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August 16, 2022

The Chestertown Spy

An Educational News Source for Chestertown Maryland

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Choptank Community Health Provides Produce Prescriptions for Students

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Choptank Community Health System is providing produce prescriptions to Mid-Shore students through community partnerships with the Avalon Foundation and Caroline County Public Schools Shore Gourmet “Sho Go” Mobile Market. Funding for the project comes from a $25K grant through the School-Based Health Center (SBHC) Food Access Learning Network and Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry Campaign.

The program provides local children with four, $5 vouchers for the child and family to obtain fresh produce from the Easton Farmers Market and Shore Gourmet’s “Sho Go” Mobile Market locations in Caroline and Talbot counties. The vouchers are being provided over the summer to students enrolled in Choptank Health’s School-Based Health Centers in both counties.

“Participating students are also receiving health education on topics including the importance of a healthy diet and physical activity,” explains Choptank Health Director of Community Based Programs Chrissy Bartz PA-C, MMS. “By integrating food access and preventative care, we’re able to help address childhood hunger and improve healthy dietary outcomes.”

From left: Avalon Foundation CEO Al Bond, Avalon Foundation COO/CFO Jessica Bellis, Avalon Foundation Easton Farmers Market Manager Marie Nuthall, Choptank Health CEO Sara Rich, Choptank Health Director of Community Based Programs Chrissy Bartz PA-C, MMS.

Bartz and her School-Based Health Center team planned the logistics of the program.

“This program is allowing families to select and prepare local produce together and continue our conversations around healthy diet with everyone in the home,” says Bartz. “This outreach with the farmers and mobile markets is also a great way to meet the needs of local children facing food insecurities.”

Feeding America reports that 1,430 or 18.2% of children in Caroline County and 980 or 14.3% of Talbot County’s children are facing food insecurity. Feeding America is the United States’ largest hunger-relief organization that conducts an annual study to learn more about hunger at local levels.

“This is a great example of how collaboration with other organizations can help our community,” says Choptank Health CEO Sara Rich. “These partnerships enhance the meaningful work our teams do each day while providing essential resources that strengthen our communities.”

“We’re fortunate to build on a partnership that began with Choptank Community Health at the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic,” says Avalon Foundation CEO Al Bond. “Transitioning from our outreach efforts to working together to help make sure no child goes hungry is very meaningful work.”

From left: CCPS Community Outreach Coordinator Holly Foster, Choptank Health Director of Community Based Programs Chrissy Bartz PA-C, MMS, Choptank Health CEO Sara Rich, Caroline County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Derek Simmons, CCPS Supervisor of Food Services Beth Brewster, Chesapeake Culinary Center Executive Chef David Murray, and CCPS Food Operations Manager Samantha Figueroa stand in front of the Sho Go Mobile Market.

“This program is a great way to put fresh produce in the hands of children and families facing food insecurities,” says Caroline County Public Schools Supervisor of Food Services Beth Brewster. “This program is even more important over the summer months, and the mobile market makes it even more accessible to those in Caroline County.”

By providing access to fresh produce, organizers are offering healthier choices to students in need with the hope that they become less food insecure and healthier overall. The program engages both the student as well as family members and guardians. Choptank Health providers will follow up with students to assess the campaign’s popularity and gauge the level of behavior changes, as a direct result of the program.

Food insecure children need this additional support now more than ever. In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, No Kid Hungry estimates that one out of every six kids could face hunger this year. This organization is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, a D.C.-based organization committed to ending hunger and poverty around the world.

Information on the Easton Farmer’s Market can be found at www.avalonfoundation.org/eastonfarmersmarket, with the schedule and information for the Sho Go Mobile Market at www.carolineculinaryarts.org/shogomobile.

Choptank Community Health System provides medical and dental services in Caroline, Dorchester, and Talbot counties, with a mission to provide access to comprehensive and integrated health care for all. Medical services include primary health care, women’s health, pediatrics, behavioral health, chronic health management, and care navigation. Choptank Health also operates 32 School-Based Health Centers in Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, and Talbot counties, providing medical and dental services for enrolled K-12 students, with more at www.choptankhealth.org.

