Annual Friends of Project Access NOW Reception
- June 12, 5:00 - 7:00
- 1311 NW 21st Ave., Portland
Community Referral Hub Dialogues with Dr. Sarah Redding
- June 19 - 21
- More details to come.
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As any organization, in addition to funds we have in-kind needs for items to help us better serve the low-income uninsured. Here's our list for May and June:
- Auto-feeding scanners (we REALLY need these!)
- Headsets (Avaya compatible)
- Copy paper
- Cleaning service
- 4-post server rack or cabinet
If you or someone you know would like to donate these items, call us at 503.413.5541.
Thank you for your support!
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First of all, I want to extend a personal invitation to you to join us for our Annual Open House on June 12th starting at 5:00 pm at our office. We will have snacks and beverages and look forward to the opportunity to spend time with our donors, partners, and friends and honor you for all of your amazing support. If you are able to join us, please let Debbie know via e-mail (debbie@projectaccessnow.org) or phone 503.413.5561.
There is certainly no shortage of opportunities for Project Access NOW to convene partners and donated resources to serve the low-income, uninsured in the Portland Metro area.
Estimates from the Oregon Health Authority indicate that even after complete Health Care Transformation implementation in 2019, there will still be about 100,000 uninsured people in the Portland Metro area. We know that the already scarce resources will be even scarcer for the remaining uninsured.
What is a community to do? Invest in health improvement and screening activities to keep the low-income, uninsured population healthy! Project Access NOW is committed to continuing collaborative relationships and creating mutually reinforcing activities to make the very best use of the resources available to us in order to ensure that everyone (including uninsured people) can get the resources they need to be healthy. (See the Community Referral Hub article.)
We are so honored and so excited to be a part of so much good work and forward movement in our community. Hang on for the ride - there is never a dull moment around here!
Sincerely,
Linda Nilsen-SolaresExecutive Director
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 Stephen lost his job and his insurance in May of 2011. He has high blood pressure and has had atrial fibrillation for many years. He also had a pacemaker placed a few years ago. When his medications ran out, he went to The Wallace Medical Concern for help. Stephen received a medical exam along with the needed medications and was referred to Project Access NOW.
Project Access now connected him to Dr. Dong Lim Ji, of Providence Medical Group for the care of his chronic health conditions. He is able to get his medications through Pharmacy Bridge. |
 In his cardiology practice, Dr. Sandeep Garg treats all general heart conditions, including congestive heart failure as well as the placement and monitoring of heart devices such as pacemakers and defibrillators. He also serves as the President of Pacific Heart Associates, who, as a group, see dozens of patients referred by Project Access NOW every year.
Before Project Access NOW, Dr. Garg recalls there were no good structured programs to adequately care for the uninsured. He and his partners would see patients who had been referred from the emergency department or from the hospital. However, without the ability for patients to pay for ancillary diagnostic services, options were very limited. The doctors and staff would do their best to find the most economical means to get the patient the help they needed, but it was very time consuming and not always successful.
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 Over the last several months we have been engaging in conversations with Community Based Organizations and health care providers around how to organize resources so all people (including the uninsured) can get connected to the resources they need to be healthy.
Hopefully that piques your interest enough for you to want more information! You can find some basic information about this effort at www.tricountyhub.org. Also, you can meet and dialogue with Dr. Sarah Redding, Co-Founder of the Pathways Community Hub model, at one of two meetings coming up in June.
Thanks to the Tri-County Medicaid Collaborative and the Northwest Health Foundation, Dr. Redding will be training and presenting to a variety of groups during her visit June 19 - 21st. Let Linda know if you want more information about this effort and Dr. Redding's upcoming visit.
Project Access NOW sincerely believes that we have everything we need right here in order to create a healthy and vibrant community. We need ALL of our resource and collective wisdom to create an environment where both effectiveness and flexibility are present in order to make a meaningful and positive difference. We hope you will join us and many others in this effort. |
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Board member profile: Katie Iverson
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 Katie Iverson has a strong interest in health care, especially the difficulty people experience today when they lose health insurance. She says, "It could happen to anyone at any level."
As a human resources consultant, Katie provides a broad range of services to several small and medium sized companies and has been instrumental in helping them address the human challenges during times of change. "Some of the smaller organizations have really struggled recently. When they don't make it, health insurance goes away and I find myself scrambling to help them find coverage for their employees."
Continue reading > |
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Community volunteer highlight: Dianne Danowski Smith
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 Dianne Danowski Smith has worked in health care in Oregon for two decades, to promote and increase access to health care services for the uninsured and underinsured in our communities. She has traveled all over Oregon with the Partnership for Prescription Assistance Program bus and helped to put together prescription assistance fairs statewide. It was through this outreach that she met Project Access NOW Executive Director, Linda Nilsen-Solares, and found she knew many of the wonderful volunteers at PANOW. "It's important to join hands and share the vision with the providers and program planners to get health services and medicines to those in need," she says.
Continue reading >
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New staff profile: Annabelle LaVallie
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 After majoring in English and Chicano Studies in college, Annabelle LaVallie moved to Portland in 2001 to attend school to become a writer. She worked a number of jobs in bookstores that allowed her to follow her passion for the written word. She had also always been interested in serving the community. Eventually, she put the writing career on hold to explore a career in public health.
While she was working as a bilingual Clinic Assistant for Planned Parenthood of the Columbia Willamette, Annabelle ran across the ad for a Care Coordination Specialist with Project Access NOW. Seeing it at it as an opportunity to serve a larger, more diverse population, Annabelle applied for and got the job.
Continue reading >
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Oregon Community Foundation continues partnership with Project Access NOW
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The Oregon Community Foundation (OCF) continues its partnership with Project Access NOW to ensure that low-income, uninsured people in the Portland Metropolitan area get access to health care by maximizing the effectiveness of donated resources across the region. This is the second grant award from OCF to Project Access NOW since our inception in 2007.
The $25,000 donation coming from the Oregon Fund and the H.J. and Grace Sandberg Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation will result in more than 100 people getting needed care that would cost them well over $300,000 were it not for the generosity of the many hospitals and clinics that make Project Access NOW a reality.
"OCF is pleased to support Project Access NOW's coordination of health care resources. These efforts are helping to improve health care delivery, decreasing dependency on emergency rooms and easing the burden on partner agencies," says Kathleen Cornett, Vice President of Grants & Programs.
In fact, since OCF's initial investment in Project Access NOW, the number of health care volunteers has gone from 1,700 to nearly 3,000. Evaluation efforts indicate that Project Access NOW clients reduce their use of emergency departments by 36% compared to the six months previous to enrollment. Access to pharmaceuticals is a critical component to the program and since June of 2008 Pharmacy Bridge has saved over $400,000 on the cost of medications for clients along with facilitating the provision of an additional $550,000 in free medications from pharmaceutical medication assistance programs.
Project Access NOW is so grateful for the opportunity to take the good will of so many people and turn it into meaningful outcomes for our low-income, uninsured neighbors. The Oregon Community Foundation's ongoing support of our collaborative effort is critical to our ability to meet immediate needs in our community while we build relational infrastructure that will improve our healthcare system over time. We are honored by Oregon Community Foundation's continued investment.
The Oregon Community Foundation is committed to improving life in Oregon and promoting effective philanthropy. OCF works with individuals, families, businesses and organizations to create charitable funds to support the community causes they care about.
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