January 2019 Newsletter
Help us wish Marie Gravely a happy retirement!
Save-the-Date for the
2019 Appalachian Diabetes Coalitions Celebrating Success Conference
October 1-4, 2019
Join us in Gaitlinburg, TN for the 2019 Celebrating Success Conference. Attendees will have opportunities to share success stories and learn what others are doing in similar communities throughout Appalachia.
Grundy, TN
Grundy County is located in southeast Tennessee. According to the US Census Bureau, the population is 13,361 (2017).

Coalition members are extremely proud of their efforts to increase participation in the national lunch walk challenge program. The 2018 National Spring Lunch Walk Challenge's goal was to increase physical activity throughout the nation. Walking is a proven method to help reduce weight, lower blood pressure, and prevent major diseases such as diabetes. We believe that maintaining a healthy life style, is essential to living a long prosperous active life. Visit the National Lunch Walk Challenge website for additional information. Former participant Ms. Given expressed her gratitude and how the program changed her life.

“I wanted to thank you first and foremost for helping me. Before the National Lunch Walk Challenge, I could barely walk. I have had a total knee replacement in one knee (didn't help) and the other knee is bone on bone. I refused to have the other knee done. In the process I became pretty much useless. I couldn't even walk to my mailbox. Since the end of Feb (when we started the Activ8) I now do an average of 5-7 miles a day. It may not be all at once but still so much more than I could do before participating in the lunch walk challenge. I have lost between 20-25 lbs. Thank you so much for allowing me to be a part of your group.
Carol Givens - H.R.
Toyo Seat
Morgan, KY
Morgan County is located in northeast Kentucky. According to the US Census Bureau, the population is 13,188 (2017).

Coalition members collaborated to implement a youth nutrition education program during the summer months. The Morgan County Farmer’s Market, the Appalachia Regional Hospital, UK Extension, and the local health department provide youth with recipes and samples of healthy dishes that use locally grown produce. The youth receive $5.00 vouchers that they can use to purchase fruits and vegetables from vendors at the market. Annually, this program generates $2,000 - $2,500 in revenue for local farmers and reaches approximately 800 youth annually.
January Is National Eye Health Month!
It is important to take good care of your eyes when you have diabetes. Did you know that diabetes can harm your eyes? The good news is that you can take steps to help keep your eyes healthy. Since diabetes can harm your eyes, it is important to take care of them to keep them healthy. Below are some tips to get started.

  1. Get a dilated eye exam at least once a year and share the results with your primary care doctor. In this exam, you will get eye drops to make your pupils larger. Pupils are the black circles in the middle of your eyes. The drops are painless and help your eye doctor see inside your eyes to look for signs of health problems. A dilated eye exam can help your eye doctor find and treat problems to keep you from losing your vision from diabetes. Your eye doctor may take pictures of your eyes with a tool called retinal photography. This helps to see the retina, which is at the back part of your eyes. Be sure to keep your next eye doctor appointment!
  2. Visit your eye doctor right away if you: See little black lines or spots that don’t go away, See any red spots, See red fog, Have a sudden change in how clearly you see or it takes longer than usual to adjust to darkness.

More information about how to keep your eyes health, click here.
LOOKING FOR A NEW PROGRAM TO IMPLEMENT IN YOUR COMMUNITY?
Lead Diabetic Eye Disease Educational Sessions in Your Community
Whether you want to lead a small educational session on diabetic eye disease, create an educational program, enhance your existing health program, or simply print materials to hand out, the Diabetes and Healthy Eyes Toolkit has just what you need. Developed by the National Eye Institute, this comprehensive toolkit features a colorful flipchart and an educational module with many tip sheets that can be downloaded directly from the website to use with patients, clients, and community members. The kit also contains:

  • Samples of educational materials
  • CD-ROM, including copies of the flipchart, module, and handouts
  • Evaluation form (print-only version)
  • Medicare benefit card
  • Publication order form (print-only version)
  • Available in Spanish
  • Online training available
Already implementing one of these program? Do you have pictures from events that you have recently completed? Your coalition can be featured in the next newsletter by s haring your stories and pictures with us. Send a short paragraph and photo to knoxr@marshall.edu.
WE ARE COMING TO A COUNTY NEAR YOU!
UPCOMING SITE VISITS
Gentle Yoga Leader Training - Fayette County, WV
J anuary 23, 2019

Lake Cumberland Health District - Heart4Change Health Committee Meeting - Adair County, KY
February 4, 2019

Site Visit - Winston County, MS
February 18, 2019

Gentle Yoga Leader Training - Mingo County, WV
February, 21, 2019

Coalition Meeting/Site Visit - Logan County, WV
February 27, 2019

Gentle Yoga Leader Training - Athens County, OH
May 14, 2019
Interested in offering Gentle Yoga Leader Training, Chronic Disease Self-Management (CDSMP) or a similar workshop for your coalition members? Contact Shelia Plogger for additional information at splogger@marshall.edu.
UPCOMING REGIONAL HEALTH CONFERENCES AND EVENTS
Diabetes is Primary Conference
The American Diabetes Association will bring together health care professionals interested in the clinical management of diabetes and its complications for an innovative educational initiative developed specifically for the primary care community. This initiative will offer information and tools needed to improve patient outcomes through patient engagement. This one-day conference will be held in Birmingham, AL.
March 2, 2019