Social Worker Michelle Matthews Joins Chestertown Mobile Wellness Team

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Michelle Matthews

University of Maryland Shore Medical Center at Chestertown has welcomed Michelle Matthews, MSW, LSCW-C, to the Mobile Wellness Team.

Matthews, who resides in Centreville, is well known to the UM Shore Regional Health community, having served as a medical social worker in case management since March 2021, and as a pharmacy tech at UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown (2000-02), a discharge planner for UM Shore Medical Center at Easton (2003-08) and rapid response clinician for Shore Behavioral Health (2008-10). Her experience also includes serving as a medical social worker for Compass Regional Hospice and Anne Arundel Medical Center. She holds both bachelor’s and master’s degrees in social work from Salisbury University.

“We are excited to have Michelle as a member of the Mobile Wellness Team,” said Nancy Bedell, Director of Population Health at UM Shore Regional Health. “Her experience and enthusiasm make her a great asset to the team’s many services and initiatives for residents of Kent and northern Queen Anne’s counties.”

About University of Maryland Shore Regional Health

As part of the University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS), University of Maryland Shore Regional Health is the principal provider of comprehensive health care services for more than 170,000 residents of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s and Talbot counties on Maryland’s Eastern Shore. UM Shore Regional Health’s team of more than 2,200 employees, medical staff, board members and volunteers works with various community partners to fulfill the organization’s mission of Creating Healthier Communities Together.

About the University of Maryland Medical System

The University of Maryland Medical System (UMMS) is a university-based regional health care system focused on serving the health care needs of Maryland, bringing innovation, discovery and research to the care we provide and educating the state’s future physician and health care professionals through our partnership with the University of Maryland School of Medicine and University of Maryland, Baltimore professional schools (Nursing, Pharmacy, Social Work and Dentistry) in Baltimore. As one of the largest private employers in the State, the health system’s more than 29,500 employees and 4,000 affiliated physicians provide primary and specialty care in more than 150 locations, including 12 hospitals and 10 University of Maryland Urgent Care centers. The UMMS flagship academic campus, the University of Maryland Medical Center in downtown Baltimore, is recognized regionally and nationally for excellence and innovation in specialized care. Our acute care and specialty rehabilitation hospitals serve urban, suburban and rural communities and are located in 13 counties across the State. For more information, visit www.umms.org.

Chesapeake College Gets a Second Wind after the COVID years: A Chat with President Cliff Coppersmith

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The last time the Spy had a check-in with Chesapeake College president Cliff Coppersmith in the spring of 2021, there were far too many unknowns for the CEO of one of the best community colleges in the state as he faced year two of the great COVID pandemic.

In almost every part of Cliff’s portfolio, there were more questions than answers about the college’s future as the school saw a dramatic decline in students, unprecedented budget challenges, confusion on how much state funding his institution was to receive, or whether or not Chesapeake could access COVID recovery funding from the federal government.

Like every other school in the country, COVID has created enough havoc for Chesapeake College’s students, faculty, and staff over the last two years that even its president couldn’t responsibility guess what its future held at the time.

Fast-forward to 2022, and Dr. Coppersmith has almost become a new man. Since our last conversation, the state has come through for its community colleges with an unprecedented 15.1% increase in operational support. And, yes, fed money for COVID recovery did arrive with the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund (HEERF), and just as importantly, the five counties of Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne’s, and Talbot all agreed to a 3% increase in annual support.

Cliff also notes that during those uncertain months, his board of trustees and staff double-downed on private fundraising and government grant-seeking to create new revenue sources to help with the college’s bottom line with outstanding early results.

But the thing that puts a smile on President Coppersmith is that students are coming back to the classroom. In fact, the school should be able to report soon that enrollment will almost reach its pre-pandemic level.

Last week, the Spy sat down with Cliff Coppersmith at his office in Wye Mills to hear more.

