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North Carolina Medicaid Expansion Beginning December 1, 2023

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Beginning December 1, 2023, more North Carolinians will be able to get health coverage through NC Medicaid. This will be a game changer for the more than 600,000 people who will be able to access health care and is the most significant investment in the health of our state in decades. Thank you to the many partners that have helped make this a reality.

Now we need your help to be sure that North Carolinians know who is eligible and how to apply. We have a new website, bilingual toolkit and a sign-up form to stay updated on the most current information about how more North Carolinians will be able to get health coverage through NC Medicaid. Please use these tools with your networks and communities.

The bilingual toolkit includes:

  • Day 1 Flyer: An overview of who is eligible and how to enroll.
  • Newsletter Template: Content to include in your newsletters and emails.
  • Social Media: Graphics and posts to share on your channels.
  • Family Planning Flyer: Information for the approximately 300,000 people who receive limited benefits through Family Planning Medicaid who will be automatically enrolled in full Medicaid.
  • Medicaid Essentials Deck: A presentation to share with your community on who is eligible and how to enroll.
  • FAQs: Answers to common questions.
  • ePass Video: An overview of how to apply online through ePass.

To stay updated with the latest information, be notified when the application process goes live, and receive the newest resources, complete this sign-up form.

Thank you for helping more people in your communities get health coverage through NC Medicaid. Together we will ensure more than 600,000 people gain access to health care across North Carolina.

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A partir del 1 de diciembre de 2023, más habitantes de Carolina del Norte podrán obtener cobertura médica a través de NC Medicaid. Este es un momento muy importante para las más de 600,000 personas que podrán acceder a la atención médica y es la inversión más significativa en la salud de nuestro estado en décadas. Gracias a los muchos colaboradores que han ayudado a que esto se vuelva realidad.

Ahora necesitamos tu ayuda para asegurarnos de que los habitantes de Carolina del Norte tengan la información que necesitan para saber quién es elegible y cómo completar una solicitud. Tenemos un nuevo sitio web, un kit de herramientas de comunicación bilingüe y un formulario donde puedes registrarte para recibir la información más actualizada sobre cómo más habitantes de Carolina del Norte podrán obtener cobertura médica a través de NC Medicaid. Por favor usa estas herramientas con tus redes y comunidades.

El kit de herramientas bilingüe incluye:

Para mantenerte actualizado con la información más reciente, recibir una notificación cuando el proceso de solicitud entre en funcionamiento y recibir los recursos más recientes, regístrate aquí.

Gracias por ayudar a más personas en tu comunidad a obtener cobertura médica a través de NC Medicaid. Juntos garantizaremos que más de 600,000 personas tengan acceso a la atención médica que necesitan en todo Carolina del Norte.

NCCARE360 Kicks September off with a K-12 School District Pilot Project

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It’s September and we’re bidding farewell to these hot and humid North Carolina summer days. Autumn is just around the corner and the school year is back in full swing with fresh starts, new goals, and the pursuit of knowledge.

NCCARE360 K-12 School System/District COVID-19 Resources and Referral Coordination and Recovery Plan

During the summer months, our teams worked with the Department of Child and Family Well-Being (DCFW) at NC DHHS to put together a pilot project to onboard public schools across the state onto the NCCARE360 platform so they can link students and their families to community resources that address unmet social needs. The NCCARE360 K-12 School System/District COVID-19 Resources and Referral Coordination and Recovery Plan supplemented the school-based testing for COVID-19 provided by DCFW as an important layer of protection to keep children safe in the classroom. To further support students and families from the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, NCCARE360 helps to identify additional drivers of health and connect students to services and resources that will impact students’ physical, behavioral, and social wellness. This project will allow K-12 school systems and their staff to use NCCARE360 to link students and their families to community resources that address critical services like food, housing, utilities assistance, transportation, educational support services, and more.

 

Connecting Students to Vital Resources

Durham Public Schools (DPS) has always been committed to the well-being and success of its students. Now, they’re taking this commitment a step further by leveraging technology to strengthen the connection between K-12 students and the social resources they need. DPS is partnering with NCCARE360 to make this vision a reality, with plans to onboard up to 56 schools in the DPS school system.

NCCARE360 is a platform designed to bridge the gap between healthcare and social services. DPS will use NCCARE360 to connect students nd their families with essential social resources, ensuring that they have access to the support they need to thrive academically and personally. The success of this initiative will come from the dedicated professionals who work tirelessly to support students’ well-being. Social workers and members of the DPS student support department will be the primary users of the NCCARE360 platform, as their roles are pivotal in identifying students’ needs and connecting them with the appropriate resources.

Why NCCARE360 Matters

Holistic Support: NCCARE360 offers a holistic approach to addressing students’ needs. It goes beyond academics and recognizes the importance of social and emotional well-being in a student’s overall success.

Streamlined Access: The platform streamlines the process of accessing social resources. Instead of navigating a complex web of services, students and their families can access the help they need more efficiently.

Data-Driven Decision-Making: NCCARE360 provides valuable data and insights that can inform decision-making. This data-driven approach ensures that resources are allocated effectively, benefiting those who need them the most.

