A Note from the Executive Director |
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Uncertainty, whether personal, political, or societal, can wreak havoc on psychological well-being. As we move into an ever-changing back-to-school season, NMASBHC is sending best wishes for calm among the chaos. We are doing our best to collect and share resources that will help school health providers be prepared whatever may come. The challenges may feel overwhelming, but we want all of our colleagues and partners to know we stand in solidarity with you. Please reach out to us if we can help or if you have best practices we can share with the field.
Wishing you good health,
Nancy Rodriguez,
nancy@nmasbhc.org
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COVID-19 - Reentry Guidance |
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If you would like to contribute information and suggestions for the NMASBHC guidance on reentry, contact NMASBHC staff. We are also interested in updates on what you are planning and what your school hosts are requesting of you.
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2020 SBHC Annual Update & Survey |
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It's that time again!
The survey serves as an essential tool for SBHC information shared with legislators, state agencies, community members and funders across New Mexico.
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We will be honoring the 2020 Exemplary SBHC, Legacy and Champions during the quarterly SBHC Partners Meeting on Tuesday, September 15, 2020. These are the honors and awards that are typically announced at the Head 2 Toe Conference annually.
The Awards ceremony will be held from
11:30 AM - 12:00 PM. Please contact wilma@nmasbhc.org if you have questions or are interested in attending. Meeting will be held virtually.
SBHC Partners Meeting
Tuesday, September 15, 2020
11:30 AM - 1:30 PM
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In September, we feature Capital High School &
Santa Fe High School SBHCs.
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Pictured are: Back row: Lucia Chavez, Marizza Montoya, Robert Benon, Marcella Tapia,
Michelle Cunningham and Nohemi Madrid. Front row: Ruth Center
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Capital High School & Santa Fe High School SBHCs are sponsored by Presbyterian Medical Services.
Thank you to Capital High & Santa Fe High SBHC teams for their service!
Thank you to all the SBHCs who contributed photographs for the 2020 SBHC Calendar.
A special note of gratitude to this year's sponsor: Presbyterian Health Plan Inc.
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SBHA Announces: September 2nd Day of Action to #DemandSafeSchools |
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SBHA is passing along this message from partners at AFT. The Alliance has signed on as a sponsor of this event. Please consider participating and circulating to your networks!
Right now, all over the country, parents, students, teachers, school-based health staff and all those who work in public education are struggling to figure out how to get back to school in the middle of a public health emergency and an economic crisis. We must ensure schools have the resources to open safely during the coronavirus pandemic, and we must fund public education, including the critical academic, social and emotional services kids need. States, cities, towns and rural communities are all facing extreme budget shortages.
Without state and local aid, we will experience waves of layoffs, including teachers, nurses and other essential workers, and cuts to public education and schools, among other critical services, at a time when more—not less—is needed.
On Wednesday, September 2, parents, students, teachers, school staff and community activists will lead a Day of Action to demand President Trump and the Republican senators pass a COVID relief aid package to fund what we need to safely reopen schools, fund public education and make sure our kids get what they need!
This day of action will include hundreds of local events organized by parents, students, educators and activists just like you all over the country. Find a local event or host your own by going to this website: http://www.demandsafeschoolsnow.org/
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OSAH Operational Plan Due September 15th!
Instructions, Webinar and Just Health
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For those of you with contracts with NMDOH/OSAH - Operational Plans have been updated, including a new COVID section, and are ready for you to complete! Completion of Operational Plans for each of your SBHC is a first quarter deliverable due September 15th. Please check every field in every section to make sure that all your information is correct. The link to access your Operational Plan is https://datahubapexeval.org
There is a webinar to review updates/changes and answer questions at 2 p.m. September 9th (which will also be recorded). There will be time for SBHCs to share their COVID successes and challenges.
Your final Data Snapshot will be completed and ready by September 1st so you will have that information for reference as you are completing your Operational Plans.
The Just Health screening tool is going on-line and will be ready for use in the next few weeks. The beta testing is being done now. As soon final edits will be completed it will be released. The access to the on-line version will be through the Apex Data Hub (same link as above). Everyone who will be sending out the questionnaires and reviewing (i.e. clinic coordinators and PC and BH providers) will need to have an account. Jamie Duvall at Apex can help with that if you have trouble creating an account.
A web-based version of the Elementary Just Health will be released this fall. The Student Survey and School Survey will also be going on-line soon. Keep a look out for information regarding those releases.
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Medicaid Pandemic-Related Regulatory Changes & Updates |
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The New Mexico Human Services Department (NMHSD) and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services are loosening and changing a number of regulations in light of the current pandemic.
At present, these include new telehealth codes and resources, details on COVID-19 testing coverage, and special behavioral health guidance.
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Telehealth and Electronic Care Resources |
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Many SBHCs continue to expand telehealth and telephonic care services as school districts start the school year in virtual or hybrid formats. NMASBHC is collecting best practices and is sharing a number of resources below (from sources such as the American Medical Association and American ). If you have resources you believe your colleagues could use, please feel free to forward them to NMASBHC. If you have telehealth-related queries, please feel free to forward those as well.
Telemedicine Resources and Guidance:
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Clinic Resources, Training Opportunities, and Community Announcements |
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Below are upcoming trainings.
2020 Reproductive Health Webinars
Vaginitis and Contraception (1 CME credit)
Vulvar Dermatoses (1 CME credit)
Addressing Common Concerns in Counseling
Practical and Sustainable Steps for Addressing Bias and Patient Concerns (5 CME avail)
Addressing common concerns with contraception, like...
"Is this birth control going to make me gain weight?"
"Why am I having all this weird bleeding on this birth control?"
