Harbor Health Services, Inc.

Ribbon cutting ceremony for Carney Hospital’s 3 new operating rooms

Patrick Michaud — Wed, 03 Aug 2011 14:39:04 +0000

Harbor Health was at the Carney Hospital in Dorchester yesterday afternoon for the ribbon cutting ceremony for Carney’s brand new 3 operating rooms. It was a great event and we were all happy to be in the OR as visitors and not patients! The President of Carney Hospital, Bill Walczak, was the emcee of the ceremony and the Chairman of the Board of Directors, J. Keith Motley PhD, was the keynote speaker. Other guests included Boston City Councilor Maureen Feeney, and the Director of Boston Public Health Commission Dr. Barbara Ferrer.

Annual Community Beach Party at Malibu Beach in Dorchester (August 13)

Patrick Michaud — Tue, 26 Jul 2011 14:28:01 +0000

Geiger Gibson Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center are hosting a Community Beach Party at Malibu Beach in Dorchester on August 13th. This is a family friendly event to help celebrate National Community Health Center Week from August 7th through August 13th. Come help us celebrate and enjoy FREE activities for children, youth, and adults comprising of games, food sampling, music, spray-paint tatto artist, balloonist, giveaways and more. Enjoy the day being outside at the beach with friends and helping Harbor Health to celebrate its impact on the communities that it serves.

August 13th from 11:00AM-2:00PM

Malibu Beach, Dorchester, MA

For more information or questions please contact us at (617) 533-2242, e-mail us via marketing@hhsi.us, or Like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/harborhealthservicesinc.

Click here for more details.

Join the Campaign for America’s Health Centers!

Patrick Michaud — Mon, 20 Jun 2011 19:54:54 +0000

This national campaign is focused on showing support for the Community Health Centers and the hard, necessary work that these health centers do and the dedication of their staff to the communities they serve. Please text the word ADVOCATE to 69866 to join the Campaign to Save America’s Community Health Centers. The challenges that community health centers now face, driven by the FY 12 budget and demands for significant deficit reduction are unlike anything tat we have ever faced in our entire history. Please join our grassroots efforts by texting the word ADVOCATE to 69866.

Extended Pharmacy Hours and Mail Order Prescriptions at the Neponset Health Center

Patrick Michaud — Tue, 07 Jun 2011 14:24:28 +0000

Extended Hours of Operations – Neponset Health Center Retail Pharmacy!

The Neponset Health Center Retail Pharmacy is pleased to announce extended hours of operation; Monday-Friday 9am-9pm, Saturday 10am-3pm and Sunday 11am-3pm. NHC Pharmacy now accepts Flex Pay cards (also known as benefits/FSA cards) for the convenience of our patients. Call the Neponset Health Center Retail Pharmacy at (617) 533-2290 to order your medication.

You can NOW call the Neponset Health Center Retail Pharmacy to ask for Mail Order!

The Neponset Health Center Pharmacy now has Mail Order. This programs can be used only for refills and completions of partial prescriptions for non-controlled medications. Simply call the pharmacy 5 business days prior to when you are due for a refill to request your prescription to be mailed. Payment for refills will be processed through credit card information given to the pharmacy at the time of your call. When the pharmacy owes you a completion for your non-controlled prescription, you can now have it mailed to your address saving you a trip to the pharmacy. It will be delivered to you via United States Postal Service within 5 business days. Please contact the Neponset Health Center Retail Pharmacy at (617) 533-2290 for further details.

In addition to Harbor Health’s role as a primary care provider, it is also a major economic engine for the communities it serves

Patrick Michaud — Wed, 25 May 2011 16:58:19 +0000

Non Profits-Major Economic Engines

Harbor Health Services Inc., a nonprofit public health agency that provides quality, comprehensive health care to communities in Boston, the South Shore, and Cape Cod, is in danger of losing funding due to proposed budget cuts. Harbor Health owns and operates three community health centers, including Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center, and Neponset Health Center.

Community health centers, like the ones run by Harbor Health, serve as the family doctor for thousands of people in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Recent studies reveal that on a national level, the number of patients served by community health centers will rise from currently 23 million to 40 million by 2015. Combined, Harbor Health’s community health centers are the medical home for more than 26,000 patients and the “family dentist” to an additional 10,000 patients. Harbor Health’s Elder Service Plan cares for more than 300 members and the Women Infant Children Nutrition Program serves more than 3,000 women and their children.

In addition to Harbor Health’s role as a primary care provider, it is also a major economic engine for the communities it serves. It employees over 450 people and contributes millions every year to the state’s economy. It also attracts well-trained physicians, nurse practitioners, dentists, and allied health professionals while being the training ground for critical entry level professionals.