This video is approximately seven minutes in length. For more information about Chesapeake College please go here.

Compass Adds New Hospice Wing to Honor Mildred Barnette and Keep Mission Going

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For any Kent or Queen Anne’s County family who has lost a loved one, but was fortunate to have Compass hospice support at the end of that person’s life, there should be a certain degree of gratitude for Mildred Barnette.

While most of those who use Compass’s hospice care may not have a clue who Mildred is, they owe her a lot for her vision as the founding director of Compass Hospice for the loving, compassionate care of grandparents, parents, spouses, or children at their end of life.

Fortunately, one anonymous donor did know of Mildred Barnette’s remarkable contributions to the Mid-Shore community and quietly worked with current director Heather Guerieri to provide the leadership gift for the new wing of the Compass Centreville facility. And while the Compass board respects the privacy of this generous philanthropist, the staff and volunteers can’t hide how thrilled they are with the major $5 million addition.

The addition of five new patient bedrooms, family rooms, children’s space, and a commercial kitchen, are indeed major improvements but they are also essential to Compass’s commitment to Kent and Queen Anne’s community. While most of the Compass patients can use the organization’s services at home, Shore Regional Health Chestertown hospital, or in the soon-to-be-built facility in Caroline County, the Centreville home base is now able to take on far more of the region’s most serious of cases.

The Spy sat down with Heather a few weeks ago for a quick tour of the new wing and how the Barnette Center is a perfect way to honor Mildred’s important legacy of hospice care for the entire Mid-Shore.

This video is approximately four minutes in length. For more information about Compass please go here.

COVID-19 on the Shore after Eight Months with Dr. William Huffner

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The last time the Spy sat down with Dr. William Huffner, UM Shore Regional Health’s chief medical officer, was March 13 of this year. While the country was waking up to the severe threat of COVID-19, it was also before Governor Larry Hogan would issue his “stay-at-home” order for the state of Maryland, and before any cases of coronavirus had been reported on the Mid-Shore.

Since that afternoon in mid-March, the Mid-Shore has had approximately 3,290 cases of COVID and 80 deaths related to the pandemic. It has been a trying time for Dr. Huffner and his colleagues, but as he notes in our most recent interview, he is incredibly proud of the way Shore Regional Health has been able to perform during the crisis. In particular, Huffner stresses that Shore was at a significant advantage, given its relationship with the University of Maryland Medical System with its network of specialists and access to equipment and personal protection.

And while Dr. Huffner has been pleased with his team’s response so far, he is the first to say that the Mid-Shore is not out of the woods. With the arrival of colder weather and evidence that points to a new surge in local cases, vigilance, including social distancing, mask-wearing, and hands-washing, are the essential tools to limit the community’s exposure over the next several months as the world waits for a vaccine in 2021.

This video is approximately six minutes in length. For more information about Shore Regional Health and COVID information please go here.

 

 

Exit Interview: Patti Willis Looks Back at Healthcare’s Transition on the Mid-Shore

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The Spy “Exit Interview” series is part journalism and part oral history. Over the last eleven years, the Spy has interviewed dozen of local leaders at the moment of their retirement to reflect on their work and some of the challenges they have faced in their professional careers.

We continue with our chat with Patti Willis, Shore Regional Health senior’s long-serving vice president for communications.

For more than four decades, Patti has had a front-row seat in watching the rapid and sometimes controversial health care changes on her native Eastern Shore. In her Spy interview, she recounts the transition from independent community hospitals to one sizeable regional organization serving five counties.

Patti also shares what lessons she’s learned over this complicated process, as well as her observations

COVID-19: In the Vortex with Shore Regional Health’s Ken Kozel

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While there has been some debate about the limitations of having only one primary health provider for the Mid-Shore, there is a strong argument these days that it’s a unique asset during a major pandemic.

Not surprisingly, Ken Kozel, C.E.O. of UM – Shore Regional Health thinks that way. It is an honest bias for someone who has had a long tenure running the Mid-Shore’s primary health provider. But that perspective also comes with serving on four Incident Command System structures during the coronavirus crisis.

