By Katie Kolbet, Communications Specialist

If you haven’t met the CHAS Homeless Outreach team consisting of Lee Nelson and Ilze Zarins-Ilgen, you should. They are both amazing people who work extremely hard in the local homeless community. Fortunately for me, in early December, I had the pleasure of spending a day out in the community with this phenomenal duo.

CHAS serves a huge population in Spokane and some of our regular patients are part of the homeless community. CHAS often holds employee sock, blanket and clothing drives. Lee collects these items and hits the streets in search of those in need. On the day I accompanied the team, we visited Shalom Ministries, City Gate, Transitions Women’s Center and House of Charity. We also made stops under bridges, next to railroad tracks and even into urban forests.

While in the forest we met a man who showed me how much of an impact the CHAS outreach team really makes. The man was new to the encampment and his only source of income was food stamps. In his words, he is just “trying to survive”. As with everyone else we met that day, we were welcomed with hugs and stories. “Three adults and a dog in a tent, keeps us warm, but we don’t get a lot of sleep,” he said with a smile.
As we were getting ready to leave, Lee handed out hygiene packs with basic necessities like razors, soap, deodorant, a washcloth, a granola bar, and a pair of warm wool socks. Upon receiving this gift from CHAS, tears welled up in the man’s eyes. . .I don’t know that I have ever seen someone so happy to get a pair of socks. But I know it wasn’t just the socks, it was the kindness and time given to understand an undoubtedly unique situation.

Remember, it’s the small things in life that can make a big difference.

Hello! It´s Dr. Moorman, Pediatrician at the North County Clinic. Welcome to the holiday edition of your children and their health. Please remember that this is a great time of year to get in quickly for a nurse visit for a flu vaccine and maybe even a new toothbrush for their stocking or for travel. Please remember that during travel we encounter all kinds of new wonderful experiences but that also means we contact new germs as well. Please remember to use good hand washing to stay healthy. When soap and warm water are not available, use a hand sanitizing product to help clean your hands. This is especially important when holiday shopping or playing with sample toys at stores that hundreds of children have already handled. Lastly, when sick, remember to cough into your elbow, not your hands, and make sure your children know how to do this so they don’t pass along germs to others.

The holidays are for family and friends and the memories we create. Please help keep those memories healthy and germ free.

Hello!

It’s Dr. Moorman, Pediatrician at the North County Clinic. Summer flew by and it’s already time for back to school! Does your child have everything he or she needs to remain healthy this year?

I put together a few questions to help you figure out if your child is back to school ready. If you answer NO to any of the following questions, give us a call at 509-444-8200 to schedule an appointment.

• Has your child had a Sports Physical completed for athletics?
• Is your child up to date on all of his/her Immunizations? Have your teens and pre-teens received immunizations too?
• Does your child have a new Epi pen or Inhaler for his/her Asthma? The cold and flu season is just around the corner.
• Does your child have fluoride supplements?
• Has your child gotten a Dental check up?

Get this school year started off right. If your child struggled last year with behavior or school work and you need a Pediatric evaluation to help get them the help and services they need this year to thrive, please make an appointment today!

Dr. Dan Moorman

Welcome spring and summer! Bye-bye colds and flu. It’s time for spring cleaning and that includes not only your homes but time to make sure you are getting your family’s health in order as well. Dental care is often overlooked or forgotten, but it’s time to get back in for that dental visit if this has slipped your attention. Pediatric and Adult Dental services are available at CHAS. Dental services are important because living in the Spokane area provides many challenges for dental care as our community does not have much, if any, fluoride in our water systems and wells. The current guidelines are for supplemental fluoride for children from 6 months old up to 16 years old. If you have run out of fluoride or forgot to get it at your last medical or dental visit please give us a call so we can make sure we are protecting your children’s teeth as best as possible.

It’s also time to dig out those old immunization records along with that house cleaning and make sure your children are up to date on all of their immunizations for the year. If you are not sure please give us a call so we can help you figure out what may be needed.

With the Sunshine returning to our area it’s time to think about sunburns and protecting our skin and our children from sunburns and potential skin cancer later in life. A light and breathable layer of clothing plus a hat is a great physical barrier, and is a better sun blocker than liquid sun block as it provides the right protection for your infant as well as for any family member. When wearing less than full coverage; a good sun block with both UVA and UVB provides the most protection. The American Academy of Pediatrics Recommends a SPF level of at least 35 for all children, but remember that sun block can wear off with sweat or with water. Remember to reapply sun block as needed to avoid that summer burn.

Also, along with spring cleaning it’s time to find that old book you haven’t read in a while. New books are always nice but search for that old favorite too. Remember to read to your children daily or better yet, have them read to you when old enough. Help them to read their old favorites to continue that love for reading and make sure they have books to read for their Spring and Summer breaks. The library is always a good place to find new favorites and it doesn’t cost you anything. So get out there and read and explore new worlds, you’ll be glad you did.

