|
In this Issue:
- WA Department of Health's Update on Nirsevimab Release
- WCAAP News & Information
- Rafton's Round Up
- Reflections on GATHER
- Join our upcoming GATHER Cohort
- HPV at 9: A Look at Rural Communities
- WCAAP's Community Health Worker Learning Collaborative
- Register for September's Equity Care Webinar
- Equitable Care Question of the Month
- Vax Corner
- Resources
- CME Opportunity: Common Presentations of Childhood Cancer
- Training Opportunity: Connecting with Ukrainian Refugees
- DOH's Air Quality Guide for Youth Activities
- Noteworthy
- SOAPM Focus Group Invitation
- Pediatric Residency of UW is looking for a new Pediatric Practice
- Who's Who at WCAAP
| |
|
WA Department of Health's Update on Nirsevimab Release
Nirsevimab is a new long-acting monoclonal antibody injection that is expected to be available starting in October. It is now recommended for routine use to prevent respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) lower respiratory tract infection (LRTI) in
- All infants younger than age 8 months during their first RSV season.
- Children ages 8-19 months entering their second RSV season who are American Indian, Alaska Native, or at an increased risk for severe disease.
The Washington State Department of Health is taking steps in collaboration with the Washington Vaccine Association to include nirsevimab-alip (trade name Beyfortus) as part of the state’s Childhood Vaccine Program so it is available for all eligible babies in Washington.
| |
|
Rafton's Roundup: Where We've Been, and Where We're Headed
Sarah Rafton, MSW
Executive Director
In the past several years our impact on child health has grown through our partnerships with state agencies, allied providers, parents, youth, and philanthropic organizations. We’ve accomplished a lot in the advocacy space through our partnerships, and our clinic-facing footprint has also grown substantially under WA-CHIP, our Pediatric Improvement Partnership. Through WA-CHIP we facilitate learning collaboratives and learning networks in equity, immunizations, early childhood, and mental health to improve child health on the front lines of care.
To advance child health equity and combat racism in pediatric health care, WCAAP facilitates GATHER under the leadership and facilitation of WCAAP members doctors Harbir Juj, Annie Hoopes, Peter Asante and Marcus Baca, supported by WCAAP staff, Elexis Jackson. In the spring we served 16 providers in this peer-led learning collaborative and we are currently enrolling providers for our fall cohort.
| |
|
A Reflection on GATHER
Molly Capron, MD, MPH
WCAAP Equity Committee Member
As a general pediatrician at a federally qualified health center, I strive to center health equity and anti-racism in my clinical work. Joining the WCAAP Equitable Care Committee and participating in the recent WCAAP GATHER cohort have been excellent opportunities to complement this work.
Participating in the Equitable Care Committee has enabled me to connect with other pediatric providers throughout the state to work to advance issues of equity on a larger scale. We coordinate educational opportunities for other WCAAP members and connect providers with resources available to them to further the cause of equitable and respectful, appropriate care for all Washington children. Working with providers from a variety of specialties, practice settings, and geographic regions has helped broaden my perspective on the issues that face pediatric patients in our state.
| |
|
Join WCAAP's Next GATHER Cohort Starting this Fall
Beginning in October, this quarterly learning collaborative focuses on improving health equity through 3, 1.5 hour peer conversation sessions with providers from across Washington State. Participants will learn to improve their practice of EDI using a quality improvement framework, self-assessment, and peer discussion. MOC Part 4 is available.
Two cohorts will be available: midday on Thursdays or evenings on Mondays.
Register below or reach out to Elexis Jackson with any questions.
| |
|
HPV at 9: A Look at Rural Communities
Sherri Zorn, MD
This year, as part of WCAAP, we received $25,000 in grant funding from AAP to develop an HPV Project for Rural communities. We developed a rapid quality improvement(QI) project (Feb-July 2023) for “HPV Vax at 9,” recruited 5 clinics serving rural communities in 5 Washington state counties, and awarded 25 MOC credits for participating providers. The start of this QI project coincided with a change in our state immunization registry to forecast for HPV due at age 9, and this official forecast change really helped get clinics interested knowing that they have support from WA DOH.