Starting with Shore Regional’s command center for 2,500 employees, Ken also is a participant at the county, state, and UMM equivalent structures. He is a daily witness to how helpful it is to represent all five counties as the lead health system during a crisis like this.

The Spy talked to Ken on Friday afternoon to see how these systems of coordination and access to resources work on the Eastern Shore.

This video is approximately ten minutes in length. For more information about Shore Regional Health please go here.

For All Seasons Initiates Texting Hotlines During COVID-19

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For All Seasons continues to have availability for crisis appointments, in-person appointments, teletherapy, and telepsychiatry, as well as 24/7 hotlines during the COVID-19 crisis. Staff is available for both long-term and short-term appointments for anyone in need of support.

According to Beth Anne Langrell, CEO of For All Seasons Behavioral Health and Rape Crisis, “Since April is Sexual Assault Awareness Month, we particularly want victims of trauma and sexual violence to know — we believe you, and we are here for you.”

Beth Anne Langrell

“While we are hearing the message ‘stay home and be safe’ every day during this pandemic, what happens when home is not safe? If you or someone you know is a victim of trauma or sexual violence, our 24-hour agency hotlines in English and Spanish offer crisis support and intervention. You can even text now to get help.”

For All Seasons Behavioral Health and Rape Crisis advocates provide free and confidential services – offering guidance, compassion, and information about a survivor’s options, including but not limited to food, emergency shelter, and legal counsel if the client chooses.

During this time of COVID-19, the agency continues to follow safety regulations, as outlined by the CDC, for in-person appointments including – illness screening measures, 20-second handwashing at the entry to all facilities, social distancing guidelines, and increased office sanitation. The offices are open for appointments only.

For All Seasons staff is also reaching out to the community with Mental Health Minutes – timeless tips to help all of us navigate the challenges being faced daily. These uplifting posts are being shared regularly on Facebook and through other social media outlets. For further information, visit For All Seasons Facebook page or forallseasonsinc.org or call 410-822-1018.

For 24-hour confidential hotlines and crisis support, call the English Hotline is 410-820-5600; the Spanish Hotline is 410-829-6143; and the English or Spanish Text Line is 410-829-6143.

For All Seasons provides therapy, advocacy, psychiatry, and education to Caroline, Dorchester, Kent, Queen Anne, and Talbot counties. The agency accepts all private insurances, medical assistance, and supports English and Spanish speaking individuals regardless of one’s ability to pay.

For All Seasons Rape Crisis Center offers a 24-HR crisis hotline service, certified sexual assault victim advocates, same-day and ongoing counseling services, and hospital, law enforcement and court accompaniment by request of the survivor.

Grieving During a Pandemic: A Conversation with Talbot Hospice’s Becky DeMattia

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One of the cruelest parts of the coronavirus pandemic is the extreme isolation being experienced by those suffering during the last phase of their lives and the families and friends that love them.

Separated by shelter in place orders, bans on travel, or other policies that separate loved ones, the two regional hospice centers for the Mid-Shore, Compass and Talbot Hospice, are having to change how they provide services to their clients dramatically.

As part of the Spy’s COVID-19 coverage, we talked to grief experts Rhonda Knotts from Compass Regional Hospice and Becky DeMattia at Talbot Hospice over the last few days about the challenges they face and the strategies they are now using to cope with this unprecedented moment in our culture.

We continue today with Becky.

This video is approximately seven minutes in length. For more information about Talbot Hospice please go here.

COVID-19 Preparations in Full Swing at UM Shore Regional Health

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University of Maryland Shore Regional Health (UM SRH) is intensely engaged in planning to care for our community in the event of an influx of patients needing hospital care as result of the possible impact of COVID-19.

Fortunately, as of this moment, in all UM Shore Regional Health locations, the overall number of hospital admissions and emergency department visits are down, largely due to messages from the community and media that have helped to direct concerned people to the appropriate community provider settings and reduce unnecessary hospital volumes.

