Micro Projects – These are the activities that promote relationship-building with individual providers. Also allows us opportunity to glean more information about the community, i.e. residents that we serve.
Glades Longterm Care Resource Network – A network of service providers whose goal is to promote independent living for persons with disabilities. This is a partnership with United Way’s Real Choice Partnership.
County-Wide Cultural Competency/ Excellency – Workgroup comprised of area funders and providers with a focus on developing and implementing initiatives that advance the goal of cultural competency/ cultural excellence among health and human service providers. Components of the program will include the consumer as a major stakeholder.
Health and Enrollment (insurance) Fairs – Organize and participate in local events. Most recent was the Glades Community Awareness Fair held on May 15, 2004. Attendance estimated at 500. Successes for the day include:
· 70 physicals and numerous immunizations given by physicians at C.L. Brumback and D.O. students from Nova Southeastern University
· 60 vision screenings done by LensCrafters
· Asthma education mini-classes provided to 83 residents by the American Lung Association
· Food, fun, and wholesome activities for the whole family
Gifts-in-Kind International -- Glades Initiative as a Program Affiliate extends benefits to network members free of charge. The agencies are then eligible to participate in program. Products available can enhance programs and services.
Trainings – Glades Initiative offers has offered trainings in the areas of Customer Service and Cultural Competency. Participation has consistently been strong, with maximum enrollment in each class. Enrollment is capped at 35-40 depending upon the venue. Next training is ˝ day Customer Service Training on August 20th. Register early!!
The Glades Initiative is also working toward future trainings:
· Facilitating Effective Enrollment in Public Health Insurance Programs (Mini-training)
· Localized training in core competency areas, e.g. HIV/ AIDS, CPR, appropriate advocacy efforts of nonprofits.
Forums -- Glades Initiative has successfully organized Provider Forums on various topics of interest to health and human service agencies. Examples include:
· Public Health Insurance Provider Forum, with presentations and panel discussions from DCF, DOH, AHCA, Legal Aid Society, Glades General Hospital, and Kid Care.
· 2-1-1 Provider Forum, with presentations from staff as well as an opportunity for agencies and organizations to update information for inclusion in county-wide database.
The next forum is geared towards providers that serve youth and will be on August 24, 2004 from 10 a.m. – 2:00 p.m at the Sugar Cane Growers Cooperative in Belle Glade. The purpose of this forum is to engage providers in discussions about HIV/ AIDS Prevention Education among youth in the Glades. Other topics will include Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI) as well as Teen Pregnancy Prevention. Please call us at 561.996.3310 if you would like additional information.
Technical Support - Glades Initiative has provided technical assistance in several core areas enhancing organizational effectiveness including grantwriting, e.g. Sylvester Consortium, Child Passenger Safety grants.
Nurse Recruitment Grant -- Glades Initiative acting as intermediary for funds received for nurse recruitment activities of local hospital.
Improving Agency-to-Agency Information
One of the primary objectives of The Glades Initiatives is to foster collaboration between the various health and human service agencies that serve residents in the Glades. One of the primary mechanisms for achieving greater degrees of success with interagency efforts is opening and maintaining the lines of communication. To that end, there are several mechanisms in place:
- We have launched an enewsletter that will be published on a regular basis and will provide health and human service organizations, agencies, and concerned parties with information on a variety of pertinent topics. The goal is to link these entities with one another and with other resources.
- This website also serves to not only connect agencies to The Glades Initiative, but also to connect agencies with other agencies.
If you would like to submit articles for inclusion in the newsletter or item for inclusion on the website, please contact us at 561.996.3310 or via email at info@gladesinitiative.org.
Macro Projects – These are the activities and initiatives that promote and enhance systemic change in the health and human services system.
Language Access
The Glades Initiative, in collaboration with the Farmworker Coordinating Council, is working toward developing a Language Access system for Palm Beach County. There are various facets of the initiative, including provider forums and community/ medical interpreter training. Glades Initiative currently has collaborative funding requests (for implementation) under consideration with two local grantmakers in healthcare.
Common Eligibility System
The Glades Initiative is part of a larger consortium of local providers and funders interested in and committed to the development of a common eligibility system for health and human services in the Glades. There are numerous components of this initiative as well, but the end result will be a localized approach at streamlining the eligibility process through the establishment of community service centers that are accessible by those who need the services.
CoLab 2004: An Experience In the Glades
The Nonprofit Resource Institute (NRI) and the Glades Initiative brought this training to the Glades communities for the first time. This workshop experience serves as an opportunity for a diverse group of agencies and organization to convene to explore/ identify opportunities for collaboration. This series was made possible through sponsorships by the Community Foundation of Palm Beach and Martin counties, Children’s Services Council (CSC), and the Glades Initiative.
Resource Guides
Through research and anecdotal information, The Glades Initiative has found that one of the primary barriers to accessing the appropriate services inthe Glades is a lack of awareness. Often residents and service providers, alike do not know which services are available or how to access those services. It is our desire that the 'Resource Guide: Health and Human Services in the Glades' will be useful, to some degree, in helping to overcome that barrier.
For your complementary copy of the 'Resource Guide: Health and Human Services in the Glades', please contact us at 561.996.3310.
Glades Medication Assistance Program (GMAP)
The Glades Medication Assistance Program (GMAP) is the only direct service component of the Glades Initiative and is a collaborative effort with Lake Okeechobee Rural Health Network. This program was ultimately implemented as a result of anecdotal information from agencies, organizations and residents. GMAP was developed for the express purpose of assisting clients with navigating the process for enrollment in prescription assistance programs (PAPs). While PAPs are quite common, enrolling in such programs is often complex and cumbersome. The GMAP Coordinator assists the client from 'start-to-finish' with the entire process, with the end result hopefully being enrollment in one of the indigent care programs that are available through the pharmaceutical companies.
Even for those clients that are not eligible for a PAP, the Coordinator is able to facilitate enrollment in other programs, such as discount drug card plans, etc. Additionally, while the client is in the office, they are offered information on various other programs and services that are offered in the Glades communities.
To date, the program has served about 125 residents, resulting in more than $100,000 worth of medication being dispensed. This program was implemented a year ago (pilot phase was 3 months).
For more information or to set up an appointment for a client, please contact the GMAP office at 561.996.3310.
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