Enhanced Collaboration: NCCARE360 improves communication and collaboration among schools, social workers, and external service providers. This fosters a supportive ecosystem where everyone works together to help students succeed.

Equity and Inclusion: The platform promotes equity and inclusion by ensuring that every student, regardless of their background, has access to the resources they need to excel.

A Brighter Future for Durham Students

Durham Public Schools’ decision to embrace NCCARE360 is a testament to their commitment to the success and well-being of every student. By fostering stronger connections between students and essential social resources, DPS is paving the way for a brighter and more promising future for the entire community. This innovative approach to education and support demonstrates DPS’s dedication to nurturing not only academic excellence but also the holistic development of its students. The NCCARE360 team will be using DPS as an example for engaging with additional school districts to reach even more students in need. With NCCARE360, the path to success becomes clearer and the journey becomes a shared one, filled with opportunities for growth and achievement.

 

August celebrates National Breastfeeding Month

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Editor’s note: We acknowledge and respect all individuals’ gender identity and gender expression, and we are committed to using inclusive language in our NCCARE360 communications. We are using the terms ‘parent,’ ‘chestfeeding,’ and ‘nursing’ as our way of remaining inclusive of the wide range of gender identities in our communities.

National Breastfeeding Month serves as a platform to educate and inform individuals about the numerous advantages of breastfeeding/chestfeeding for both babies and parents, as well as offer support for those facing common nursing challenges. Scientific research highlights the nutritional benefits that breast milk provides to newborns. Packed with essential nutrients, antibodies, and enzymes, breast milk not only supports a baby’s early growth and development but also bolsters their immune system, shielding them from a host of infections and diseases. Chest/breastfeeding nurtures a unique emotional connection between a nursing parent and their child.

By shedding light on the scientific, emotional, and societal benefits of chest/breastfeeding, we can work together to create a more nurturing and supportive environment for new parents and their babies. As we embark on this month-long journey of awareness and advocacy, let us remember that nursing is not only a method of nourishment but also provides a powerful connection between a parent’s and a child’s well-being.

In North Carolina, breastfeeding initiation rates have been on a positive trajectory, with approximately 81.6% of parents choosing to nurse their newborns. However, the duration of nursing often falls short of recommendations. Exclusive nursing rates tend to decline significantly by the time babies reach six months. Zooming in on Durham County reveals similar trends. Durham experiences a strong start with initiation rates around 89.7% between 2018-2019, but then exclusive nursing rates drop, indicating a need for continued support for nursing parents. Factors such as returning to work, lack of awareness, and inadequate support systems can contribute to this decline.

To gain more insight into National Breastfeeding Month and how it is playing out on a community level, we spoke to Love Anderson, founding member and current Operations Officer at Breastfeed Durham, an NCCARE360 network partner and all-around awesome organization serving Durham and surrounding counties. She also serves on the board of both Breastfeed Durham and their parent organization, Breastfeeding Family Friendly Communities.

Breastfeed Durham Leadership, Love Anderson pictured on the far right.

Breastfeed Durham is currently working to implement Ten Steps to a Breastfeeding Family Friendly Community (BFFC), a designation that signifies when a community has made real strides to support all chest/breastfeeding families to succeed in their infant feeding goals, for the health of the child, family, and community. This project was started by the World Health Organization and the Carolina Global Breastfeeding Institute nine years ago to normalize breast/chest/human milk feeding throughout the community and in places where parents live, work, and play. The project has gained traction over the years and membership for Breastfeed Durham has grown from 20 members in the beginning to more 1,200 current members.

Breastfeed Durham’s centralized focus is on affinity groups that include a Black Breastfeeding Coalition, Tea and Milk Coalition (for Asian American, Native Hawaiian American, Pacific Island American, Southeast Asian American, Middle Eastern American, and refugees families), Coalición Pro-Lactancia Hispana serving Spanish-speaking populations, LGBTQIA+ Human Milk Feeding Coalition, and the Coalition for Native American and Indigenous People.

Each week of National Breastfeeding Month has its own dedicated theme. During the second week, themed Indigenous Milk Medicine Week that honors and promote breast/chest feeding in Indigenous communities, Breastfeed Durham held event with Native American and Indigenous parents to share their stories and to support one another through their journeys of processing racial identities and generational trauma. Love says that their attendees talked, cried, took a group photo, and were able to bond with their community. “It was really fun […] and the best event that we’ve done to date.”

Love also reported that the United States Breastfeeding Coalition is holding a fifth themes week for the first time, which falls in the first week of September and is targeted around the need of Spanish-speaking parents. September also hosts Hispanic Heritage Month so the entire month of September will be focused on supporting Spanish speaking families in Durham.

To learn more about Breastfeed Durham’s community events, visit https://breastfeeddurham.org/national-breastfeeding-month-2023-events/

 

“So much work to do but so much progress.” – Love Anderson, Breastfeed Durham

 

Love recognizes that the work isn’t over and celebrates how far they’ve come. “[There’s] so much work to do but so much progress!” she said.  NCCARE360 is proud to work with Love and Breastfeed Durham to ensure that nursing parents have access to all the supports they need.

