NACHC Raises Concerns About Funding Uncertainty in Pandemic Fight

BETHESDA, Md–Community Health Centers recently marked the one year milestone of vaccinating and protecting populations from COVID. With now 21 million vaccines administered, and a documented success of fewer deaths and infections in places where there is a health center, another challenge looms: financial uncertainty. With pandemic federal funding winding down, NACHC is tracking how health centers can continue to serve their mission by providing care to uninsured and underinsured Americans as additional COVID-19 variants emerge.

To continue reading “NACHC Raises Concerns About Funding Uncertainty in Pandemic Fight” by Amy Simmons Farber, please click here.

CMO Dr. Faiyaz Syed Pens Op-Ed for Bridgemi.com

LANSING–Michigan Primary Care Association chief medical officer Dr. Faiyaz Syed recently wrote an opinion piece for the BridgeMichigan website titled “Oral medications are a huge step forward in Michigan’s COVID fight.”

Dr. Syed writes “The past two years have been trying for us all, particularly those of us that work in health care. As the chief medical officer for the Michigan Primary Care Association, I’ve seen Community Health Center patients of all ages struggle with COVID-19. Some of our patients have been hospitalized because they were so ill. Some have lost their lives to this virus.”…

Check out his full guest commentary piece here.

MPCA’s March Newsletter 2022

LANSING–The Michigan Primary Care Association has issued the 2022 March newsletter to more than 2,600 subscribers’ inboxes this week.

Please check out the March 2022 edition which includes the following highlights:

2022 MPCA Legislative Forum/NACHC Virtual Hill Visits; MPCA endorsed business partners directory (new website content); Meet the Health Center Operations & Workforce Team; AmeriCorps (HealthCorps) recruiting drive; 340B legislation signed into law; oral health and emergency preparedness updates; calendar of events; and much more.

The March  2022 newsletter is available at this link.

Click here to sign up for our mailing list so that you can stay current with monthly news and updates.

You can also read about past available issues here.

Staples Added to MPCA Endorsed Partners Portfolio

LANSING–The Michigan Primary Care Association is delighted to introduce Staples, our newest endorsed partner, to our members. Staples is more than just office supplies.

As a valued member of the MPCA, you have access to a customized program with exclusive savings on the thousands of products you need to run your health center. You’ll benefit from:
•  Easy online ordering on www.StaplesAdvantage.com
•  A dedicated account management team
•  Fast, free delivery on select orders and much more

Please visit the following link for more information or to ask a consultant questions about how Staples can help your health center:  MPCA – Staples Info Library

MPCA February Newsletter Published

LANSING–The Michigan Primary Care Association 2022 February newsletter was delivered to the inbox of more than 2,600 subscribers this week.

Please check out the February 2022 edition which features the following highlights: 2022 MPCA Legislative Forum/NACHC Virtual Hill Visits; revamped staff directory with contact information for members-only; AmeriCorps (HealthCorps) recruiting drive; MPCA holding information session with CareerStep; calendar of events; and much more.

Click on the link for the February 2022 newsletter.

Click here to sign up for our mailing list so that you can stay current with monthly news and updates.

You can also read about past available issues here.

Meet the MPCA Grants, Programs & Strategic Efforts Team

Your MPCA Grants, Programs & Strategic Efforts Team

Prashanti Boinapally, MD, MSc, is a Data Analytics and Evaluation Manager at the Michigan Primary Care Association.

Prashanti received her master’s degree in epidemiology at Michigan State University, where she previously worked. She also was employed at MDHHS, MPRO and Trinity Health before she began her MPCA tenure in May 2018.

Prashanti grew up in India and has called Lansing home for the last 22 years.

She can be reached here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Integrated Health Program Manager Jackie Chandler, MS, joined the MPCA in January 2019. In her current MPCA role, Jackie provides technical assistance with the MI Care Team, psychiatric Collaborative Care Model (CoCM), the TRANSFORM PTSD Study, HIV prevention, and migrant, LGBTQ+, and homeless health services.