Harbor Health Services, Inc. has accepted U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ challenge

Patrick Michaud — Tue, 17 May 2011 14:32:45 +0000

Harbor Health is partnering with Healthcare for All (HCFA) to help eliminate the number of un-insured children in the State of Massachusetts. Together with HCFA and other organizations in the State we are hoping to enroll 500 children in health insurance during the month of May. This is all part of U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius’ “Connecting Kids to Coverage” campaign. Each of Harbor Health’s three community health centers will be conducting additional outreach to the children and families in the communities that they serve with hopes of increasing the number of kids they assist in enrolling in health insurance during the month of May. This will be in addition to the work they are already doing to help lower the number of un-insured adults and kids in the State of Massachusetts. If you or someone you know does not have health insurance please contact one of Harbor Health Services, Inc.’s community health centers below and ask for a financial counselor. This is a FREE service that we provide.

Geiger Gibson Community Health Center

250 Mt. Vernon Street

Dorchester, MA 02125

(617) 288-1140

Mid Upper Cape Cod Community Health Center

30 Elm Avenue

Hyannis, MA 02601

(508) 778-5420

Neponset Health Center

398 Neponset Avenue

Dorchester, MA 02122

(617) 282-3200

Becoming a Patient-Centered Medical Home: What’s in it for our patients?

Patrick Michaud — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 20:56:52 +0000

By Paulette Shaw Querner, RN, MBA

Corporate Vice President,

Community Health Centers,

Harbor Health Services, Inc.

After undertaking a challenging and complex application process that required more than one year to complete, the Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, the Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center were recently awarded the highest possible recognition from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Physician Practice Connections® (PPC)-Patient-Centered Medical Home ™ (PCMH) Program.

NCQA is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality and coordination of care in the nation’s health system. Building on joint principles developed by primary care specialty societies like the American Academy of Family Physicians, the PPC-PCMH standards emphasize the use of systematic, patient-centered and coordinated care that supports access, communication and patient involvement. The 17 physicians and 16 nurse practitioners working at the three health centers are among a handful of providers in the state to receive this recognition.Read more»

The Patient-Centered Medical Home model of care is certainly not new to us. One can say that the first community health center in the country –our very own Geiger Gibson Community Health Center — was established on the principle of tailoring comprehensive health services to meet the specific needs of residents living on the isolated Columbia Point peninsula in Dorchester. Fast forward to today’s complex world of medicine and that same notion of developing a support system around the patient not only remains at the heart of community health center care, but is now being promoted as the basis for transforming the nation’s health system.

But more importantly, what does this mean for our patients?

A patient-centered medical home model provides benefits for both patients and caregivers. Patients gain more one-on-one time with their physicians and have access to a team of providers that can include nurse health educators, optometrists, podiatrists, pharmacists, nutritionists, dentists and mental health counselors – all in one place. What’s more, these providers work together to ensure that each patient receives the care they need to maximize their overall health and well being. And when a patient needs specialty or hospital-based care, our health centers have built strong relationships with multi-specialty practices and academic and community hospitals to which they can refer patients, all the while tracking their progress and treatment regimens.

It also means that patients take more responsibility for their health. Our health center patients become active participants in their care, asking questions, setting goals and following the advice of their health care team members. This includes taking medications prescribed to them by their physicians as well as communicating changes in their health and/or chronic conditions to ensure that their medical records remain up to date.

Long before we were recognized as a Patient-Centered Medical Home, our patients had access to a team of clinical pharmacists and clinical pharmacy residents whose mission has been to work side by side with the health centers’ primary care providers and their patients in optimizing medication therapies through patient education, medication adherence strategies and medication reviews. Neponset Health Center currently operates a retail pharmacy; Geiger Gibson will open one of its own in the spring of 2011 with Mid Upper Cape following close behind. Now patients will enjoy the benefits of having their retail pharmacist as part of part of the Medical Home on-site team.

Ongoing, timely communication is one of the most important elements of a successful Medical Home. Physicians and nurse practitioners at Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, Neponset Health Center and Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center use health information technology in communicating patient information, collecting and analyzing patient data, and for tracking and coordinating care. Implementation of Electronic Health Records at the three health centers has greatly enhanced their ability to provide timely information to patients and caregivers, develop patient treatment plans and reduce the chance for medical errors across the health system.

To ensure access to care for our patients, the Harbor Health Community Health Centers offer extended evening and weekend hours, while we are working towards open scheduling and centralized call centers all elements of an enhanced access system. Implementing open access allows the patient to schedule an appointment faster and in many cases the same day of their call or within a few days thereafter which helps to eliminate long waiting lines, unnecessary visits to the emergency room, improves patient care and makes for happier patients; no more 6 months waits to see a provider for an annual physical or a sore throat. Our Geiger Gibson Community Health Center already offers open access scheduling and is leading the way in piloting a call center.