By understanding the importance of breastfeeding and implementing supportive measures like NCCARE360, we can work together to create an environment where parents feel empowered and confident in their nursing journey, paving the way for healthier babies, stronger bonds, and a brighter future for our communities.

 

 

Champion Highlight: Richard Johnson, Person County Health Department

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Richard Johnson, MS, CHES®, TTS, is a busy man. As a public health educator for Person County Health Department (PCHD), he is involved in several projects designed to help his community lead healthier, happier lives. He gives presentations on respiratory care, speaks about the importance of high-quality sleep for good health, teaches cardiovascular disease prevention in women, and promotes tobacco and smoking cessation, just to name a few. He also uses NCCARE360 to connect individuals and families in his community to much-needed services and resources.

Richard Johnson, MS, CHES®, TTS

Richard has worked in healthcare for more than 30 years, but it was when he began working as a Community Health Worker (CHW) two years ago that he really came to understand the importance of community partnerships in improving health outcomes. During the COVID-19 shutdowns, he spent a lot of time going into communities to locate individuals and families suffering hardships caused by the pandemic. This is when he was introduced to NCCARE360 and found that it was an easily navigated referral system that enabled him to connect community members with needed resources. In March 2022, he came to PCHD to lead his department’s onboarding to NCCARE360. Richard said the onboarding process for their department may have been more involved due to their number of programs and users (seven separate programs and 17 platform users), but they started the initial inquiry of onboarding in September 2022, completed all training in November 2022, and received their first referral in December 2022.

 

 

In March 2023, Richard coordinated an information meeting to introduce NCCARE360 to the Person County community. He worked with PCHD’s Equity Advisory Council to invite a variety of community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, civic organizations, African American Greek organizations, and other organizations that serve historically marginalized populations. The meeting was successful and largely attended, and a post-event survey revealed that seven organizations attending the meeting indicated an interest in moving forward with plans to onboard to NCCARE360 within the following 90 days!

Richard continues to be a strong champion of NCCARE360. In April 2023, he co-presented with FHLI and Unite Us at the Eastern District North Carolina Public Health Association (EDNCHPA) 63rd Annual Conference, detailing his experiences and successes with using NCCARE360 in Person County.

“While using NCCARE360, I saw families receive food. I saw instances where the electricity bills were paid. I saw individuals connected with legal assistance to help them avoid eviction from their homes in the dead of winter.”

Richard reports mostly positive experiences and outcomes using the NCCARE360 network, including thousands of pounds of food delivered to individuals and families, and successful COVID-19 testing and vaccination for many underserved communities. We are proud of our partnerships with local health departments like PCHD and supporters like Richard, and we are doing all we can to help them grow and succeed. Thank you, Richard & PCHD, for your continued use and support of NCCARE360. We couldn’t do it without you!

Streamlining the Housing Referral Process

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This April, we’re commemorating the passing of the Fair Housing Act and honoring National Fair Housing Month by raising awareness of the importance of equal access to housing and by recognizing the progress that has been made in the fight against housing discrimination.

Housing stability has a significant impact on health outcomes, as there are many ways in which a lack of housing or poor-quality housing can negatively affect health and wellbeing. Experiencing housing instability may contribute to stress, anxiety, or other mental and physical health issues. Housing is a foundational resource that everyone needs. One goal of NCCARE360 is to provide access to resources to address housing needs. While housing services can be a complicated landscape, we aim to streamline the referral process and connect to coordinated referral systems that already exist. Late last year, NCCARE360 began piloting a Housing Referral Determination Screener built directly into the Unite Us Platform. This screener can assist network organizations in understanding what resources a person may be eligible for to address their housing crisis, with the goal of providing clarity about eligibility for housing programs and increase the quality of referrals to housing agencies and homeless service systems.

In addition to streamlining housing referral services, NCCARE360 has the potential to improve the overall quality of care for individuals and families by facilitating collaboration among service providers and ensuring that all needs are being met. This comprehensive approach to care is especially important for those experiencing homelessness or housing instability, as they often face complex and interconnected challenges.

Rachel Waltz, Program Manager at Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness, uses NCCARE360 to help clients experiencing homelessness. Rachel has always had an orientation toward what felt just and fair as well as an interest in being an agent of change in her community. She decided to explore social work as an avenue of change for individuals, families, and communities when she learned the young people in her therapeutic wilderness program were returning home without the proper social supports needed to continue their growth and development. She now works to end homelessness because she knows that the housing crisis can affect any of us.

Rachel Waltz, Program Manager at Orange County Partnership to End Homelessness

NCCARE360 fosters collaborations between service providers and people experiencing homelessness, which Rachel sees as the foundation of our success as a community. NCCARE360 is also allowing for a more equitable lens through which to help. She notes that the people who experience a housing crisis that is unable to resolve on its own are disproportionately Black and African American folks, and this inequity is happening because of policy decisions that have a harmful and persistent legacy.

