Technical assistance calls for grantees are generally held every other Thursday from 2 to 3 PM EST. The schedule for August appears below. To register, search for summaries or materials from prior calls, or download materials for upcoming calls, please go to the grantee Website: www.capcommunity.hrsa.gov. Please remember that the site is password protected. Grantees should contact their primary contact to receive the password. Once you register for the call you should immediately receive a confirmation note by email that includes the call-in number. Please be sure to download the materials that will be used. If you have difficulty registering or do not receive the call-in number, please contact Latonya Dunlow at ldunlow@mscginc.com  or call 301-577-3100.

	CAP TA Calls
	Date		Topic
	August 5th		End of Year Grants Management Open Session    Do you have questions about filling out the FSR? Do you know if you are eligible to request carry-over dollars or a no-cost extension? Still not sure how to correctly fill out a 424a? If any of these questions have crossed you mind, join us for this TA Call that will feature Mike Rowland from the Division of Grants Management office to answer any grants-related questions in an open phone session.
	August 19th		No TA Call

With the exception of calls related to legal issues, TA calls are summarized and posted on the grantee website (www.capcommunity.hrsa.gov). Legal issue briefs are posted on the site under legal issues. You may also request an audiotape copy of any previous calls (up to one month after the call) by contacting Latonya Dunlow at the email above.

Congratulations to HCAP grantee Genesys Health System's Health Access program for its recent award from the Michigan Health & Hospital Association (MHA). Health Access was one of three recipients of the Ludwig Community Benefit Award at the 2004 MHA Annual Corporate Membership Meeting. The Ludwig Community Benefit Award is named in honor of former MHA President Patric E. Ludwig, and is presented to health care organizations that demonstrate community benefit by collaborating with other local organizations to improve the health and well being of their communities through health care, economic or social initiatives. Genesys Health System's Health Access program was conceived in 2001 when local health care providers were all faced with serious challenges in providing the uninsured with adequate care to maintain health and manage chronic illness. In Genesee County, approximately 12 percent of the residents were uninsured. To address the problem, Genesys convened the safety net providers in the community to work together to develop an infrastructure for identifying those in need and helping them gain access to care. Within a 15-month period, care managers made nearly 9,100 contacts on behalf of more than 3,300 patients for services such as primary care, securing medical equipment and supplies, appointments with specialists, prescription medication assistance, disease education, and referrals to community resources. For more information about Genesys Health System please contact Marcy Buren at 810-232-4300 or by email at mburen@genesys.org.

Congratulations to HCAP grantee Midtown Community Health Center's Health Access Team for receiving local recognition in the Standard-Examiner newspaper for their consortium activities. The article highlighted the success of the Weber Coalition for a Healthy Community that was formed five years ago. The group has been instrumental in obtaining much-needed services for those living in the area. The coalition was organized to improve the health status of the uninsured and underinsured residents of Weber County through education and access to information regarding services as well as access to health care resources. A town meeting was held to determine the critical needs of the underserved in the community. These needs were determined to be: education, cultural competency, coordination and access. The coalition created two subcommittees to address these needs, the 211 Information and Referral Committee and the Access to Healthcare Committee. The coalition then collaborated with Weber Human Services and United Way to secure a 211 information line in Weber County.

In 2003, the Weber Coalition in conjunction with Midtown Community Health Center applied for and received a $1.3 million grant from the Healthy Communities Access Project to provide much needed integration and coordination of health services for residents living in the 84401, 84403 and 84404 ZIP code areas. The coalition has been able to help people who qualify by providing them access to their health, dental, nutritional, psychological and social needs. The coalition has also been actively involved with the Children's Health Connection and the Women's Health Connection.

For more information, contact Mike Baker, Health Access Team Director at 801-395-8201 or by email at mike@healthaccessteam.org  or visit the program's website: www.healthaccessteam.org.

The disparate state of minority health in the United States is an increasing area of concern among all health care professionals, especially in Jefferson County, Alabama. HCAP grantee, the Jefferson County Department of Health, a mainstay in this community, is empowered to assist both individuals and organizations with becoming more active in matters affecting their mental and physical health. For more than 80 years, the Jefferson County Department of Health has implemented progressive community-based programs to improve the health status of its community. The overarching focus areas for community health include Physical Activity and Nutrition, Tobacco, Environmental Health, Responsible Behavior, Mental Health, and Access to Care.

