Clinician & Community Newsletter
July 29, 2020
Dear Advocate,

The evolving COVID-19 pandemic is hitting underserved communities hard, and your frontline work to care for the underserved has never been more vital. This week, the Association of Clinicians for the Underserved is highlighting three new trainings —including our first Virtual Conference —to help you improve patients' access to quality care, reproductive health services, and civic engagement.
Register Now for Our 2020 Virtual Conference

Join us  at the ACU's first Virtual Conference! Taking place on September 14-18 from 11-4:30 p.m. ET, our online symposium will spotlight innovative practices and emerging issues in delivering health care to underserved populations. Offering unique Workforce, Disparities, and Practice Models tracks as well as exciting  general sessions  and keynotes, this trandisciplinary, CME-accredited event will offer critical training for clinicians, administrators, and advocates alike. Whether you're interested in confronting implicit bias, decreasing physician burnout , or understanding connections between COVID-19 and health equity, you'll find information to sharpen your practice and inform your advocacy at our event. Sign up now — spaces are limited, and  ACU Members  enjoy a significant discount.
Join Us for Tomorrow's Policy & Practice Webinar at 12 p.m. ET: Reducing Stigma and Improving Referrals for Reproductive Health During COVID-19

The uncertainties surrounding COVID-19 and its impact on childcare, employment, and financial wellbeing have led to tremendous stress for people with unexpected pregnancies. Many will seek support from health care institutions where they receive primary care. Frontline workers need to be prepared to offer non-stigmatizing, non-directive, and client-centered pregnancy options, counseling, and resources. By providing training on the intersection of stigma and the provision of reproductive health care, health care organizations will ultimately lower stigmatizing patient interactions and further invest in the professional development of staff.

Join this webinar to learn how frontline clinicians and staff can provide client-centered, non-stigmatizing care. This discussion and its accompanying resources will prepare health care leadership to enact pregnancy options counseling and education protocols for all employees and eliminate inequitable practices. Additional continuing education resources for staff and administrators will be shared.

Disclaimer: This presentation will review the best practices in providing neutral, non-directive, factual counseling and referrals for all pregnancy options, including abortion. The Hyde Amendment prohibits federal funds to be used to pay for abortion services outside of the exceptions for rape, incest, or if the pregnancy is determined to endanger the woman’s life.
Honor Civic Health Month and Join Us for Our Upcoming Webinar with VotER: Using the Healthy Democracy Kit to Empower Your Patients, Colleagues, and Staff at 1 p.m. ET on August 10

This August, the ACU is joining VotER , 50 partner organizations, and 11,000 health care providers in launching the first national, nonpartisan   Civic Health Month  to celebrate and bring attention to institutions and providers helping their patients get ready to vote. As part of that initiative, we're hosting a webinar with  VotER  to highlight their new tool to empower patients to vote safely in upcoming elections: the Healthy Democracy Kit.

To help create a better healthcare system by empowering those most hurt by it to vote, VotER has created a new kit that allows patients to easily use their own phone to register to vote or request a mail-in ballot to vote from home. The Healthy Democracy Kit will walk patients through either process in 90 seconds or less.  As providers, it is critical that we advocate for our patients—and in an election held during a pandemic, that means making it safe and healthy for them to register and vote.   Join this webinar  to introduce yourself to the kit and how it can assist patients. To learn more about VotER and the importance of this work, read the recent  New York Times  article or browse further Civic Health Month resources.

Note: all civic engagement, voter registration, and advocacy activities are completely non-partisan.
Latest from the STAR ² Center: New Call for Podcast Interviewees and Updated Data Profile Dashboards

Call for Podcast Interviewees: The STAR² Center is seeking health center clinicians, leadership, and staff interested in participating in a 10- to 20-minute interview for a podcast series focusing on the effects of COVID-19 on health center clinicians. Tell your story about how COVID-19 is impacting you and for leadership share how you are supporting your clinicians and staff during the pandemic. If you are interested in participating, please complete this form and our team will contact you. Thank you for your interest and the work you do to serve the underserved, especially during COVID-19.

Data Profile Dashboards: Following the recent launch of our updated individual health center recruitment and retention Data Profile Dashboards, our team is preparing to release updated accounts for PCAs to access data from their state(s). All PCA staff who wish to access the data will need to review, sign, and return the attached Data Use Agreement to Mariah Blake . Be sure to return your agreement by close of business on Friday, July 31, to be part of this first round of updates! Please contact us  if you have any questions and visit the STAR 2 Center website for more information and resources.
  • We would appreciate your help in spreading the word to health centers about this year’s release. Download sample blurbs that can be included in newsletters.
Last Call for Board and Committee Applications: Apply by July 31, 2020!

It's not too late to apply to join our Board of Directors or Program and Vision Services Committees! Your perspective is invaluable to our work, and we hope you will consider lending your strategic guidance to our initiatives. Learn more about these exciting opportunities for ACU members and apply online. Board and Committee applications are due this Friday, July 31. We especially encourage applications from candidates who are Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), as well as individuals with diverse cultural and gender identifications, sexual orientations, and/or experiences of disability.
We are committed to supporting your work to save lives and improve health equity in underserved communities. To better support you, we need your feedback: please email our Executive Director Amanda Pears Kelly  with any suggestions or concerns to inform our ongoing work. Thank you for all that you do to support your patients and providers during COVID-19.

Thank you,
The ACU Team