Planning for a potential surge of patients at the hospitals began more than a month ago and continues to evolve on a daily basis.

“As part of University of Maryland Medical System, Shore Regional Health is actively preparing for the presence of COVID-19 in our communities,” said Ken Kozel, UM SRH president and CEO. “Every day, our medical and nursing staffs and team members in every aspect of our health care system, are working together to plan for various contingencies in the event of a surge of patients who need hospitalization.”

Key developments to date are as follows:

• Enacted system-wide (UMMS) and regional (UM SRH) incident command structures in mid-February staffed by appropriate personnel to coordinate resources and direct actions for the entire organization in relation to COVID.

Duties include:

  • monitoring the rapidly changing state, national and global, COVID situation
  • real time monitoring of staff availability, supplies and bed capacity in all three hospitals
  • preparing to maximize surge capacity in all three hospitals
  • participating in planning efforts undertaken by local government and health officials in all five counties
  • keeping in daily contact with those officials

• Postponed all elective, non-emergent surgeries and procedures, beginning March 18 to managing a potential increase in patient volume. This action was designed to provide additional capacity for UM SRH hospitals to treat those patients in greatest need.

• Revised visitor policy, effective March 19, prohibiting all visitors into the hospitals unless they have a special exception.
In partnership with UMMS, created a fully staffed 24/7 Nurse Hotline to answer COVID-19-related concerns. That number is 1-888-713-0711.

Renee Edsall, intensive care clinical specialist at UM Shore Medical Center at Easton, is shown working with clinical team members during a drill held at the tents outside the hospital’s Emergency Department on Friday, March 27.

• Erected tents adjacent to the three hospital emergency departments and the Emergency Center at Queenstown. (While not in use today, these tents could serve a variety of purposes should the need arise; in particular, they may be used to expand Emergency Department triage capacity in the evaluation and treatment of patients for fever and upper respiratory symptoms.)

• Consolidated laboratory and imaging services at certain locations to maximize efficient use of resources and deployment of staff.

• Ceased all elective/non-urgent imaging at all facilities, effective March 25. Only critical imaging is being performed. (Critical imaging services include; trauma, oncology, infection, ischemia, acute bleeding, and acute neurologic changes. Other requests are reviewed on a case by case basis by our radiologists.) Affected patients are being contacted directly regarding cancelled appointments and rescheduling options.

• Shore Regional Health has identified its surge expansion plans at all inpatient and emergency facilities. As of March 25, the system has the ability to double inpatient capacity and quadruple ICU capacity across the system if needed.

• On Friday, March 27, conducted a drill at UM Shore Regional Health’s four emergency departments to test and evaluate the functionality of the triage tents in the event of a surge in patients requiring hospitalization.

“Today Shore Regional Health conducted a drill to test and evaluate the operational effectiveness of the triage tents located at our four emergency departments,” said Dr. William H. Huffner, senior vice president, medical affairs, and chief medical officer. “As a routine aspect of our operation as a health care system, emergency drills enable us to identify the strengths and weaknesses of emergency plans, and this one was very useful in that regard. Our medical and nursing care providers and a wide range of support personnel worked together to put our strategy for the tents in use and ensure that in the event of a patient surge, our plans can be operationalized seamlessly.

“We also are in close and continuous contact with our state and county health departments, emergency management officials and a host of community organizations that are all working in concert to help minimize the spread of the virus and to assist vulnerable populations in need of food, shelter and transportation during this time,” said Kozel. “I am infinitely grateful to have the support of highly capable, dedicated and focused teams at UMMS and here at Shore Regional Health, and going forward, I am confident that our preparations will help us face the demands of COVID-19.”

The public can help reduce the severity of this pandemic by:

  • Washing your hands often with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, especially after you have been in a public place, or after blowing your nose, coughing or sneezing
  • Avoiding close contact with people who are sick and practice social distancing
  • Cover your mouth and nose with a tissue when you cough or sneeze and throw it away immediately.
  • Avoid touching your face.