“The NCCARE360 network enables us to pair folks with the right resources at the right time.” –Rachel Waltz

Rachel says NCCARE360 has been a game changer in terms of looking at how referrals can be sent through the service provider networks in addition to the Orange County Housing Helpline. To successfully find and keep housing once in the formal homeless service system, most folks need a navigator who can help connect  them with the right resource  at each stage in the process. The Partnership depends on service providers to help make informed referrals to ensure that someone with complex needs receives a higher level of assistance. The NCCARE360 network has enabled the Partnership to continue to focus on some of most vulnerable community members while offering a lighter touch to community members who can successfully meet their housing needs with less intensive intervention.

As we celebrate National Fair Housing Month, it is important to remember that equal access to housing is a fundamental human right. NCCARE360 is a tool that can help us move closer to that goal by streamlining the housing referral process and improving access to the resources individuals and families need to achieve stable housing and a brighter future.

March is National Social Work Month

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March is National Social Work Month, a time to recognize and celebrate the important role social workers play in supporting individuals, families, and communities. Social workers are professionals who are trained to help people overcome challenges and improve their well-being through a wide range of services, including counseling, case management, advocacy, and community outreach.

Social workers often find it challenging to connect their clients with the right resources and services to address their needs. They are frequently assisting clients with complex cases who require support from multiple providers and organizations. Fragmented systems make it difficult to navigate the complex network of community resources and services that are available. Fortunately, NCCARE360 is making it easier to send referrals for community resources and collaborate with other providers. Social workers can use the platform to quickly and easily refer clients to a wide range of services and resources, including housing assistance, food pantries, transportation services, mental health services, and more.

Because NCCARE360 has the ability to track referrals and outcomes, social workers can monitor the status of their referrals and see if their clients successfully accessed resources, helping to ensure their clients are receiving the support they need to improve their health and well-being. In addition to making referrals to community resources, NCCARE360 also facilitates communication and collaboration among providers. Social workers can use the platform to communicate with other providers and share information about their clients’ needs and progress. This can help ensure that all members of a client’s care team are working together to provide the best possible support.

This month, we are highlighting Leslie Craver, an incredible social worker who utilizes the NCCARE360 network daily to connect their clients to needed social supports and services.

Pictured second from the left, Leslie Craver is the Family Caregiver Specialist at The Life Center of Davidson County. She is joined by her colleagues, Nina Smith, Jennifer Boyle, and Beth Rummage.

Leslie Craver is a part-time Family Caregiver Specialist at The Life Center of Davidson County, an organization that provides high quality daytime care to older and impaired adults in Lexington, NC. Her interest in social work began in college and led her to a 30-year career with NC Department of Social Services, where she worked mainly in adult services. As a Home Adult Specialist, she monitored adult care homes and investigated any issues that arose in adult care. When it came time to retire, joining The Life Center was a natural fit for Leslie. At the same time, The Life Center was awarded a health equity grant from FHLI to increase their utilization of NCCARE360. Leslie trained on the platform and now uses NCARE360 to connect their residents to needed resources.

“I spent a lot of my time in DSS linking people to resources, so it wasn’t a big jump for me, just a different platform to do so.“  -Leslie Craver.

Leslie states NCCARE360 has helped expand her knowledge of resources not just in Davidson County but throughout the state, and she believes the next important step is helping other community organizations like The Life Center understand the value of the NCCARE360 program so they will be just as eager to join the network. “When you have multiple people come and go from different agencies, it’s a useful tool to not have to make a lot of phone calls. You can just look in the system and see all the places they’ve been and if they got help or not,” she said.

Not only does Leslie use NCCARE360 to connect The Life Center’s clients to resources, but she also makes visits to elderly people in the community who are unable to leave their homes and to the caregivers of those who cannot be left alone. She reaches out with food vouchers, PPE bags and other needed items, and she’s even provided some shopping for elder community members using those food vouchers. Then she enters those services in NCCARE360 and provides additional assessments for any other unmet needs that she can assist with.

“The Life Center is the best,” Leslie declared. “They do great work and tried to reach out even before NCCARE360, and this is just another way they are working to expand.”

National Social Work Month is an opportunity to recognize the important work that social workers do to support our communities. NCCARE360 is a useful tool that is helping them make referrals to community resources and collaborate with other providers to address the complex needs of their clients. By leveraging technology and working together, social workers can help ensure that everyone has access to the resources they need to thrive. NCCARE360 is grateful for the hard work and dedication of all social workers who help improve our communities.

Our Spotlight on Natreace Buie, Referral Manager for The Arc of North Carolina

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This Black History Month, we are honoring our Black community leaders and spotlighting Natreace Buie, NCCARE360 Referral Manager for The Arc of North Carolina. Natreace is passionate about helping people in her community and she talked to us about how she is able to better support them through her use of the NCCARE360 network.