In light of health disparities, health education and promotion have proven to be valuable tools for health care providers to empower communities to take personal responsibility for their health, especially through community health events. In response to the health disparities in the Jefferson County community, the Eastern Health Center of the Jefferson County Department of Health, along with several other community organizations, banded together to organize two community-wide events: a health fair and a youth forum. The events took place during the spring of 2004 with an estimated attendance of 350 people. Both were met with large positive response.

Due to the success of these events, organizers created a Community Health Event Planning Guide to provide information on how to organize, execute, and assess health events designed for the education of the community. The Guide was based on the challenges and opportunities encountered during the planning process of the events in Jefferson County. It is designed to serve as a model and may be modified to best meet the needs of those who may need assistance. The Guide gives a comprehensive approach to planning a health event and includes information on setting objectives; creating a budget; effective collaboration with the community; publicity; sponsors; and much more. It also contains information on how to evaluate the effectiveness of the event.

If grantees are interested in reviewing the guide or have any comments, questions, or ideas to share, please contact Gregory Townsend, Eastern Health Center Administrator at greg.townsend@jcdh.org.

The Corporation for National and Community Service will offer grants of $30,000 to $100,000 to support AmeriCorps Professional Corps programs that address, among other issues, community shortages of qualified professionals in education and related fields like health care, child development, and social work. Professional Corps organizations bring thousands of teachers, health workers, and other vital professionals to communities that face critical shortages and/or growing demand. Eligible applicants include nonprofit organizations, institutions of higher education, Indian tribes, and subdivisions of states, including city and local government entities. Programs must operate in two or more states. For more information visit: http://www.usafreedomcorps.gov/content/about_usafc/newsroom/announcements_dynamic.asp?ID=627 or contact the AmeriCorps Professional Corps hotline at (202) 606-5000, ext. 130, or professionalcorps@cns.gov. 

Cable Positive's Tony Cox Community Fund is a national grant program that encourages community-based AIDS organizations and cable outlets to partner in joint community outreach efforts, or to produce and distribute locally focused HIV/AIDS-related programs and public service announcements (PSAs). Eligible local community outreach projects include, but are not limited to: World AIDS Day and National HIV Testing Day, AIDS Rides/Walks, and other joint efforts between AIDS organizations and local cable operators. Funding is also available for production costs of HIV/AIDS-related programs and PSAs. Grants of up to $5,000 are available for nonprofit organizations throughout the United States, with special consideration given to AIDS service organizations and cable systems and producers partnering with AIDS service organizations. Application instructions: http://www.cablepositive.org/programs-tonycox.html. 

The goal of these Program Announcements (R01 and R03 mechanism) is to increase scientific understanding of the nature of health literacy and its relationship to healthy behaviors, illness prevention and treatment, chronic disease management, health disparities, risk assessment of environmental factors, and health outcomes including mental and oral health. Increased scientific knowledge of interventions that can strengthen health literacy and improve the positive health impacts of communications between health care and public health professionals (including dentists, health care delivery organizations, and public health entities), and consumer or patient audiences that vary in health literacy, is needed to enable health care and public health systems to serve more effectively, and reduce health disparities in the population. For more information on the R01 mechanism: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-04-116.html. For more information on the R03 mechanism: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PAR-04-117.html.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Health & Society Scholars Program is designed to build the field of population health and aims to build the nation's capacity for research, leadership and action to address the broad range of factors affecting health. The goal of this interdisciplinary program is to improve health by training scholars to investigate rigorously the connections among biological, behavioral, environmental, economic and social determinants of health; and, to develop, evaluate and disseminate knowledge and interventions based upon integration of these determinants. For more information on this program please visit:http://www.rwjf.org/applying/cfpDetail.jsp?cfpCode=HSS&emailid=1110+000007!000008!+05122004.

The purpose of this program is to strengthen the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences' (NIEHS) and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health's (NIOSH) support of research aimed at achieving environmental justice for socioeconomically disadvantaged and medically underserved populations in the United States. One goal of the NIEHS and NIOSH is to understand the influence of economic and social factors on the health status of individuals exposed to environmental toxicants and occupational hazards and impact public health. For more information please visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/rfa-files/RFA-ES-04-007.html.

The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, the National Cancer Institute, the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research, and the Office of Dietary Supplements invite research grant applications that will enhance understanding of the factors and mechanisms that determine changes in health risk behaviors during childhood and adolescence.

The concept of health risk behavior change is used to encompass the evolution of specific health impairing behaviors. Of particular interest are factors and processes that influence the initiation, continuation, and/or cessation of one or more of the following: (1) substance abuse, (2) inadequate exercise and poor dietary practices as they relate to being overweight or obese, and (3) intentional and unintentional injuries.  

