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DOH

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The Pennsylvania Department of Health (DOH) has released an updated Respiratory Virus Outbreak Toolkit for Long-Term Care Facilities, including Personal Care Homes and Assisted Living Residences.

The updated toolkit was developed to provide recommendations for facilities before and during a respiratory virus outbreak. This toolkit covers many respiratory viruses, including influenza, respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), COVID-19, adenovirus, and more. While this toolkit does include information about COVID-19, a more detailed toolkit for LTCFs specific to COVID-19 can be found here. This toolkit replaces the previous Influenza Outbreak Toolkit for Long-Term Care Facilities.

DOH is in the process of updating the poster required by the Influenza Awareness Act. In the meantime, providers are encouraged to continue to use the 2023-2024 Poster.

Questions about this communication should be sent electronically.

Image by Markus Winkler from Pixabay

Message from the Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL):

The Commonwealth is working collaboratively — Governor Shapiro’s office and the health hub agencies (Health, Human Services, Drug and Alcohol Programs, and Insurance) — to develop a statewide maternal health strategic plan. We need your help to make it a robust, comprehensive, collaborative, living, and most importantly, active plan.

As you are likely aware, Pennsylvania, like the nation, is experiencing a maternal health crisis.

According to the Pennsylvania Maternal Mortality Review Committee report, in 2020, Pennsylvania residents experienced a pregnancy-associated mortality ratio of 83 deaths per 100,000 live births with large disparities identified. In total, 107 individuals lost their lives during pregnancy, delivery, or up to one year postpartum.

Those numbers are far worse for Black women, where the rate was twice as high at 163 deaths per 100,000.

We also know that women and birthing people with disabilities experience unique challenges and needs on their health journey, so we are inviting you to join us for a 90-minute Zoom listening session where members of the Commonwealth’s health agencies and members of the statewide maternal health strategic plan can engage with you to learn what specific needs you have and how you feel the Commonwealth should address those needs.

We want our strategic plan to address all Pennsylvania women and birthing people, and sharing your voice at this listening session will help inform our plan.

The Zoom listening session is scheduled from 10:00 am – 11:30 am, on Friday, December 6, 2024. Please RSVP electronically by December 1 if you plan to attend. We will send the Zoom link by end of day December 4 to those who RSVP.

Thank you for considering spending 90 minutes with the disability community and state health team members to share your thoughts and needs around maternal health.

The Pennsylvania State Interagency Coordinating Council (SICC) is seeking interested family members, caregivers, and professionals to serve on ad hoc subcommittees. The PA SICC is a Governor-appointed council that advises and assists the Departments of Health, Education, and Human Services to ensure that a comprehensive delivery system of integrated Early Intervention programs and services is available to all eligible infants, toddlers, and young children as well as their families.

Individuals are needed to serve on one or more of the following committees:

  • Mental health committee;
  • Workforce development committee;
  • Outreach and communication committee; and
  • Access and inclusion committee.

The deadline to apply is Monday, October 28. All applicants will be notified about the decision of their application by early January via email.

Please share this information with professionals and families within your network. For more information about the committees and to apply, view the application here. Please send any questions electronically.

To address Pennsylvania’s high maternal mortality rate, the Commonwealth, through a partnership with Governor Shapiro’s office and the Departments of Health, Human Services, Drug and Alcohol Programs, and Insurance, is developing a statewide Maternal Health Strategic Plan. Interested stakeholders are invited to share their opinion through the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania’s Maternal Health Strategic Plan survey, which will remain open through November 4.

The vision for Pennsylvania’s Maternal Health Strategic Plan is a Pennsylvania where every pregnant and birthing person has easy access to high-quality perinatal, birth, and postpartum care that is person-centered, comprehensive, equitable, and affordable and that results in healthy outcomes and long-term good health and well-being.

Supported by the Pennsylvania Department of Health through Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funding, the Pennsylvania Statewide Tobacco-Free Recovery Initiative (PA STFRI) facilitates partnerships among academia, state agencies, county public health departments, treatment providers, and recovery advocates to advance recovery-oriented evidence-based tobacco use disorder interventions in behavioral health services.

In 2021 Public Health Management Corporation’s Research & Evaluation Group conducted a readiness assessment to identify the status of tobacco interventions within behavioral health. The survey is being repeated this year, and respondents are being sought for the 2024 Behavioral Health Readiness Assessment. The survey will take less than 15 minutes to complete and closes August 31, 2024. Respondents are not asked their name, and responses are not linked to the respondent.

Pennsylvania has launched a new website for the Enterprise Licensing System (ELS) project, designed to streamline and modernize the licensing, permitting, registration, certification, and incident management systems across four state agencies: the Department of Human Services, the Department of Health, the Department of Aging, and the Department of Drug & Alcohol Programs. The ELS will be implemented in stages over the next two years, with the aim of improving interagency collaboration and operational efficiency.

For more information and to stay updated on the ELS project, subscribe to the ELS ListServ. If you need additional information or have questions, you can reach out to OCYF through the Contact Us form.

If you have any other questions, please contact RCPA COO and Policy Director Jim Sharp.

The PA Department of Health (PA DOH) Bureau of Family Health has announced a funding opportunity for community-based, non-profit organizations. From March 21, 2024, through April 25, 2024, PA DOH will be soliciting applications for the Community to Home (C2H) program in four program service regions: Southwest, Northwest, Northwest Central, and Northeast Central. One grant will be awarded for the four regions.

The C2H program improves the health of children and youth with special health care needs (CYSHCN) by assisting them, along with their families, to access the services and supports required to thrive in the community and develop to their full potential. C2H assists CYSHCN and their families to navigate systems and identify resources in order to receive services while empowering them to become strong advocates and self-reliant.

View the flyer for more information about the C2H program, and note that the Request for Applications (RFA) can be found on the PA eMarketplace.

If you have questions or need additional information, please contact Danielle Rhodes via email or at 717-772-2763.

Photo by Kane Reinholdtsen on Unsplash

The Pennsylvania Department of Health, Bureau of Family Health, is extending the deadline for presentation submissions for the annual Symposium on Children and Youth with Special Health Care Needs (CYSHCN), which is scheduled for Tuesday, May 21, 2024, at Best Western Premier, Harrisburg, PA. This one-day, in-person event convenes public health professionals and community stakeholders involved in CYSHCN care. Individuals, entities, and self-advocates serving CYSHCN are encouraged to submit presentation proposals. The new submission deadline is Friday, February 9, 2024. For more information and workshop guidelines, consult the Symposium Speakers page. Please refer to the attached Call for Presentations form for additional details and workshop guidelines. Inquiries and submissions should be directed to Katrina Harris, Event Planner.