Natreace Buie, NCCARE360 Referral Manager, The Arc of North Carolina

Natreace graduated from Queens College of CUNY in New York with a major in sociology and a goal of helping others, especially those who needed an extra helping hand. She finds personal and professional fulfillment in providing guidance to people and advocating on their behalf when they are unable to do it themselves. Having two family members with intellectual disabilities helped put her on her career path when she witnessed just how difficult it was to connect them to healthcare providers or community support and resources because of the isolated and fragmented care systems. She found her calling when she realized she could use her experience and skills to help reduce that burden not only for her family but for other North Carolina families experiencing the same struggles.

 

 

“It is definitely my calling because it fills me when I’m able to help someone.”

Natreace is the NCCARE360 Referral Manager for The Arc of North Carolina where she supervises the referral journeys for their clients. The Arc of NC provides direct support and services to individuals with intellectual disabilities to enable them to live fully and independently in the community. When The Arc of NC needed someone to implement the NCCARE360 network using the Unite Us Platform, she once again felt that calling. Natreace brought her years of experience working in a variety of roles ranging from providing direct support to individuals in group homes, to working as a coordinator in the health care sector, connecting them all to care and resources that would make their lives a little easier. All these roles have allowed her to provide guidance to those who need it most.

When she worked in the health care setting, she noticed that connecting her clients to community resources required her staff to put in a lot of extra work. To make a referral, they had to research organizations in their area, and they relied heavily on Google searches and various curated lists of providers. When she learned that the NCCARE360 network took care of the legwork of compiling organizations and was connecting health care providers to community supports, she was very excited; she knew it would be an incredible benefit.

“When I learned [about the NCCARE360 network] I was like, ‘hold on […] to be able to identify the need and to connect our individuals to organizations and to close the loop is phenomenal. With one click!’ It’s phenomenal what the NCCARE360 network offers.”

Natreace also appreciates how the NCCARE360 network addresses health equity by allowing her to identify unmet needs in the community and then reach out to help close those gaps. The network allows her to pull data and graphs to visualize what is missing, where those missing supports are needed most, and when one demographic may need more help than others.

Natreace is excited to see how the NCCARE360 network continues to grow in the future. As she put it, “teamwork makes the dream work and we do it one referral at a time.” Thank you, Natreace, for all of the work you do to help others, and for being a valuable member of our community!

NCCARE360 in Rural NC

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On January 5, Samantha Kummerer of ABC11/WVTD reported that in Franklin County, Annette Strong spent weeks trying to arrange transportation for her husband, Jeffery Strong, to get to his dialysis appointments three times a week at a clinic just 12 minutes away in Wake County. He is unable to walk and can’t see, which means transportation isn’t as easy as getting in the family’s car. Jeffery needed a transportation company that could provide a stretcher or wheelchair, travel outside of the county, and bring him to dialysis centers. After the company, HealthFirst Transport, was no longer able to provide these services, the Strong family had very few options left.

Resources do not exist to serve counties’ growing population and social needs, companies and organizations providing services are short staffed, and exorbitant rising costs of services are just a handful of the issues that many rural residents often face when attempting to access health care in their communities, leaving them feeling as though they are falling through the cracks.

When asked how these issues can be addressed at the state level, Foundation for Health Leadership and Innovation’s (FHLI) President and CEO, David Reese, highlighted the work that FHLI is doing to bring patients and communities together to begin to tackle issues like transportation that were highlighted during the pandemic.

“Part of what we do at the Foundation for Health Leadership and Innovation is spending time with rural communities helping them begin to identify how they are addressing challenges, working toward solutions, and then helping them create alignment and then leverage the access that we have so that they can really begin to think about whole-person health and not just the one issue of transportation,” explained Reese.

North Carolina is nearly twice as rural as the national average, with about 40% of our NC residents living and working in rural areas. Those citizens face unique challenges that are less common to folks in urban areas. The NC Rural Health Association (NCRHA) developed the 2022 NC Rural Health Snapshot to highlight opportunities to improve health in rural communities. The NCRHA is the affiliate of the National Rural Health Association and is housed within FHLI. The Association focuses on all issues affecting our rural communities including access to healthcare and hospital closings, adequacy of healthcare networks, limited broadband and challenges related to housing, food, education, employment, and transportation.

FHLI’s Community Voice team values the voice of our rural community partners and authentically listens to them. The team uses this feedback to help rural communities figure out ways to improve their challenges or to connect them with other organizations and resources that are more appropriate and equipped to make a difference. This is where NCCARE360 can be utilized.

As the first statewide coordinated care network that better connects individuals to local services and resources to help meet these needs, NCCARE360 provides a solution to a fragmented health and human services system by connecting providers and organizations across sectors in a shared technology network where they can electronically refer individuals and families who have unmet needs to community resources. “We assume that everyone knows every resource that is available back within their community and that is just not always the case, and this is part of North Carolina coming back together,” Reese said.

Reese said the NCCARE360 Network allows North Carolinians to think differently about how they connect and become healthier, and he is optimistic that solutions will be forged in North Carolina communities over time. “This is it’s not a 60-yard dash; this is the marathon. This is how we rebuild after COVID but this is also about how we create the pathway for healthier North Carolinians.”

NCCARE360 Honors Staff Sergeant Shauna Perkins on Veterans Day

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Happy Veterans Day! NCCARE360 would like to thank everyone who has served our country, including FHLI & NCCARE360 finance manager, Shauna Perkins.