For Jackie, advocacy, prevention, and health equity in all policies resonates deep in both her personal life and in working within the health center movement. She is a master’s level community health educator by discipline, serving roles as a memory care manager in assisted living, an AmeriCorps member at Cherry Health, and an outreach coordinator for the MDHHS immunizations program.

Jackie spends her downtime cooking, spending time with loved ones, and enjoying to keep house plants alive and well. Drop her a note here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Misty Davis is an oral health program manager for MPCA, providing support and technical assistance to our dental teams and work programs aimed at advancing their ability to deliver high quality care and improve access to oral healthcare. She started here in November 2020, and, yes, she wants you to know that she is a member of the “mass exodus of clinicians during COVID” club.

Misty entered the dental field as an on-the-job trained dental assistant at the age of 21. She had no college education, no intention of pursuing a degree, and hadn’t been to the dentist in 10 years when she was offered the job. But she quickly fell in love with the field and the notion of disease prevention. She’s enjoyed a 14-year career as a dental hygienist. MPCA is Misty’s first non-clinical job as an RDH, and she is enjoying this career path so much that she is currently pursuing a MPH at MSU.

A fun fact about Misty is that she is an experienced beekeeper!

She can be reached here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Amber Desgranges, MPH, CED, MPCA’s Chief Program Officer, was educated at Grand Valley State University and earned her master’s degree in public health from Liberty University.

Prior to MPCA, Amber spent some time working at Ingham Community Health Centers as both a community health worker and as an executive assistant. However, her passion for community health and the need for health centers began with employment in a hospital emergency department in Grand Rapids, where she saw the overuse of emergency departments for everyday primary care services.

Amber has been with MPCA since May 2016 and in her current role she oversees a number of different grant programs and strategic efforts

Amber and her husband share three small children and the family is obsessed with all things Disney.

Amber is available by phone or email (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Debbie Edokpolo is the MPCA Director of Health Equity & Social Justice. She received her master’s degree in social work from Michigan State University.

Debbie retired from the Ingham County Health Department after 32 years in January 2021. A month later, she started with MPCA in her newly-created role. (She notes that she’s not doing very well at retirement, because she loves her work so much!)

She enjoys reading, people watching and taking in movies from different countries. She and her wonderful husband have six beautiful granddaughters.

Debbie believe in the goodness of human beings.

Kelly Feenstra, a member of the MPCA staff since July 2019, works as an integrated health program specialist focusing on Substance Use Disorder (SUD). Kelly helps coordinate and facilitate trainings, develop and maintain the new SUD SharePoint site, and assists with any health center needs that may arise.

Kelly matriculated through Calvin University where she studied public health. MPCA was her first job after graduating college in 2018. A year later, she started a great learning experience as a coordinator before working her way up to a specialist position focusing on SUD.

A couple fun facts about Kelly: during her time in college, she spent a month in China learning about traditional Chinese medicine and traveling around the country. Then last year, she bought a house and got engaged within a few months–two important life events.

She can be reached here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Janelle Murray, MPH, is our Associate Director of Integrated Health, starting at MPCA in February 2020.

In her current role at MPCA, Janelle is focused on substance use disorder services, behavioral health, and integrated health initiatives utilizing innovative program development and implementation, project management along with training and technical assistance

Janelle received her bachelor of science degree from Central Michigan University, along with her master’s in public health from Capella University.

For the past 12 years, she has worked in health systems and substance use disorder services throughout Michigan. In 2021, Janelle completed a program at the University of Michigan becoming certified in integrated behavioral health and primary care.

She is an ACE’s Master trainer for the state of Michigan, certified prevention specialist and Naloxone/Narcan trainer. Janelle’s portfolio of substance use disorder (prevention, treatment, and recovery), trauma informed care, adverse childhood experiences, education, pharmacological and holistic care gives her a diverse background and expertise.