Appalachian Studies Association Conference
The 42nd Annual ASA Conference will explore the theme “Appalachians” by looking at the larger region of Appalachia through the experiences of our cities and financial centers. Special sessions of the conference invite participants to explore the tensions around maintaining sustainable urban development alongside rural culture and history.
March 14 - 17, 2019

Mid-Atlantic Telehealth Summit
This conference will focus on the exponential growth of technological innovations and its influence with recent policy shifts are paving the way for dramatic changes in how we deliver health care and influence health behaviors.  March 31 -April 2, 2019.

Rural Child Hunger Summit
The summit will provide a forum for diverse stakeholders to learn about successful interventions taking place in the field, identify emerging opportunities to amplify the impact of existing programs, and discuss areas where additional research, investment or advocacy is needed to reduce child hunger in rural communities.
March 21-22, 2019 at the  Omni Louisville Hotel in Louisville, Kentucky


National Rural Health Conference
NRHA's Annual Rural Health Conference is the nation's largest rural health conference, created for anyone with an interest in rural health care, including rural health practitioners, hospital administrators, clinic directors and lay health workers, social workers, state and federal health employees, academics, community members and more.
May 7 -10, 2019

American Diabetes Association 79th Scientific Sessions
Save-the-Date
June 7 - 11, 2019
FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES
Wednesday, February 20, 2019 3:00 ET, 2:00 CT, 1:00 MT, 12:00 PT (60 minutes)
Action for Healthy Kids is pleased to offer grants for the 2019-2020 school year as part of our School Grants for Healthy Kids program. Grants for $1,000 or more are available. In this webinar, you'll learn specific grant details, eligibility requirements, and receive helpful tips for applying. Register here

2019-2020 School Grants for Healthy Kids - Breakfast Grant Webinar
Thursday, February, 21, 2019 3:00 ET, 2:00 CT, 1:00 MT, 12:00 PT (60 minutes)
Action for Healthy Kids is pleased to offer grants for the 2019-2020 school year as part of our School Grants for Healthy Kids program. Join this webinar to learn more about our School Breakfast grants that support increasing breakfast participation through alternative breakfast programming. Grants awards of $2000 and $3000 available. In this webinar, you'll learn specific grant details, eligibility requirements, and receive helpful tips for applying. Register here
ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
Diabetes Download
The Diabetes Download provides answers to commonly asked diabetes questions—and some that aren't so common. Hear from experts—from a professional chef to a doctor, and many more. 
 National Diabetes Prevention Program Customer Service Center
The purpose of the National DPP Customer Service Center is to provide organizations easy access to information and resources about prediabetes and the National DPP. Organizations can access training materials, toolkits, and videos; ask questions; and receive technical assistance related to all aspects of the program.
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR NATIONAL PARTNERS TO HELP YOU PROMOTE A HEALTH EDUCATION PROGRAM IN YOUR COMMUNITY?
Million Hearts Vital Signs Partners

Use Million Hearts® 2022 materials and messages on your organization’s communication channels to spread the word about Million Hearts® 2022 strategies and what your organization is doing to help prevent heart attacks and strokes. The  Million Hearts® 2022 Partner Materials  include a downloadable fact sheet, a sample presentation, a sample newsletter, sample social media messages, and downloadable Million Hearts® logos that can be used by your organization.
The American Health Association Teaching Gardens

Once a school commits to the program, a school-wide planting day is scheduled. The American Heart Association provides the materials for planting day, garden beds, organic soil, seedlings and plants, cooking demonstrations and other fun activities. Schools receive an American Heart Association Teaching Garden Tool Kit with useful information including a school garden manual, lesson plans, school activation ideas, and parent and community resources.
Part-time Program Coordinator Position Available
Rural Education Partners of Mitchell County, NC

Duties: Provide administrative and support partnerships serving Mitchell County Schools students, and work directly with students in programs. Must be committed to serving children equitably in a rural setting. Must demonstrate effective verbal and written communication skills, as well as ability to work independently and meet deadlines. Strong interpersonal and organizational skills required. Must be able to design and execute creative activities for after-school programs. Must be an effective team member in a fully collaborative setting, providing leadership to our community partners. Supporting education or work/life experience required. Will work 13.5 hours a week, 12 months a year, $12 an hour. 
Locations include two middle school after school art clubs, an in-school chess club at MECHS, and Roan Readers elementary book club at the Mitchell County Library. Paid sick and personal leave provided. Questions? Contact Lori Gilcrist,  828.467.0970. Send both a cover letter and resume to  lori.gilcrist@edpartnersmc.org