Shauna is a veteran of the North Carolina Army National Guard with 12 years of service, including two tours to Iraq in support of the Global War on Terrorism. She joined the Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation in 2021 as Finance Manager. She has worked in both nonprofit and corporate environments and has significant experience in finance. In her role at FHLI, Shauna supports the VP of Finance and Administration with strengthening and aligning the fiscal functions of FHLI. Shauna also supports NCCARE360 program finances.

She joined the NC Army National Guard when she was 17 years old as a means to pay for college. In 2004, she was deployed to Iraq for the first time. She was the first female soldier in her unit as they realigned from infantry to quartermaster. Despite feeling shocked and a little anxious at the thought of deployment, she found that the high morale of her brothers and sisters in arms helped her get through that first year overseas. During her tenure, Shauna worked as a 92F Petroleum Supply Specialist, and her superb administrative skills allowed her to quickly move up the ranks to staff sergeant.

Back in the states, she earned her associates degree in May 2008 and had just begun working a corporate job when she received a call in August 2008 to re-deployed back to Iraq in March 2009. She didn’t let that get her down though, because she ended up buying her first house in the states while she was still stationed in Iraq!

Shauna completed her service and received an honorable discharge in August 2011. She now holds a Master of Business Administration degree from The University of Mount Olive and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting from North Carolina Wesleyan College. Thank you, Shauna, for bravely serving our country.

FHLI and NCCARE360 are honored to have you on our teams!

Happy Veterans Day from NCCARE360

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This Veterans Day, NCCARE360 is highlighting one of our respected network partners working with veterans and their families: Veterans Bridge Home.

Each year, Veterans Day offers an opportunity for Americans to honor all military service members who have served our country. It’s a day to recognize and give thanks for their courage, determination, and loyal service to the United States. With North Carolina being home to 12 military installations and over 730,000 veterans, NCCARE360 proudly joined forces with NCServes in July 2021 to ensure our state has a strong network of resources for its military and veteran community. NCServes is the country’s first coordinated system of public, private, and nonprofit organizations working together to provide support to military members and their families, and is used by many veterans-serving agencies, like Veterans Bridge Home, to coordinate health care and human services for this population.

We know that approximately 200,000 service members leave active duty each year and veterans are more likely to report health issues such as diabetes, smoking, heavy alcohol use, mental illness, post-traumatic stress disorder, and other chronic illnesses than those on active duty. These behaviors and conditions place veterans at greater risk for chronic diseases that are best managed by interdisciplinary teams. In North Carolina, the top service needs experienced by the veteran population include housing and shelter needs, employment and financial assistance, benefits navigation, and food assistance. Veterans Bridge Home is one organization working to link veterans and their families to the community and to resources that address these social needs.

Veterans Bridge Home serves as an entry point for veterans who don’t know where to turn to access support and services. They connect veterans and their families to the community through their network of partners and help them navigate needs like employment, create social connections, and settle their families by connecting them to the resources they need to be successful and thriving leaders in our community. Paul Berry served in the United States Marine Corps for 30 years, retiring as a Command Sergeant Major, and has been the Regional Network Director at Veterans Bridge Home for the past two years. He has been doing this type of work for more than half a decade. He highlighted some of the major ways that NCCARE360 has positively impacted the work of Veterans Bridge Home, which in turn helps to improve the health and wellbeing of our veteran population.

NCCARE360 helps assess for and identify unmet social needs through embedded screening questions built right into the platform. The screener assists network organizations in understanding what resources a person may be eligible for so they can make the best referral possible. Prior to the creation of NCServes and NCCARE360 organizations often tended to address one need at a time. For example, if a veteran presented with a request for housing, the organizations would tackle that need without questioning other potential needs. However, NCServes quickly realized that these veterans were returning because only one part of their need had been addressed—housing—when they also had transportation and food needs. Thanks to the screeners, coordinators at Veterans Bridge Home are now able to get veterans to the right services or resources, ensuring that whole-person health and well-being is addressed.

Paul also explained that unification with NCCARE360 has allowed Veterans Bridge Home to begin addressing family needs, as well. The NCCARE360 Network includes Resource Navigators supported by NC 211 who can support complex referrals and stay with a client through the referral process if needed. Veterans Bridge Home can now refer veterans’ partners, children, and other family members with identified social needs to the NCCARE360 Navigators who can connect them with services and resources available to civilians. Before unification, they were only able to refer clients to military resources.

“Yes, we work with that specific population of veterans and we’re proud of that, but we also know that if there are other stressors in that home, we want to be part of that solution and the NCCARE360 Navigators and NC 211 have been great partners in addressing those needs,” – Paul Berry, Regional Network Director, Veterans Bridge Home.