Janelle started volunteering for hospice services when she was 18 as a patient and family support volunteer that provided companionship to both patients and family caregivers.

Another fun fact is that she ran a half-marathon once. (“Probably the only time I will in my life. It was hard work, needed a lot of self-discipline,” she says.) But she felt the experience was very rewarding to have finished.

Janelle can be reached here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Lindsay Sailor is an integrated health program manager who came to the MPCA six years ago after more than a decade working in health centers as a quality improvement coordinator.

Lindsay’s primary role is to manage the Midwest Network for Oral Health Integration (MNOHI) HRSA grant, a five-year, four-state collaborative funded by HRSA. In addition to her work on MNOHI, Lindsay also provides technical assistance, performance improvement, and strategic planning for oral health integration, access, and optimization to Michigan’s community health centers.

Lindsay holds a bachelor’s degree in community health education from Western Michigan University and is currently working on her master’s in public health with dental emphasis at A.T. Still University.

In her spare time, Lindsay enjoys spending time outdoors with family and viewing wildlife, reading novels and rooting for Michigan Wolverine sports.

A fun fact about Lindsay is her desire to visit every national park and state in the nation.

Lindsay is available to chat or email (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Theresa Quaderer, M.A., joined the MPCA in May 2020 and is our Integrated Health Program Manager. She can be reached here (please sign-in with your credentials to view this private content).

Theresa received a master of arts degree in health and risk communication from Michigan State University.

She worked in maternal and child health as a public health consultant for the Ohio Department of Health in Columbus prior to MPCA.

Something you may not know about Theresa is that her go-to karaoke song is Fergalicious and that she’s attempting to read 25 books by the end of 2022.(We think she’s an aspiring singer and an avid bookworm!)

Michigan’s AmeriCorps Alum Spotlight: MPCA’s Simrah Hamid

Simrah Hamid of Ada, Mich., joined the Michigan Primary Care Association AmeriCorps HealthCorps Program in 2021 and served as a health coach at Catherine’s Health Center in Grand Rapids. MPCA AmeriCorps members focus on connecting low income and medically underserved populations to primary and preventative care services available through community health centers.

“Through my service, I have witnessed important skills that are crucial to a patient’s well-being,” Simrah explained. “As a health coach, I was able to utilize social determinants of health to implement lifestyle changes in patients, specifically focusing on both mental and physical health. I worked with diverse marginalized communities where I had the privilege of listening to them and reflecting upon their environments to help them achieve their health goals through diet, exercise, smoking cessation, and stress management.”

Karen VanSchooick, MPCA AmeriCorps Program Administrative Specialist, added: “Simrah is outgoing and passionate about helping the community, and a leader in developing new programs to serve the community. I am so proud to serve with this young woman, her compassion and dedication to helping the community and leadership will certainly take her far in her pursuits.”

When Simrah completed her AmeriCorps service term, she stayed in the medical field where she now works as a Medical Assistant. “My AmeriCorps service has enhanced my passions for helping underserved populations in a health setting and has influenced how I would like to make an impact on patients as a future physician. My time as an AmeriCorps member has further influenced my goals to prioritize human connection to shape healthcare into an accessible resource for all patients,” she noted. “It has allowed me to further build empathy with my patients, build connections, and create a sense of belonging by recognizing the impact of socioeconomic factors.”

Simrah continues to actively volunteer after completing her AmeriCorps service experience. “I have been engaging in a number of projects; however some are more limited than others due to the ongoing pandemic. For example, one I engage in heavily has been continuing to go out into the public and volunteer at certain events in the community such as vaccine clinics to help others understand the importance of staying safe and preventing the spread of diseases. I hope to continue to spread the positive experiences I have had during service and to be a role model for others passionate about volunteering. Furthermore, in every town I visit, I seek to recognize the disparities that exist and will continue to use my work as a way to bridge the gap between communities and advocate throughout my life for serving for others.”