Daniel Moorman, MD

CHAS has recently transitioned the upper level of the Valley CHAS clinic into a Women and Children’s Wellness Center.  This new location offers an on site Pediatrician, OB-GYN, as well as other providers from our OB team, and our loved First Steps program staff.  CHAS is happy to be able to offer a family friendly atmosphere for the women and children we serve.  As always, our other locations also provide pediatric and pregnancy care as well, but this new option will definitely appeal to some of our patients.  I encourage you to check it out and visit our Women and Children’s Wellness Center in the Valley CHAS clinic!!

Most of us have some sort of chronic condition we deal with every day, right? Wouldn’t it be great to learn how to better live with that condition? If you have a chronic condition like diabetes, asthma, depression, heart disease, chronic pain, arthritis, or high blood pressure, our Healthy Living Workshops can help! This program is a great way to help you take control of your health and get more out of life.

The program was designed at Stanford University and is proven to help people gain self-confidence in their ability to control their symptoms and understand how their health problems affect their lives.   The best part of this is that people who are able to self-manage their chronic conditions are healthier in the long run and lower their medical bills.  We like to hear that!

The program is open to all CHAS patients with chronic conditions, and/or their caregivers, and is free of charge! The group meets one day per week for 2½ hours for 6 consecutive weeks.  If you  join the workshop, there’s an optional workbook you can buy for $10, but if you complete the class, you’ll get your money back!

Don’t miss this great opportunity! Ask your provider for a prescription. Upcoming workshops starts March 7th at the Market Street Clinic in Spokane, April 9th in Clarkston, WA, and April 18th in Lewiston, ID.
For a complete list of Healthy Living workshops log on to www.chas.org/healthy-living.

CHAS will be participating in a couple of mommy and baby friendly events in Spokane!  The first event is the Baby Fair, which is held at the Spokane Convention Center on Sunday March 13, 2011 at 11:00 a.m.  At this event CHAS will be represented and will give away some great gift baskets as well as offer some great activities for the audience.  Please come by and learn more about what CHAS can offer you and have a little fun while doing it!

CHAS will also be present at the first ever Mother’s Gala hosted by Community  Health Education & Resources (CHER) at the Glover Mansion on Saturday March 26, 2011 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.  This event is focused on finding a balance between motherhood and personal life and will offer information about women’s health and wellness.  Both of these events are great opportunities to learn more about what Spokane has to offer for the women and mothers in our community.   So come by and see us at one or both of these fantastic events!!  See you there!

CHAS will be participating in the West Central Community Center Baby Shower 2010.  If you didn’t know, this is an event where you can learn about many different organizations in the area that can offer an incredible amount of resources if you are pregnant or if you have children or are planning on having children.  This event takes place on Saturday October 2, 2010 from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the West Central Community Center.  The address is 1603 N. Belt St. in Spokane.  If you visit all booths at this event you can get a free package of diapers, not to mention the enormous amounts of community resource knowledge!!  So come visit us at the WCCC Baby Shower, we will be raffling off a great gift basket!  Hope to see you there!

Hello!

My name is Dannette and I am the OB (Obstetrics) Program Coordinator for the CHAS clinic. If you didn’t know that CHAS offered pregnancy care, I encourage you to investigate what we have to offer. In short, we offer prenatal care by midwives or family doctors… you choose! We also have a great program called First Steps, which offers an enormous amount of support through the course of your pregnancy. I hope you will contact us and get the best care for your baby as soon as you know you are pregnant. The best thing you can do for yourself and your new little one is to take care of yourself now and establishing with a provider to care for you and your baby is the best way to start. Browse our website to find out about First Steps and other great programs!

Well its back to school time and that means getting your kids ready for the next school year. Im also sure as a parent you are thinking about the well being of your child over this next year and  ways to keep them healthy and active. One way to do this is to encourage physical activity and playing school sports or extra curricular sports activites. Please remember that schools need a Sports form filled out yearly so they can ensure that your child is healthy enough to participate. We can do this at their yearly physical or we can see them for a sports physical to get them playing right away.The difference in the two checkups is we have more time to discuss other health concerns or even old medical concerns at a Well Child Checkup. Please schedule either checkup today if your child needs one.
Its also time to start thinking about Immunizations for the year as well. Influenza season is coming and we will be looking to get everyone immunized over the next several months. Please consider this immunization and call us to discuss if your child is up to date on all of their immunizations. Recent changes to vaccines and new guidelines are making it very important for your Medical provider to closely review the immunization records to ensure that you and your child are fully protected from vaccine preventable diseases. Please let us know how we can help you.

Dan Moorman, M.D.