Training the the Next Generation: Postgraduate Residency Training Programs in Community Health Centers

Kerry Bamrick, MBA Director, Postgraduate Residency Training Programs

Community Health Center Inc. and its Weitzman Institute

Kerry will discuss their Postgraduate Residency Training Programs and the Challenges, Opportunities and Outcomes of Training the Next Generation of Health Care Providers at the 2018 Spring Primary Care Conference.

Primary care nurse practitioners are ideal candidates to serve as primary care providers in the complex setting of community health centers, given their professional orientation, interest, and training towards holistic care that integrates the personal, clinical, familial, social, and community aspects of preventive, routine, and chronic illness care into practice.

First World Problems

Kay Frances, MBA and Motivational Humorist, will speaking at the Opening Plenary at the 2018 Spring Primary Care Conference

There is a phrase that was coined a few years ago: "First World Problems." The phrase is used to minimize complaints about trivial issues by shaming the complainer, or as good-humored self-deprecation.

Lynn Gerlach, Tamarack Communication
- an interview with Andy Mendenhall, M.D. and Leslie Tallyn, M.A.

When Dr. Andy Mendenhall took on the job of Senior Medical Director – Substance Use Disorder Services at Central City Concern (CCC), he was coming home, in a way. A graduate of the University of Portland, he had completed medical school at OHSU and had done his residency as a Family Physician at Family Medicine at Richmond. Early in his medical training, he had rotated at Hooper Detoxification Center with Dr. Jim Thayer M.D. and had been struck by the rawness of the medical needs of homeless patients suffering from substance use disorders.

Since 2012, health centers across the nation have steadily increased their patient populations, serving 22% more patients in 2016 than they did just four years earlier. Health centers in Region X are no different. The number of health center patients served in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington increased from 1,359,042 in 2012 to 1,703,473 in 2016.

The 2018 Western Forum for Migrant and Community Health was held February 22-24 in beautiful (and snowy!) Seattle, Washington. Nearly 300 attendees from 20 states participated in the three-day event featuring two plenary sessions, 36 breakout sessions, 20 posters, and 22 exhibitors.

Are you interested in staying up to date on the latest Health Center news and educational opportunities? Connect with us on our LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to be the first to know about upcoming NWRPCA conferences, trainings, and webinars. Also, don’t miss out on recordings and presentations from past trainings and workshops on our YouTube channel and Learning Vault.

NWRPCA is currently hiring a Member Services Specialist. Visit our website for the complete job description.

Free webinar!

It's Not Too Early to be Thinking about 2018 UDS Reporting for Migratory and Seasonal Agricultural Workers and their Families

April 19 from 11 AM-12 PM PT

Brought to you in partnership by NWRPCA and CHAMPS, this free webinar will enable participants to understand the history of the Migrant Health Program and current efforts underway (i.e., Ag Worker Access 2020 Campaign), understand the funding allocation mix for health centers and the importance of accurate reporting for all special populations patients, including Migratory and Seasonal Agricultural Workers and their families, and foster a common understanding for all staff, including clinical, financial, outreach, and front-desk, who have a role to play in the UDS reporting process.

April 20 in Boise, ID

Diabetes is on the mind of everyone working in healthcare. IPCA and NWRPCA are collaborating to bring you the latest research and resources so you will have tools to improve patient lifestyle and medication adherence, and consequently improve overall diabetes care and patient clinical outcomes. Learn from health centers throughout the region about the diabetes projects they are engaged in, and hear from national diabetes experts on evidence-based practices and technologies to engage patients and families in planning, delivery and evaluation of diabetes care.

January-December 2018

Participants will cover a variety of topics that promote and inform community health-driven chronic disease prevention and self-management methods and practices in this ten-part webinar series. The webinar series will be a blend of didactic trainings and interactive conversations to share ideas and ask questions.

Anyone part of the care team is encouraged to join this webinar series. Care teams that jointly participate in the series will benefit greatly.

The next webinar of the series, Care Coordination: The Role of the Clinician, is April 25 from 12-1 PM PT.

Free webinar!

Nuts and Bolts to Identifying Migratory and Seasonal Agricultural Workers and their Families in Your Health Center

April 26 from 11 AM - 12 PM PT

Brought to you in partnership with NWRPCA and CHAMPS, this free webinar will review why it is important to identify MSAWs and their families served by health centers, discuss the elements of proper identification of MSAWs and their families, and identify common mistakes and best practices in the identification methods (e.g., Quality Improvement processes) of identifying and registering MSAWs and their families as patients.

Free Webinar!

Customer Service: The Art of Caring

April 27 from 12-1 PM PT

Join this free, highly engaging webinar for CHC employees at all levels to gain crucial skills, ideas, and strategies to immediately improve customer service at your health center. During the hour, Lisa Mouscher will discuss the critical importance of great customer service and provide a wide range of concrete tools and techniques for making exceptional service part of every interaction.

Free webinar!

A New Way for Health Centers to Fund Employer-Sponsored Health Insurance

May 3 at 10 AM PT

Health centers across the country are moving away from the traditionally fully-insured model of insurance to lower healthcare costs, and to improve health benefit coverage for staff. Join the conversation to hear how partial self-insurance, specifically the Nonstop Wellness program, has helped more than 30 health centers across the country take control of their health benefits.

May 18 in Portland, OR

Federally Qualified Health Centers have many options and issues to understand when considering their possible involvement in a Graduate Medical Education program. Do you want to partner with a university or hospital? What will this cost? Do you want to own and operate the program, or are there other models? How long does it take? What are the benefits?

The answer to these and many other questions will be part of a one day workshop hosted by WACMHC and NWRPCA and led by national GME experts, Drs. Kiki Nocella and Dr. Mike Maples. Come with your questions and ideas and join with other FQHCs in Washington as we learn how to establish quality residency programs that will graduate physicians dedicated to serving underserved populations.

May 19-22 in Portland, OR

The annual Spring Primary Care Conference is one of our cornerstone offerings. Open to all organizations and individuals interested and/or working in community health, join us to learn from prominent speakers, hear federal policy updates, network with primary care colleagues, and much more. The Spring Primary Care Conference also hosts NWRPCA's annual membership meeting.

View the draft agenda

January-December 2018

Join us and learn how to engage and improve outcomes of patients through the work of your care team. This ten-part webinar series covers many clinical and operational best practices within behavioral health. The webinar series will be a blend of didactic training and opportunities to interact together to share ideas and ask questions.

The next webinar of the series, Expanding the Team Beyond the Four Walls, is June 13 from 12-1 PM PT.

June 19-20 in Seattle, WA

The Finance Management Bootcamp two-day training is designed for people relatively new to the FQHC industry and would like to become familiar with all the terms, issues, and regulations facing FQHCs. The objectives of this session will be geared toward educating new CFOs and other finance/business office personnel of FQHCs with all the topics and relevant issues they will need to know.

Free Webinar!

Engaging Individual Major Donors in the Work of Your Health Center: A Proven Model

June 19 from 1:00-2:00 PM PT

In this webinar, you will learn:

- An overview of the Benevon Model, a proven system for building sustainable funding from multiple-year individual donors

- How to implement mission-focused, permission-based fundraising

- How to make your health center more visible in your community

- How to identify and personally cultivate individual donors who are passionate about your mission.

September 26-27 in Anchorage, AK

Great management skills are necessary for CHC managers at every level of your organization! This CHC-specific course provides an opportunity for leaders, managers and supervisors throughout your health center to learn, reinvigorate, and practice a wide range of management skills crucial to effectively hire, train, manage, and develop others. This training will provide two days of intensive, hands-on learning for immediate implementation and long-term impact.