At-a-Glance Road Map for Quality Care at Every Phase of Health! |
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NEW TOOL: Health Care Planning Guide
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Health care planning is not one document or one conversation, but an active process to get good care everyday and plan for future care.
Our new Health Care Planning Guide provides a road map you can use over your lifetime to Promotes Wellness & Stay Healthy, Manage Health and Chronic Illness as you age, and Live Well with Serious Illness. Each phase of health includes quick links to useful information, the 5 MA multi-lingual planning documents, and handy discussion guides. Create your own personal road map to easily update your plan as your health needs and choices change over your lifetime.
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Governor Baker Signs Bill to Advance Telehealth & Access to Quality Care! |
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See Key Provisions and Contributions of HCM Partners
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On January 1, 2021, Governor Baker signed health care legislation promoting telehealth services and protecting access to COVID-19 testing. tMED, MA Telemedicine Coalition, convened by Adam Delmolino, Director, Virtual Care & Clinical Affair, Massachusetts Health & Hospital Association, helped lead the way to advance telehealth services and incorporate the lessons learned during the pandemic into the bill. The bill provides a more flexible and patient friendly definition of telehealth services that includes coverage across providers, audio-only telehealth, behavioral health care, and much more. Kudos to all!
Great resource: “Together for Better Telehealth” survey series, from the Massachusetts Health Quality Partners (MHQP), provides practical tips, the clinician's experience, and suggestions for improving the patient experience. See the results HERE
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Home Health, Hospice & Professional Staff included Phase 1 Vaccinations |
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Vaccinating Home-Health Care Clinicians
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On Friday, January 8, 2021, the MA Executive Office of Elder Affairs announced the home-based healthcare worker community were now eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in Phase 1 of the vaccine roll-out. Announcement here.
Although the home-health community is excited to hear the news, the challenge remains of how to immediately vaccinate a large percentage of the 100,000 home health, home care and hospice workers who provide face-to-face care to our most vulnerable adults and families.
Home Care Alliance of MA has been working diligently to advocate for its workforce and fielding calls daily from nurses asking the very question. “Since the December announcement of the COVID vaccine plan”, says Pat Kelleher, Executive Director, “we have been requesting clarification from state officials. Unfortunately, the state notice "only confirms that homebased care will be at the end of this phase, which as we have seen is going slower than we would have hoped, leaving home care waiting, while still treating COVID." Read blog.
In this challenging time, Honoring Choices is supporting the efforts of our state and community partners to help foster a timely, equitable community response.
If hospitals have extra vaccines, Home Care Alliance is offering to connect local hospitals with their home health community agencies to help vaccinate COVID-19 home health professional staff. Please contact Pat Kelleher directly at 617-482-8830, pkelleher@thinkhomecare.org
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Welcome New Community Partners! |
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Meet our newest Honoring Choices MA (HCM) Partners!
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We are delighted to support Chetan Dodhia, M.D., Hospitalist Medical Director and the team of dedicated hospitalists at Lawrence General Hospital, as well as the Post Acute Incident Command Work Group, as they meet the challenge to care for their patients through the pandemic.
The hospitalists participated in our webinar, “Engaging Adults in Proactive Planning Conversations from Simple to Serious Illness”, to enhance strategies and have easy access to the HCM Getting Started Tool Kit, to start simple conversations, and the Ariadne Labs Serious Illness Conversation Guides, to flow into a what matters most conversation for high risk patients.
The Post Acute Incident Command Work Group, convened by Lawrence General Hospital and the Quality Improvement Organization, includes over 30 health and community organizations. "The group meets efficiently twice/weekly to quickly respond to patient needs for current and potential Covid-19 surges," says Nicole Garabedian RN, MSN, Director of Clinical Operations, Lawrence General Hospital, "establishing shared standards of care to ensure safe transitions across the continuum." A collaborative Dashboard keeps everyone updated! To learn more contact Nicole.Garabedian@lawrencegeneral.org
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The Latino Health Insurance Program, Framingham, founded by Executive Director Milagros Abreu, MD, MPH, helps to reduce barriers faced by minorities when trying to access healthcare and to navigate the health care system. Their mission is to offer a community based, culturally and linguistically specific program for health insurance enrollment and maintenance to minority MA residents. They connect clients to the appropriate health care services and helps individuals apply for S.N.A.P, W.I.C., Fuel assistance, Emergency Income Payment Program (city of Framingham rental assistance). Additionally, they promote a more effective use of preventive services including primary care, health screenings, prenatal care, wellness visits, and health education while reducing medical cost. For more information call 508-875-1237 or email help@lhiprogram.org
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Highland Valley Elder Services (HVES), Florence, MA, serves 24 area communities in the Western MA region. HVES helps older adults & families through a range of programs such as Case Management, Family & Caregiver Support, Home Health Services, Home Delivered Meals. A helpful Information & Referral line can get you started. Visit website here.
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HCM Partners Share Information, Tools, and Services
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Virtual Bereavement Groups
In addition to hospice and palliative care, Care Dimensions, is widely recognized for its bereavement program for families and caregivers. They offer comprehensive virtual services including, Monthly Caregiver Support Group; Loss Due to COVID19 Drop In; Grief Support Group for High Schoolers; Children's Virtual Grief Support Groups. For dates and details, review their calendar here.
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Ensuring the dignity of older adults and people with disabilities
Dignity Alliance Massachusetts is a state-wide, grass-roots coalition of aging and disability service and advocacy organizations and supporters dedicated to systemic transformation to ensure the dignity of older adults, people with disabilities, and caregivers. We are committed to advancing new ways of providing long-term services, support, living options, and care while respecting choice and self-determination. Dignity Alliance works through education, legislation, regulatory reform, and legal strategies to realize this vision throughout the Commonwealth. View website here
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What Matters To Me Workbook
Ariadne Labs and The Conversation Project have teamed up to provide a great resource for consumers and care providers. What Matters To Me Workbook is designed to help people with a serious illness get ready to talk to their health care team (doctor, nurse, social worker, etc.) about what is most important to them — to make sure that they get the care they want. Download here
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Multi-Lingual COVID-19 Vaccine Information Event
SAVE THE DATE: On January 23, 2021 from 1pm to 3pm, Latino Health Insurance Program will offer a multi-lingual presentation regarding the COVID19 vaccine and information about resources and services for individuals needing assistance if positive with COVID-19 or being impacted by this pandemic. For more information call 508-875-1237 or email us at help@lhiprogram.org
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