WCAAP’s first Cohort experienced such great success that we're already midway through Cohort 2 with 8 additional clinics and 2 additional funders.
| |
|
WCAAP's Community Health Worker Learning Collaborative
Ali Goodyear, MPH
Program Manager
As National Community Health Worker Awareness Week (August 28 – September 1, 2023) comes to a close, WCAAP continues to prepare to launch our upcoming Pediatric Community Health Worker (CHW) Learning Collaborative that will run from September 2023 through May 2024. With funding from the Washington State Department of Health, WCAAP will support 11 clinics across the state that have received the Washington State Health Care Authority’s Community Health Worker Grant, which provides funding for clinics to embed CHWs into their care teams to address the mental health and early relational health needs of children and families.
Based on input from CHWs, clinics, and our community and faculty partners, WCAAP has developed a Learning Collaborative curriculum that will support clinics in enhancing CHW role clarity, promoting team-based care, ensuring CHWs are elevated on their care teams, and promoting sustainability for CHWs. WCAAP is looking forward to supporting the success of CHWs through the Learning Collaborative and continuing to advocate for the needs of this workforce that plays a critical role in achieving health equity and addressing the health and social needs of children and families in Washington state.
| |
|
Register now for WCAAP's September Equity Webinar
September 27th, 7-8am PST on Zoom
Join WCAAP’s Equitable Care Committee for the next installment of the Equitable Care Webinar Series. We are excited to welcome Dr. Aaron Grigg CMIO at Grande Ronde Hospital and Dr. Clara Lin CMIO and Associate Vice President at Seattle Children’s Hospital who will discuss Electronic Health Record Design Equity, online portal access & CURES Act considerations, and addressing inequities of telehealth.
| |
|
Equitable Care Question of the Month
(Be sure to click through! There is a bonus question this month!)
You have a 6-year-old African American patient with a family history of type 2 diabetes and hypertension. Family is working on making health-directed changes, but they are struggling with how to make these adjustments while also being respectful to their family’s culture of food as a way of connecting. Patient’s family is also concerned about anger outbursts when they ask him to get off screens, and some fighting with siblings. Is this family appropriate for a Behavioral Health Consultant (BHC) referral, and what could the BHC help with?
| |
|
Back to School! Vaccines!...And Exemption Forms
Maria Huang, MD, FAAP
WCAAP Vaccine Committee Co-Chair
As much as we would love all WA kids to be fully immunized, we know there remains a sizable vaccine-hesitant population. WA State Law allows parents or guardians to exempt their child from the school or childcare immunization requirements by claiming personal/philosophical, religious or medical reasons. (MMR may not be exempted for personal/philosophical reasons).
So to save the time and sanity of our hardworking school nurses, when we are asked to sign Certificate of Exemption (COE) forms, let’s do it correctly. Read on to learn answers to the most common FAQs.
| |
|
Common Presentations of Childhood Cancer in Children, Adolescents, and Young Adults
Seattle Children’s Physician Relations invites you to attend this virtual Category II CME event on September 20, 2023, from 6:00-7:00pm PST to learn more about recognizing cancer in children, adolescents, and young adults and next steps when you have a concern.
Additional information is available here.
This is a virtual event. Registration is required.
| |
|
Training Opportunity: Connecting with Ukrainian refugees: Meeting their needs with better care and key services.
The Washington State Department of Health has created a training specifically designed to help health care professionals who work with Ukrainian new arrivals, titled “Connecting with Ukrainian refugees: Meeting their needs with better care and key services.” This course is free and will confer continuing education credits for nurses, physicians, pharmacists, and medical assistants.
The training hopes to empower anybody working with newly arrived Ukrainians with tools and resources to
- Help build positive relationships
- Conduct screenings for physical and mental health needs
- Provide information about available benefits and services
- And more.
For those working with Ukrainian newcomers, this training is important because it highlights the needs specific to this population and provides crucial background information for practitioners to consider as they form treatment plans and engage in conversations with their patients and clients.
We invite you to take the training yourself and share with anyone interested. Find the training at https://immunitycommunitywa.org/courses/new-connecting-with-ukrainian-refugees-meeting-their-needs-with-better-care-and-key-services/.
Also, a big thank you to the WCAAP members who pilot tested this training for us and ensured it met the needs of Washington providers!
| |
|
Calling All SOAPM Members!
