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129th
Community Health
Advisory
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Weekly Message from the Executive Director
Tony Anderson
By the Numbers
This week we reported a total of 11 positive COVID tests, seven were people with disabilities and four were direct support professionals. On Thursday we had our first day with zero positive tests results in months, and we are happy to report there were no hospitalizations or deaths.
VMRC continues to rank second in the state's regional center system in the vaccination rate of people 50 and older, exceeding the state's general population percentage collectively and by race and ethnicity. To continue our efforts to protect our community we held a vaccine clinic in partnership with Safeway Pharmacy in Modesto administering the flu and bivariant COVID booster. While not as busy as the height of the pandemic, the pharmacists reported we had a steady flow of participants all day. Thank you to our Clinical Director, Dr. Claire Lazaro, and our Safeway Pharmacy team for agreeing to host this important resource for our community, consumers, families, and staff.
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A New Service Option for Families and Consumers Coming Soon
For the past six months we have been reporting to community groups throughout our region that a new service model, "Coordinated Family Support" would be coming soon.
Now the Department of Developmental Services (DDS) has completed the draft description of this new service model and they are holding webinars to describe the new services and to get feedback from the community.
These webinars are for consumers, families, regional center staff, and community service providers. The webinars will be in English on October 6, 2022 and in Spanish on Friday October 7, 2022.
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DDS Coordinated Family Support Services for Families and Consumers Webinar
Thursday, October 06, 2022
9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
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DDS Coordinated Family Support Services for Families and Consumers Webinar
Friday, October 07, 2022
9:00 a.m. to 10:00 a.m.
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Still Taking Your Input on the Future of the "Health Advisory"
We still need your input and your thoughts on the Health Advisory and our next steps in community communications.
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You Can Still Register for a Resource Table Until Wednesday, October 19th at 5:00 PM
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Thank You to Our Platinum Sponsors | |
Thank You to Our Gold Sponsors | |
Thank You to our Silver Sponsors | |
Thank You to our Bronze Sponsors | |
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Clinical Update
Dr. Claire Lazaro
Clinical Director
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Our sincerest gratitude to Safeway Pharmacy and our volunteers for a successful Vaccination/Immunization Clinic at the Modesto office yesterday. We are pleased to help and be of service to our community through health events such as this. And this is only possible with the help of our volunteers! Thank you very much! | |
More Chance To Get Flu Shot and COVID Booster! | |
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Case Management Update - Children
Tara Sisemore-Hester
Director of Consumer Services - Children
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Current Research and Clinical Insights about Autism in Girls
with Christine Wu Nordahl Ph.D.
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Wednesday November 9, 2022
11:30am-1:00pm (PT)
Virtual Event
Can't attend the event live?
Register to receive access to the recording!
| This presentation will provide an overview of current research focused on understanding autism in girls and women. Topics will include biological and clinical theories about the difference in the sex ratio of autism as well as current insights into sex differences in autism and unique challenges faced by autistic girls and women. | |
Participant Objectives:
· Current theories about why there are fewer females diagnosed with autism
· Overview of current autism literature on behavioral sex differences in autism
· Review of current literature on masking or camouflaging in autism
Recent findings from the UC Davis MIND Institute Girls with Autism - Imaging of Neurodevelopment (GAIN) Study
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Christine Wu Nordahl, Ph.D. is a professor and neuroscientist in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the UC Davis MIND Institute. Her research program utilizes structural and functional MRI scans to study brain development in autism across the life span. She directs the Autism Phenome Project and Girls with Autism - Imaging of Neurodevelopment study, two integrated longitudinal, interdisciplinary studies aimed at identifying clinically meaningful subtypes of autism.
She is particularly committed to evaluating the entire autism spectrum, including girls with autism as well as the entire range of intellectual abilities. In 2021, she and her team initiated NeuroTeens, a social support group for neurodivergent girls and non-binary teens.
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Non-Member: $50
IDA Agency/Individual Member: $35
IDA Parent/Student/New Clinician Member: $25
IDA CE Hours: Nursing, PT, Speech and Language* $15 (1.5 hour)
CDI CE Hours: LCSW, LMFT, LEP, LPCC
(you will be invoiced and only if attending live)
*CEUs for SLPs can be used to fulfill California’s licensing board. They are not sent to the ASHA registry. Participants should retain their IDA certificates and submit a Certification Maintenance Compliance form with ASHA.
ADA Requests: Contact IDA @ mail@idaofcal.org
with ADA request by October 26
Limited number of scholarships available
REGISTER NOW
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Case Management Update - Adults
Christine Couch
Director of Consumer Services - Adults
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Let's Get Cooking!