Another unexpected yet welcome benefit to joining the NCCARE360 Network has been an increase in funding opportunities. Through their partnership with NCCARE360, Veterans Bridge Home has been able to apply for and receive two new grants. They are the recipients of the NCCARE360 Health Equity Grants that were funded through the CDC’s COVID-19 Health Disparities Initiatives grant, which they are using to fund staff members, operational expenses, and event costs. They are also one of only two coordination centers to receive the Staff Sergeant Parker Gordon Fox Suicide Prevention Grant, which is their largest grant to date. This additional funding will allow them to continue to grow their capacity to better serve more veterans and their families.

Plugging into the NCCARE360 Network meant Veterans Bridge Home has also connected with other community organizations in the network, growing their partnerships and civic relationships. Paul found that the top 10 organizations sending referrals to Veterans Bridge Home has changed since joining the network, where many of the senders are no longer veteran-only serving organizations, but rather those that serve communities at large. Building relationships with these agencies helped change the playing field and allowed Veterans Bridge Home to embrace the no-wrong-door approach to care coordination. Now, if they receive referrals for non-veterans, they know they can refer them to an organization in the NCCARE360 Network or even to the NCCARE360 Navigators; they’re happy to use the opportunity to make their community partners aware of the federal money available for veterans that frees up local or state funding for civilians, helping to guarantee the best use of resources. Paul attributes this success to capabilities of the NCCARE360 network and technology.

Veterans Bridge Home is a staple among the military community, providing veterans and their families an opportunity to better navigate their unique social needs. They are also creating social connections to the communities and resources veterans need to be successful, healthy, and whole. This Veterans Day and every day, NCCARE360 is proud of the impact Veterans Bridge Home is making and we are honored to have them as a network partner.

Be sure to visit their website to learn more about their work and how you can help support NC’s veteran population and their families.

https://veteransbridgehome.org/

About NCCARE360
NCCARE360 is the first statewide network that unites health care and human services organizations with a shared technology that assesses for and identifies unmet social needs, and enables a coordinated, community-oriented, person-centered approach for delivering care in North Carolina. NCCARE360 is the result of a strong public-private partnership between the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS) and the Foundation for Health Leadership & Innovation (FHLI). The NCCARE360 implementation team includes United Way of NC, NC 211, Unite Us, and Expound Decision Systems.

Contact
For more information about NCCARE360, or any of its partner organizations, please send an email to connect@nccare360.org.

Greensboro Housing Coalition: Partner Spotlight

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The support and input from our amazing partners in the health and human services field is instrumental to the success of NCCARE360 in North Carolina. Today, we are sitting down with Robbielene Lawhorn, at Greensboro Housing Coalition to discuss the organization’s achievements, experience with the network, and vision for the future.

How would you summarize Greensboro Housing Coalition’s work and your role in particular? What populations does Greensboro Housing Coalition serve?

The Greensboro Housing Coalition is an agency that is concerned with safe and affordable housing. We believe that everyone has the right to stay in a decent place that they can afford. Most days, we find ourselves acting as a triage point for people about a wide variety of housing situations. We listen to the concerns of the community and we work to provide counseling and solutions. In some instances, we address their concerns through programs that we offer and also often have to refer them out when there are circumstances that GHC may not be able to address. My role as the Homeless Prevention Team Manager is directing my team as we field phone calls and see clients face to face regarding their housing issues. Our agency serves anyone. We get calls from all over the U.S. regarding housing concerns. Most of our clients have low income and are in crisis when they walk through our doors or call us.

Currently, what’re your biggest challenges at Greensboro Housing Coalition? How do you deal with them?

The biggest challenges that we have at GHC are the scant funding resources that we can tap into for our clients for things such as emergency assistance or eviction prevention. The other huge issue is the lack of enough safe and affordable housing properties that we can direct people to. We help clients think out of the box to find monetary resources and negotiate what they might owe and/or need. Like most communities, Greensboro is under-resourced to deal with the types of crisis that vulnerable people find themselves in on a daily basis. According to recent data, Greensboro ranks #7 nationally for numbers of evictions.  

What accomplishments are your team most proud of?

The thing that I am most proud of for my team and GHC as a whole is that we rise to the occasion in times of need. When there is a disaster, such as the tornado that hit Greensboro in April of 2018, when a multi-unit apartment complex was condemned, and when properties have been flooded or there has been a fire leading to condemnations through no fault of the resident, we help to re-house people. During times of large and small scale housing emergencies, GHC is one of the first agencies, and in some cases the only agency, that is called upon to analyze what is happening, develop a plan of action to help the person/people affected and to implement that plan. We work closely with other community partners to help our clients, if and when necessary. Our GHC staff stays ready and willing to help out in any way that we can.

How has NCCARE360 impacted the way you deliver care? What has surprised you?

The use of NCCARE360 has allowed us the ability to be able to reach people who might not have ordinarily contacted us because they were unaware of our agency, through referrals from other member agencies. We have received many more referrals from healthcare partners than before. 

What was it like for your organization before working with NCCARE360? And afterward?

We have always been an agency that people referred their clients, friends, and family to for possible help. Now, we are reaching more people. We strongly appreciate the feedback loop that is built into NCCARE360 between agencies making and receiving referrals. In the past, referrals have come our way for things that we can’t or don’t do, and the clients have had to come to us to find this out. NCCARE360 has streamlined things for the consumer, saving them time so they don’t need to use resources to travel to an agency that might not be able to help them. 