"I don't really know if I want to use birth control, and I am not sure if I want to be pregnant."
The UCSF Bixby Center's Beyond the Pill team is pleased to partner with the UNM LARC Mentoring Program to bring you this interactive virtual training. The training is free, CME/CE accredited, and open to all clinic staff. You do not need to attend all sessions to receive credit! Join us for the sections you can and CME will be based on the session(s) attended.
Reproductive Justice, Cultural Humility and Implicit Bias (2 CME/CE Credits)
Designed for all staff and clinicians, this session explores implicit bias and how applying the principles of cultural humility can improve the quality of contraceptive care. Through guided exercises and self-reflection, participants practice strategies and techniques to improve clinical outcomes.
Sharing the Science (2 CME/CE credits)
Designed for all staff and clinicians who conduct counseling, this session offers strategies for presenting scientific data, using a patient-centered approach. Participants discuss case studies, including patient concerns about weight gain, breakthrough bleeding, side effects, and pregnancy ambivalence, and practice offering non-judgmental counseling in challenging, but common, real-world scenarios with a focus on patient-centered approaches.
LARC Reimbursement Strategies (1 CME/CE credits)
An interactive presentation to troubleshoot your LARC billing and coding issues. We will review options for ordering, stocking, and the process of billing for IUDS and implants in NM; additionally, policies, codes, and ways to improve clinical documentation to support LARC.
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Asthma Environmental Triggers Session
Friday, September 4th at 2:00 PM
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Head2Toe 365 Session
Attendees will review and receive a link to three tip sheets on asthma environmental triggers in the era of COVID-19. They will review and engage in discussion about tools and challenges for addressing individual patient guidance, school cleaning guidance, and outdoor education guidance. In addition to review of NMASBHC’s tools, attendees will share their individual challenges and get supportive feedback for mitigation from the presenters and fellow attendees. If technology allows, attendees will see a live demonstration of websites where best practices can be found, including NMASBHC’s website (home to the 3 tip sheets), the New Mexico Coalition on Asthma website, the CDC website on asthma environmental triggers, EPA websites on monitoring environmental conditions as well as supportive programs, the Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America website and other National entities.
For more information about Asthma and Environmental Triggers,
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Immunizations and Back to School |
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New Mexico child immunization rates continue to be below desired rates. Please encourage complete immunization by all of your patients, including the flu shot. The following are resources you can share with families. Please note that in many or most cases, a virtual schooling plan does not negate the school immunization requirements.
To refer patients to a clinic in local communities statewide, or to make sure your clinic is listed, go to www.immunizenm.org. The Department of Health provides immunizations at no cost year-round at public health clinics in every county for uninsured children. To find your local Public health office visit www.nmhealth.org, however, please check with your local public health office for details about this due to COVID-19.
Need to locate immunization records? VaxViewNM enables individuals, parents, and guardians to access, save and/or print official immunization records. This eliminates the need to carry multiple or aged documents and allows you to access your shot record anytime you need. VaxViewNM is mobile friendly and uses two-factor authentication. Simply go to VaxViewNM to print a copy of your or your child's shot record.
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Contraceptive Resource During Clinic Closures
Are some of your patients unable to access SBHC services during school closures? If you need to refer them elsewhere for access to contraceptive care, consider the option of pharmacists. New Mexico law now provides for this service, and the website below can be a resource for locating participating providers. Over thirty independent and chain pharmacies are currently listed in New Mexico. Encourage patients to call for available times first.
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There is a new urgency in efforts to encourage families to participate in the 2020 Census. Federal officials have shortened the period for full national completion, and the final deadline is now September 30th! Accurate data is critical to the healthcare and education sectors, among others, in order for sufficient funding for residents. Please find the Census Healthcare Toolkit provided by ICountNM.gov for resources including digital banners, newsletter messaging, postcards and other tools to encourage your patients and community to respond to the census.
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The New Mexico Center for Nursing Excellence is now taking nominations for their NM Nursing Excellence Awards. The Excellence in Practice category Public Health/Community/School Category is a great fit for school nurses and SBHC nurses. Nominations can be completed at https://www.nmnursingexcellence.org/nomination-categories until September 28th.
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RFK Charter School SBHC Position Opening |
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Albuquerque's RFK Charter School SBHC is currently searching for a Nurse Practitioner to provide primary care services 16 hours a week in the South Valley. Primary care will include well child exams, acute care, and is provided through telehealth and limited in person contact for physical assessments as needed. COVID-19 measures protocols are in place to ensure safety of patients and staff. The clinic provides services for Robert F. Kennedy Charter School and South Valley Academy. The Clinic does have electronic health records. All staff are contractors. For more information please contact Sabrina Owens at (505) 480-9436 or through the clinic phone (505) 738-3654. |
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September Health Awareness Activities |
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September is Suicide Prevention Awareness Month
New Mexico has the highest rate of teen suicide in the nation. This month is an important opportunity to make young people and families aware of resources to support their mental health and well-being. Please review the below and share widely.
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NMConnect app: Available on Apple Store and Google Play
Zero Suicide:
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September is Sexual Health Awareness Month
School-Based Health Centers are often a first point of contact when discussing sexual health with patients and families.
The following are some resources:
There is also a list of youth-friendly
resources published by
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September is Childhood Cancer Awareness Month
Cancer is a scary diagnosis. It is often even scarier for the parents and families of children diagnosed with cancer. It often takes a team to support families - doctors, nurses, child life specialists, physical therapists, speech therapists, social workers, staff, family and friends.
The following are some resources:
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www.nmasbhc.org | (505) 404-8059 | info@nmasbhc.org |
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