The Junior Chef's Challenge is your opportunity to show off your healthy cooking skills! Submit a video or essay of a healthy recipe that you prepared and win bikes, sports equipment, and other prizes! Bonus points are awarded for sharing special cooking tips and using local produce.
A $50 gift card will be provided to each participant to purchase food for the competition. Middle and High School students are encouraged to participate. All contestants must reside in, or attend a school within the following zip codes: 95202, 95205, 95206, and 95215.
Submit your recipes by October 7th! If you or someone you know would like to join in on the fun, please send an email to infor@rsscoalition.org. Tell you friends! Let's get cooking!
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Disability Rights California announces:
Registration is now open our upcoming two-day “Demolishing Stigma, Reclaiming Power, & Measuring Success: Disability in the Black & African American Communities" conference scheduled for October 25, 2022 and October 28, 2022. This FREE training is for people receiving regional center services, their families, and their circle of support. Service providers are also welcomed.
Below is the conference schedule:
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October 25, 2022
Disability 101: Laying the Foundation for Disability Success
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Lunch Truck
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
How Much is the Regional Center Spending on Black & African American Families?
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
October 28, 2022
Black & African American Families Navigating through the Self- Determination Program
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Lunch Truck
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
An informal space for attendees to meet and learn from each other.
Disability 102: Building your Blueprint for Success
1:00 PM - 3:00 PM
ASL and live captioning will be offered during all the sessions. People who register by October 12, 2022 will be entered into a raffle to win a prize! The public can also contact Elizabeth Campos at Elizabeth.Campos@disabilityrightsca.org or 916-504-5808 for accommodations or questions about the event. Accommodations must be requested no later than October 11, 2022.
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This October, celebrate Global Diversity Awareness Month and pay tribute to the diverse minds and beliefs held by all cultures around the world. We live in a multicultural society and embracing the values of various cultures only strengthens our understanding and appreciation of the world. Open your mind to new views and ideas, appreciate cultural differences, and enjoy a fresh perspective you may have been missing. It helps you become a true citizen of the world. | |
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Each year, millions of Americans face the reality of living with a mental health condition. However, mental illness affects everyone directly or indirectly through family, friends or coworkers. That is why each year, during the first week of October, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) and participants across the country raise awareness of mental illness, fight discrimination and provide support through Mental Illness Awareness Week (MIAW).
We believe that mental health conditions are important to discuss year-round but highlighting them during MIAW provides a dedicated time for mental health advocates across the country to come together as one unified voice. Since 1990, when Congress officially established the first full week of October as MIAW, advocates have worked together to sponsor activities, large or small, to educate the public about mental illness.
MIAW 2022
This year’s MIAW is centered around the theme “What I Wish I Had Known” where we will focus on the power of lived experience. Each day throughout the week, we will be elevating the voices of people with lived experience to talk about the components of their recovery where they learned something that could have helped them sooner. The topics include: What I Wish I’d Known About…
Monday Oct. 3: Stigma
Tuesday Oct. 4: Medication [National Day of Prayer for Mental Illness Recovery and Understanding]
Wednesday Oct. 5: Therapy
Thursday Oct. 6: Disclosing [National Depression Screening Day]
Friday Oct. 7: Caregiving
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Community Services Update
Brian Bennett
Director of Community Services
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The Community Services Team will host Informational Sessions for all service providers of VMRC on the first Friday of each month- topics will be generated based on any recent DDS directive changes or other “hot button” topics related to the delivery of services and supports. On Friday October 7th, VMRC and Community Care Licensing will discuss Hospice Waivers for residential settings and also share information related to “succession planning” for all service providers.
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us06web.zoom.us/j/88548962379
Meeting ID: 885 4896 2379
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Intermediate Care Facility (ICF) Administrators and Managers- California Association of Health Facilities presents a virtual conference
https://www.cahf.org/Education-Events/Event-Info/sessionaltcd/DSCN22.
This two-day conference offers essential training and resources designed for ICF/DD members who are administrators,
managers, as well as clinical and non-clinical staff. Discover how to navigate ongoing operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other
significant impacts.