At Harbor Health we pride ourselves in delivering culturally and linguistically appropriate care from the time our patients walk through our doors and through out the patient experience. Based on ongoing market research and the implementation of Electronic Health Records we are now in a better position to identify the ethnicity and linguistic needs of a patient; up until today, our health centers have been the medical home of several non English speaking groups and for good reason. The Neponset Health Center is staffed with Vietnamese medical interpreters, case managers and nursing staff responding to the needs of the growing Vietnamese population in Dorchester and the South Shore communities; most of our Geiger Gibson Community Health Center providers and support staff speak Spanish while the Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center single handedly has captured the Brazilian Portuguese speaking immigrants living and working at Cape Cod. Our patients and future patients have a choice when it comes to selecting a provider and in some cases the location where they feel most comfortable receiving services.

Every year we administer patient satisfaction questionnaires and focus on areas that need improvement. For the past several years, we received high scores in patient satisfaction including access, treating patients with respect, listening to their needs and providing them with necessary information and resources for a healthier living.

Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center and Neponset Health Center are divisions of Harbor Health Services, Inc. For more information visit us at www.hhsi.us or call us at 617-533-2212.

Physician Practice Connections® -Patient-Centered Medical Home ™ is a registered trade mark of the National Committee for Quality Assurance.

The Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, the Mid Upper Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center Receive National Recognition

Patrick Michaud — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 17:14:01 +0000

For Immediate Release

Media Contact: Eleni Kontogli,

617-533-2212, ekontogli@hhsi.us

February 3, 2011

The Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, the Mid Upper Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center Receive National Recognition

The Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, the Mid Upper Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center have been awarded Recognition by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Physician Practice Connections® (PPC) – Patient-Centered Medical Home ™ (PCMH) Program.

It took the health centers over one year to complete a detailed application to NCQA resulting in receiving the highest level of recognition for a PPC- PCMH –called Level 3. The Patient Centered Medical Home standards emphasize the use of systematic, patient-centered, coordinated care that supports access, communication and patient involvement. The 17 physicians and 16 nurse practitioners working at the aforementioned health centers are among a handful of providers in the State to receive this recognition.

The three health conditions that were chosen as a part of the evaluation by NCQA were diabetes, asthma and pediatric care.

‘The patient-centered medical home promises to improve health and health care” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’Kane. “The active, ongoing relationship between a patient and a physician in medical homes fosters an all-too-rare goal in care: staying healthy and preventing illness in the first place. PPC PCMH Recognition shows that the Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, the Mid Upper Community Health Center and the Neponset Health Center have the tools, systems and resources to provide their patients with the right care at the right time.”

The health centers were assisted in reaching this goal by participating in a national demonstration project called the Safety Net Medical Home Initiative (SNMHI) sponsored by The Commonwealth Fund and administered by Qualis Health in partnership with the MacColl Institute for Healthcare Innovation. The Initiative also receives support from eight regional co-funders, including The Boston Foundation, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Partners Community Benefit Fund, and the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. For more information about the SNMHI, please visit: www.qhmedicalhome.org/safety-net.

Physician Practice Connections® -Patient-Centered Medical Home ™ is a registered trade mark of the National Committee for Quality Assurance.

Geiger Gibson Community Health Center, Mid Upper Cape Community Health Center and Neponset Health Center are divisions of Harbor Health Services, Inc. For more information visit us at www.hhsi.us.

The Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Mammography Van will be here…

Patrick Michaud — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 16:50:53 +0000

The Mammography Van will be at the Neponset Health Center doing annual mammography screenings for current Neponset Health Center Women’s Health patients. If you would like to register as a new patient or find out more information about the Mammography Van and our Women’s Health services please call (617) 533-2288.

Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Mammography Van Schedule for 2011. Please check back for second half of 2011 dates.

February 24th 8:00am-3:30pm

April 28th 8:00am-3:30pm

June 30th 8:00am-3:30pm

Are you a NSTAR Electric/Gas customer? Do you receive MassHealth benefits? You can save a lot of money…

Patrick Michaud — Fri, 21 Jan 2011 19:02:57 +0000

You can save a lot of money if you are currently a NSTAR Gas/Electric customer who has a past due balance of $300.00 or more. First you need to qualify for NSTAR’s discounted rate, most MassHealth recipients are eligible. Call 1-866-533-7267 to find out if you qualify. Once you qualify and have a past due balance of at least $300.00 you call 1-866-315-2496 to find out about enrolling in their past due balance forgiveness program (AFP Program). NSTAR will take the average of your past 12 months bills and enroll you onto a monthly payment program where you will pay your average bill each month. They will forgive $100.00-$200.00 of your past due balance each month you pay your designated monthly amount.