In late June you received an invitation to participate in the Pediatric Vaccination Survey. The survey was sponsored by the Association of Immunization Managers (AIM) with funding from the CDC, and fielded by Mathematica, an independent research firm. We want to say a huge thank you to all those who participated!
We are writing to you again to invite you to participate in a focus group or interview that delve into the nuances of topics similar to those covered in the survey, including your perceptions of, and experiences with, COVID-19 vaccines for children. To be eligible to participate, you must be a clinician or administrator in a practice that regularly provides ACIP-recommended vaccines to children in one of the following states: CT, GA, NM, NE, WY, CA, WA. It has been particularly challenging to find respondents in New Mexico, Washington, and Wyoming, so we are especially interested in hearing from folks in these states. Your practice does NOT need to provide pediatric COVID-19 vaccines to participate in these interviews and focus groups, nor do you need to have completed the survey referenced above.
Interviews and focus groups take place via video call or telephone. Interviews take about 30 minutes and focus groups take about 60 minutes. All participants receive a $100 Amazon e-gift card.
If you are interested in participating, please use this link to provide your contact information and answer a few preliminary questions. You can also email us at PediatricVaccineScan@mathematica-mpr.com.
Thank you for your consideration, and we hope to hear from you soon.
| |
|
The Pediatric Residency of UW is looking for a new Pediatric Practice
The Pediatric Residency of the University of Washington is excited to announce our search for a new pediatric practice in the WWAMI region to join with us in the primary care education of second year pediatric residents! The pediatric WWAMI rotation (more information) has been part of our residency education for over 50 years. This is the first opportunity for a new regional practice to join since 2010!
The new practice will join existing sites in Port Angeles, Yakima, Bellingham, Pocatello, and Missoula as part of a nationally honored educational program that allows residents to gain a true understanding of the joy and the complexity of pediatric primary care practiced outside of a major city and outside of a tertiary care setting. Each pediatric practice in the program hosts a 2nd year pediatric resident in their practice for a two-month rotation every two months throughout the year.
With year-round presence of the residents, practices have been able to incorporate residents as fully functioning partners in the practice – seeing patients in clinic, in the hospital, and taking call, all at rates similar to that of existing partners. The financial aspects of the agreement are spelled out in the application but in simplest terms, since inception of the program, practices have always felt this was at least a break-even experience monetarily with teaching, learning and mentoring benefits that go well beyond.
If your site is interested in being considered, please complete the application (link here) by October 15th. If you would like additional information or to learn more, please reach out to Richard Shugerman.
| |
We've had a lot of new staff join the WCAAP! Below is an updated staff directory (with photos!) and our respective roles. | |
|
Join us! Committees are a great way to meet other members and get involved with Chapter work. Watch this space for upcoming meeting dates and times for Chapter committees and interest groups. Most committees meet by phone or via Zoom for one hour, and we welcome anyone who is interested.
Legislative Affairs Committee
Next meeting October 3rd, 7:00-8:00am
Meets weekly via Zoom during the legislative session
Meets monthly via Zoom during the interim + ad hoc as needed
Contact Elexis Jackson for meeting info.
Contact Crystal Shen to learn more about the committee.
Early Childhood Committee
Next meeting September 13th, 7:00-8:00pm
Meets every other month via Zoom
Contact Kailani Amine for meeting info.
Contact Mary Ann Woodruff or Emily Ferrell to learn about the committee.
First Year Families Committee
Next Meeting September 29th, 1:00-2:30pm
Meets monthly via Zoom
Contact Kailani Amine for meeting details and Committee information.
Vaccine Committee
Next Meeting September 15th, 7:00-8:00am
Meets monthly via Zoom
Contact Marina Martinez for meeting info.
Contact John Dunn, Kristi Rice, or Maria Huang to learn about the committee.
Champions for Youth Committee
Next Meeting September 20th, 8:00-9:00am
Meets monthly via Zoom
Contact Colleen McCarty for meeting details and Committee information.
Membership Engagement Committee
Contact Sarah Nau for meeting info.
Contact Amanda Monnahan or Cora Breuner to learn about the committee.
Health Care Transformation Committee
Next Meeting September 29th, 7:30-8:30am
Meets monthly via Zoom
Contact Elexis Jackson for meeting info.
Contact Rick Levine or Sarah Rafton to learn about the committee.
| | | | |