TUESDAY, OCT. 4 | LIVE SESSIONS
· 12 PM | CAHF Update
Craig Cornett, CAHF
Matthew Steinorth, Epiphany Care Homes Inc
Meredith Wurden, Sellers Dorsey
· 1 PM | Coping & Stress Management
Torna Li, PsyD, CHE Behavioral Health Services
· 2:15 PM | End-of-Life
Shelly Garone, MD, Kaiser Permanente
· 3:15 PM | Refractory Epilepsy Screening Tool
Kendra Davies, PharmD, RPH, Jazz Pharmaceuticals
WEDNESDAY, OCT. 5 | ON-DEMAND SESSIONS
· Dementia in the ICF/DD
Claire Day, Alzheimer's Association Northern California and Northern Nevada Chapter
· CalAIM Update
Jennifer Breen, CAHF
Meredith Wurden, Sellers Dorsey
· Labor Law Update
Keahn Morris, SheppardMullin
· Life Safety
Jason Belden, CAHF
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We are proud to be a Gold Sponsor of the 4th Annual Health and Wellness Day for parents and caregivers put on by SpecialNeedsinmycity.org! We hope to see many of you at this wonderful event! | |
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Emergency Services Update
Aaron McDonald
Emergency Response Coordinator
| National Preparedness Month: September 2022 “A Lasting Legacy” |  | |
Launched in 2004, National Preparedness Month (NPM) is The Federal Emergency Management Agency – FEMA (https://www.fema.gov) national annual preparedness outreach. NPM is managed and sponsored by FEMA’s Ready Campaign. The Ready Campaign, in conjunction with the Ad Council, aims to educate and empower Americans during NPM and throughout the year to prepare for and respond to all types of emergencies, including natural disasters and potential terrorist attacks. National Preparedness Month culminates on September 30th with National Preparedness Day, the National Day of Action.
The National Weather Service - NWS is proud to be participating in NPM. By doing so, they want to make sure YOU are prepared in case of a disaster (natural or man-made). If you haven't taken the time to think about how different disasters could affect you, then they challenge you to take the necessary steps to become informed and develop a plan for yourself, loved ones, pets and those we serve at VMRC. These simple steps could SAVE YOUR LIFE! We have focused on different topics each Friday in September to help prepare you and your loved ones for disasters. When you start preparing for disasters and make yourself aware of hazardous that exist it helps lessen the fear and anxiety that will come when an actual event occurs. The best way to help & support others during disasters is to prepare ourselves. Now is the time for people with disabilities to think about personal disaster preparedness. The Federal Emergency Management Agency – FEMA (https://www.fema.gov) suggests four steps you can take: Stay Informed (9/2/22 topic), Make a Plan (9/9/22 topic), Build a Kit (9/16/22 topic), Get Involved (9/23/22 topic). This brings us to our final topic:
Step 5: Bringing it all Together
Once you have done all this work it is important to remember to keep things current. Your emergency response plan is going to be successful as you make it. The more resilient & self-sustaining we and are loved ones can be greatly increases our chances of survival and being able to resume normal activities as quickly as possible following the initial impact of an emergency. Incorporating your emergency planning into your daily life activities also will help to reduce the stress & anxiety that these events bring. Emergencies by their very nature are unplanned and disruptive to out lives. The good news is that we each have the ability to prepare, plan and practice our emergency plan to help reduce these anxieties and stress. Over these past 4 weeks a variety of resources & tips have been shared. You can view past Health Advisories at:
https://www.vmrc.net/17713-2/ . I hope you are ending September more prepared than when you started and even if you are not, it is never too late to get started.
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North Valley Hills Update
Dena Hernandez, Regional Manager (209) 473-6930
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California Receives Nearly $14 Million in Grant Funding for
Competitive Integrated Employment (CIE) for People with Disabilities
"SCDD is excited about California's SWTCIE award!" said Council Chair and Employment First Committee Chair Wesley Witherspoon of the California State Council on Developmental Disabilities (SCDD). "Moving people out of subminimum wage will take many different services and supports. We are happy to support DORs SWTCIE effort and look forward to partnering with them."
Read about the U.S. Department of Education and California Department of Rehabilitation RSA Grant News Release here:
https://conta.cc/3R3pL01
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Disability Vote California
The deadline to register to vote in the November 8th election is October 24th. Visit our website at DisabilityVoteCA.org and get links to register as well as other resources and information.
Exercise your right to vote to continue to advance disability rights, equality and inclusion.
#registertovote #disabilityrights #Election2022 #voterrights
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How to connect to SCDD through Social Media | | |
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Family Resource Network (FRN) Update
Lisa Culley, Executive Director
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Sibshop is back in person! Sibshops provide brothers and sisters (ages 7-14) with peer support and information in a lively, recreational setting.
Sibshops are lively events where the participants will:
*Meet other sibs (usually for the first time);
*Have fun;
*Talk about the good and not-so-good parts of having a sib with special needs with others who “get it”;
*Play some great games;
*Explore how other brother and sisters handle sticky situations sometimes faced by brothers and sisters;
*Laugh
*Learn about the services their brothers and sister receive; and
*Have some more fun!
Please contact Family Resource Network at 209-472-3674 or FRNfamilies@frcn.org to request a registration packet and to ask any questions about Sibshop. The next Sibshop is scheduled for Friday, October 14, 2022, in Stockton.
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Local County, State and National Public Health Resources | | | | |