Learn more about the MPCA AmeriCorps HealthCorps and other Michigan’s AmeriCorps programs making a positive impact in communities across Michigan. For more information about AmeriCorps, visit www.americorps.gov.

–Michigan.gov

MPCA’s December E-update Available

LANSING–The last Michigan Primary Care Association newsletter of 2021 has been delivered to the inbox of more than 2,600 subscribers on Tuesday.

Please check out the December 2021 edition which features the following highlights: MPCA Fall Clinical Conference; latest CDC guidance on COVID-19 boosters; updates on dental therapy, MNOHI & MPCA government affairs; calendar of events; and much more.

Click on the link for the December 2021 newsletter.

Click here to sign up for our mailing list so that you can stay up to date with the latest edition.

You can also read about past available issues here.

MPCA November Newsletter Update

LANSING–The Michigan Primary Care Association November 2021 newsletter has been delivered to the inbox of more than 2,600 subscribers on Thursday.

Please check out the latest edition which features the following highlights: MPCA Fall Clinical Conference; MPCA Receives FCC Telehealth Grant for Members; VirtuALLY introduction; MPCA Recognizes Native American Heritage Month; calendar of events; and much more.

Click on the link for the November 2021 newsletter.

Click here to sign up for our mailing list so that you can stay up to date with the latest edition.

You can also read about past available issues here.

Phillip Bergquist Succeeds Retiring CEO Dennis Litos to Lead MPCA

LANSING—The Michigan Primary Care Association (MPCA) announced Monday that Phillip Bergquist has been named the new Chief Executive Officer of the Michigan Primary Care Association, effective November 16, 2021. (Pictured: Dennis Litos, left, and Phillip Bergquist.) 

“This is a pivotal time for Michigan’s community health centers and Phillip is a dynamic leader with the experience and passion to fulfill our vision of equitable and just healthcare for all,” said Jim Raschke, MPCA Board Chair and CEO of MidMichigan Community Health Services. “He brings the knowledge and energy that will allow us to continue to make a positive impact on the health of Michiganders and serve our members’ needs.”

“We conducted a national search with many highly qualified candidates. I’m confident that Phillip is the right individual to connect with our health centers and key partners to move the Association forward and meet the healthcare needs of the communities we serve,” said Tasha Blackmon, Chair of the MPCA CEO Search Committee and CEO of Cherry Health.

Bergquist will take over for retiring CEO Dennis Litos after having served as the association’s chief operating officer. While serving as MPCA’s COO Bergquist was responsible for planning and overseeing the operations of the Association including the execution of short- and long-term goals, developing MPCA’s strategic plan, and leading several MPCA staff teams. Before working for MPCA, Phillip served in several healthcare leadership roles including as the chief operating officer of Honor Community Health, a community health center serving the residents of Oakland County, and as manager of policy and strategic initiatives for the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services.

“I am honored to have the opportunity to serve Michigan’s community health centers as MPCA’s CEO and thrilled to have the privilege to lead the dedicated team at MPCA,” said Phillip Bergquist, MPCA’s incoming CEO. “Together, I am confident MPCA will continue to deliver on our mission to support health center excellence in the delivery of equitable care.”

“It has been a privilege to serve as MPCA’s CEO during these challenging times. The impressive efforts that I witnessed by our member health centers throughout the pandemic served as a reminder of the important work being done to care for those who are underserved across our state,” said Dennis Litos, MPCA’s retiring CEO. “I thank MPCA’s Board and members for the opportunity to contribute to Michigan’s health center community. It was indeed the most fitting way to conclude my long career in health care.”

Building on MPCA’s over 40-year legacy of positive contributions to Michigan’s healthcare landscape and health safety net, MPCA will continue to champion health and social policies that support health centers and the patients they serve, bring together member organizations to encourage peer sharing and learning, encourage strong relationships between health centers and a diverse set of partners, and support health centers in the continuous pursuit of patient-centered services, the advancement of value-based care, and organizational excellence.