Courtesy photo.

NORTH COAST, Calif. – Second-year Mendocino College Nursing students were recently able to get hands-on experience by working side by side with nurses from Adventist Health and other health care providers at the Alex Rorabaugh Center to administer 1000 COVID-19 vaccinations.

Each student was able to competently administer 50 to 75 vaccines under the supervision of Mendocino College Nursing Instructor Nancy Goodman and Director of Nursing Peggy Goebel.

Mendocino College Nursing Program Support Specialist Ginger Bushway coordinated all student requirements and schedules.

“The students did a fabulous job and were complemented by Adventist staff and multiple community clients,” said Goebel. “This is a wonderful example of Mendocino College Nursing Students gaining confidence and competence while serving their community during this pandemic crisis.”

“We are extremely grateful for the opportunity to be involved in community outreach through the participation in the vaccination clinic,” said Mendocino College Nursing student Hailey Young. “It was wonderful to hear all of the positive feedback and gratitude directly from the community members. This is an experience I will remember for a lifetime."

As required by the Center for Disease Control, all student vaccinators completed the CDC vaccinator course online and received their two doses of the COVID-19 vaccine at least two weeks prior to the clinic.

Students practiced CDC protocol, maintained social distancing requirements, wore masks, and washed hands frequently.

“We have made a commitment to Adventist Health to continue to partner with their clinics with supervised students here in Ukiah through mid-May,” said Goebel. “We have also made a commitment to partner with Mendocino County and EMS at the Ukiah Conference Center to provide faculty-supervised students at their Friday clinics through mid-May. We are all very proud of the professionalism, dedication and skill of our students.”

**Pictured from left to right: Peggy Goebel, Haley Young, Paulette Guillory, Daniel Low, Andrea Maples, Heather Eldridge, Nancy Goodman (instructor).**

Details: Written by: Elizabeth Larson; Published: 04 March 2021; Created: 04 March 2021; Last Updated: 04 March 2021

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Aligning Systems for Health, or AH4H, has invited Hope Rising to participate in a research study focused on improving the understanding of alignment of social services, public health, and health care in Accountable Communities for Health, or ACH.

Over the next four months, the study will focus on the degree to which health equity is impacted or results from current collaboration models in Lake County.

AH4H chose eight ACHs from California and Washington to participate in in-depth engagement as a “deep-dive site” to focus on how cross-sector alignment can advance the opportunity for everyone to have a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible.

Hope Rising is one of three of the 13 ACHs in California that was selected to carry out this critical work by identifying, testing and sharing what works to align health systems and practices and better address the goals and needs of the people of our communities.

“Hope Rising Lake County has made measurable progress toward aligning sectors for community health improvement,” said Stephanie Bultema, MALL PhD with Public Health Institute. “The Population Health Innovation Lab is partnering with Hope Rising to learn how cross-sector alignment can work in small, rural, and under-resources communities, with the goal of helping similar communities succeed in aligning for health.”

As a deep dive site, Hope Rising will invite stakeholders and community members that engage with them to participate in a survey, a series of interviews and a focus group to share their perspectives about what is working, for whom, and why.

Hope Rising will share the survey with stakeholders on March 10. Following a review of the information, AH4H will prepare a tailored report to Hope Rising in the summer of 2021. Public results of the research will be available in May 2022.

The Population Health Innovation Lab’s Aligning Systems for Health research is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.The[A1] Georgia Health Policy Center is leading the national Aligning Systems for Health initiative, of which the Population Health Innovation Lab’s research project is one part.

The Population Health Innovation Lab creates lasting change by providing a collaborative space for incubation, acceleration, and disseminating solutions to public health. This partnership will provide real-time, useful data, information, and recommendations for Hope Rising to continue working toward sustainable, long-term impact.

Participation in this research study will also offer national recognition through reference in scientific publications, at national conferences, and in book chapters, and allow Hope Rising to contribute to the generation of new knowledge that can benefit other ACHs and similar multi-sector collaboratives.

A crucial role of Aligning Systems for Health is turning evidence into action. By improving understanding of how ACH’s unique contexts and collaboration dynamics influence outcomes and make community efforts impactful, they can provide useful, actionable, and accessible information for policymakers, ACH staff and community stakeholders working to improve health.

Accountable Communities for Health are community-based partnerships formed across sectors such as health care, housing, social services, public health, employment training, and economic development to focus on a shared vision and responsibility for the health of the community.

For more information about Hope Rising programs or to get resources visit www.hoperisinglc.org.

Details: Written by: Elizabeth Larson; Published: 18 February 2021; Created: 18 February 2021; Last Updated: 18 February 2021

LAKE COUNTY, Calif. – Lake County Tribal Health Consortium is now inviting its patients to sign up for a list to receive the Moderna COVID-19 vaccine.