Update

 
A Newsletter for the HHQI Underserved Populations (UP) Network            
  
June 2013 

 

Welcome!

 

HHQI is excited to share with you the first UPDate! Improving care for the Underserved Populations is a significant and important issue that affects every agency and organization, no matter their size. There is a lot of information, tools, and resources that are available, but it takes a lot of time to locate and find meaningful information. Once a month, this electronic newsletter will provide short UP announcements, news and highlights, and will feature a tool or resource.

 

UP Network Announcements  
Telephone  
The UP Network calls will only be once a month for the summer (and holiday months) related to busy vacation schedules for organizations. This summer the calls will be Webinars that you will connect via your computer. Registration is necessary.
Below is the listing of calls for July and August.
  
  
Webinar: July 10, 2013 @ 3-4 PM (ET )
Speaker: Jennifer Pearce, MPA Health Literacy Consultant
Sutter Center for Integrated Care  
  • Engaging Patients with Health Literate Care

Learn steps and tools to address at organizational level and patient level

 

Save The Date

8/14/13 @ 3 - 4 PM (ET)

  • Advancing Health Equity Now:  Uniting our Communities to Bring Healthcare Coverage to All
    • African Americans disparate issues/barriers
    • Ndidi Amutah,Ph.D, MPH, CHES, Assistant Professor, Department of Health and Nutrition Sciences Montclair State University, New Jersey

You can also listen to archived UP Events here.

 

UP News & Highlights

 

NIH Study Shows Big Improvement in Diabetes Control over Past Decades

 

More people are meeting recommended goals in the three key markers of diabetes control, according to a study conducted and funded by the National Institutes of Health and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
  
The report, published online in Diabetes Care, shows that, from 1988 to 2010, the number of people with diabetes able to meet or exceed all three of the measures that demonstrate good diabetes management rose from about 2 percent to about 19 percent. Despite improvement, the results show continued need for better diabetes control. In particular, young people and some minority groups were below average in meeting the goals.
  

"Not only do Mexican-Americans and non-Hispanic blacks have higher rates of diabetes, members of these groups who develop diabetes also have poorer health outcomes,"

said Sarah Stark Casagrande, Ph.D., an epidemiologist from Social & Scientific Systems Inc., Silver Spring, MD. "While diabetes control has improved in these populations, some disparities remain, demonstrating the need for improved management of the disease to prevent its devastating complications." Glucose control was worse in Mexican-Americans and in younger adults. Only 44 percent of Mexican-Americans met A1C goals, versus 53 percent of whites and blacks in 2007-2010 data. People between 20-49 years old were less likely to meet A1C goals than older people.  
  

For more information about this article please Click Here

The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation's

Focus on Health Care Disparities - Key Facts

 

This brief is a great primer on Health Care Disparities by addressing five key questions and answers including:

  1. What are Health and Health Care Disparities?
  2. Why do Health and Health Care Disparities Matter?
  3. What is the Status of Health and Health Care Disparities Today?
  4. What Key Initiatives are in Place to Address Disparities?
  5. How Does the Affordable Care Act Impact Health and Health Care Disparities?
The brief is perfect as a starting point for leaders to begin to grasp the significance of health disparity problems.        

Tool/Resource of the Month

 

Our feature tool/resource kicking off this section of the UPDate is the Underserved Population Best Practice Intervention Package(BPIP).

As with all HHQI resources, these are absolutely free for everyone.

Feel free to download the entire UP BPIP.

This is a primary BPIP that provides detailed, significant, and evidence-based information and resources on the following populations: 

UP BPIP Cover   

  • Underserved
  • Dually-eligible
  • Health Disparities
  • Small Non-Profit Home Health Agencies

 

 
Join the HHQI UPDate mailing list.
  
For more information or to suggest future UP topics or speakers, please contact us at [email protected].
 
Click here for more information about the HHQI National Campaign.