The goal of this PA is to promote optimal physical and mental health in children and adolescents. For more information please visit: http://grants.nih.gov/grants/guide/pa-files/PA-04-121.html.

The HRSA Third Party Reimbursement Training and Technical Assistance Program will present a webcast for HRSA grantees and subgrantees on Case Management in Ambulatory Care. This webcast will address: What are case management services; How does targeted case management differ from other types of case management; Characteristics of case management programs; Activities included under case management; Allowable and non-allowable activities under managed care; Bureau- specific examples; Contacts with non-eligible and non-targeted individuals; Who is services; and case management ICD-9 and CPT codes. most likely to pay for case management

There is no registration fee for this training which is sponsored by the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) of the US Department of Health and Human Services for organizations that currently receive grant funds directly from HRSA (i.e. HRSA grantees) and organizations currently funded by States and localities using HRSA grant funds along with State or local funds (i.e. HRSA subgrantees.) Pre-registration is required by August 28, 2004. Register online at http://www.hrsa.gov/tpr/audio-conferences.htm.

This meeting will bring together the national leaders who work with Electronic Health Records and help to formulate the rapidly emerging Health Information Technology Policy. It is co-sponsored by the eHealth Initiative, Health Resources and Services Administration, Health Technology Center, Harvard Health Policy Review and Health Affairs. David Brailer, MD, Ph.D., National HIT Coordinator and Senior Fellow for Information Technology and Quality of Care at the Health Technology Center, will be the featured speaker. For more information please visit http://www.HITSummit.com or call 1-800-684-4549.

Computerized physician order entry (CPOE) systems can help prevent medication errors-the most common cause of preventable injuries in hospitals-but few hospitals use them. According to a new Health Affairs study, physician and organizational resistance, high costs, and product and vendor immaturity appear to be the major obstacles to implementing this technology.

With support from The Commonwealth Fund, Harvard Medical School researchers Eric G. Poon, M.D., and David Blumenthal, M.D., interviewed top managers at U.S. hospitals to identify the barriers to implementation and adoption of CPOE and recommend strategies for overcoming them. In their article, Overcoming Barriers to Computerized Physician Order Entry Systems in U.S. Hospitals, the authors suggest that providing strong hospital leadership, rallying physician support, and re-aligning priorities to focus on patient safety may address some of the barriers. Outside the hospital, the authors also raise issues for policymakers, vendors, and payers. For more information please visit: http://www.cmwf.org/media/releases/poon_cpoe_release07072004.asp.

Web-Based Compendium Of Quality Incentive And Reward Programs

"Paying for performance" - providing financial and other incentives to encourage health professionals to practice better medicine - is one approach experts are studying as a way to improve the quality of care. The first public Web-based compendium of these incentive and reward programs is now available. 

Developed with support from The Commonwealth Fund and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the Leapfrog Incentive and Reward Compendium was designed to help raise awareness among purchasers, health plans, and health care providers about innovations around the country that are helping to improve the quality and affordability of health care.  

The Leapfrog Compendium documents and categorizes financial programs, such as those that reward providers with quality bonuses, and non-financial programs, such as those that reward providers with public recognition. Health plans, purchasers, or purchasing coalitions and target hospitals, physicians, health plans, and consumers initiated the majority of programs. For more information please visit: http://www.cmwf.org/media/releases/leapfrogircompendium_release06302004.asp.

American Indian Health

The National Library of Medicine announces a new Web site to address the health concerns of the 4 million Americans who claim American Indian or Alaska Native ancestry. Because special populations have different health needs, the Library has created several specialized sites, for example, for Asian Americans, those living in the Arctic and far north, senior citizens, and Spanish-speaking Americans. The site, "American Indian Health," can be visited at: http://americanindianhealth.nlm.nih.gov.

Cultural Competency Web-Based Resources

The Society of Medical Anthropology has a page on their website designated to Cultural Competency Resources. Visit the website to learn more about The Center for Cross Cultural Health and The National Standards for Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Services in Healthcare, produced by the Office of Minority Health Resource Center. For more information visit: http://www.medanthro.net/academic/topical/cultcomp.html.

Collaboration and Community Dialogue Resources

Constructive Conversations about Challenging Times: A Guide to Community Dialogue was designed by the Public Conversations Project to help people overcome the challenges of communicating without alienating others or being misunderstood, and engage in constructive conversation about what's going on in the world. It gives specific assistance in how and where to hold your group, who to invite, how to set up the rules, how to prepare for the dialogue and how to get the most from your session. The guide is available at: http://www.publicconversations.org/pcp/uploadDocs/CommunityGuide3.0.pdf.