What advice would you give to an organization interested in joining NCCARE360?

I would suggest that any organization join because it will give them access to potential clients who might not have ever known about them. It also provides possible resources that they could refer their own clients to. With more resources, people’s situations may be resolved quicker.

What’s next for Greensboro Housing Coalition?

GHC is working to build relationships with NC’s Prepaid Health Plans and is working to be part of Medicaid Pilots if our region is selected. We believe that there has already been a demonstrated health benefit of going upstream to address social drivers of health and we want to continue to help push conversations about the most effective ways to deliver care and serve vulnerable people.

We hoped you enjoyed our NCCARE360 partner spotlight interview. Get inspired by Greensboro Housing Coalition and learn more about their work at www.greensborohousingcoalition.org.

Temple: Partner Spotlight

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The support and input from our amazing partners in the health and human services field is instrumental to the success of NCCARE360 in North Carolina. Today, we are sitting down with Tiffany Joseph, Ministry Assistant at Temple to discuss their achievements, experience with the network, and vision for the future.


How would you summarize Temple’s work and your role in particular? What populations does Temple serve?

Temple is a church that loves everyone in our community. We offer Celebrate Recovery and homeless outreach, as well as being a church that believes in God’s word. I am Celebrate Recovery Ministry Assistant. I take all of our CR calls and am available 24 hours a day for that purpose. Additionally, I help with the ministry at the church, go to community meetings, and work one-on-one counseling women. We serve our whole community as CR is a 12 step program for any hurt, habit, or hang-up which can include drugs, alcohol, anxiety, depression, codependency. It’s literally for anything someone might have an issue with. We also serve in the women’s prison in Raleigh, NC and two men’s prisons in Harnett County.

Currently, what’re your biggest challenges at Temple? How do you deal with them?

The biggest challenge at the moment, is not enough people knowing that Temple is involved with NCCARE360. We really need to work on getting the word out for this great community service. Thus, we will be adding this information to our Friday night announcements. 

What accomplishments are your team most proud of?

As a team member at Temple, I am very proud of the fact that we are reaching out to those others often neglect, ignore, and judge. Showing love to all is very important to us.

How has NCCARE360 impacted the way you deliver care?

NCCARE360 has given us the necessary tools to help those in need find help to improve their lives – be it clothing, food, job search, etc. It is so wonderful to be able to see the process from start to finish and know that a person that came to us for help got what they needed. 

What was it like for your organization before working with NCCARE360? And afterward?

Before, it was just a conversation of trying to tell someone where they could maybe get help. Now, we have the tool to know where that help is available. It is so wonderful to have this at our fingertips.

What advice would you give to an organization interested in joining NCCARE360?

Please join and help your community to serve those in need. The more organizations we have, the more people we can help.

What’s next for Temple?

We are in the process of finding a property for a Dream Center for families in a domestic violence situation. At this center, we hope to assist those affected by having a safe place to stay, help with education needs, clothing needs, and eventually helping them find a new home.

Anything else you would like to add?

I am so excited for what the future holds for Temple, our community, and NCCARE360. We can achieve so much when we all work together for the greater good.


We hoped you enjoyed our NCCARE360 partner spotlight interview. Get inspired by Temple and learn more about their work at http://www.templerepresents.com/. If you would like to contact our Community Engagement Team, please fill out the form located here.

NCWorks: Partner Spotlight

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The support and input from our amazing partners in the health and human services field is instrumental to the success of NCCARE360 in North Carolina. Today, we are sitting down with Renee Hinton, Assistant Center Manager at NCWorks Career Centers Clayton to discuss their achievements, experience with the network, and vision for the future.


How would you summarize NCWorks’s work and your role in particular? What populations does NCWorks serve?

NCWorks Career Centers assist people with training and employment and everything in between. We provide one on one assistance with resume writing, career counseling and exploration, job search, training, interviewing, etc. We connect people with jobs and connect talent to employers’ job openings. We can assist employers with labor market data, staffing challenges, employee/applicant skills gaps, and outplacement services. Our center serves the adult population, while the youth population is served by NCWorks NextGen Centers. Our services are free to applicants and employers. At NCWorks Career Center Clayton, my role is to assist in the center’s operations, oversee staff, assist customers, coordinate programs/activities, work with partner agencies, etc.

Currently, what are your biggest challenges at NCWorks? How do you deal with them?

Our biggest challenge currently is matching the skills of people with the requirements of the positions available. However, we have a variety of programs to bridge this gap. We provide opportunities for educational training, work experience, on the job training, and apprenticeships. We also offer free workshops on a variety of subjects and to a variety of populations. We also face marketing challenges, as most of our marketing is through word of mouth. NCWorks – Clayton has only been in the area for a few years, but we are always happy to try to spread the word of who we are and what we do.

What accomplishments are your team most proud of?

Our awesome staff serves an average of 600 people a month in our office. In addition, we have customers who connect with us through our website or call center. We are very proud of our work and that it helps citizens to not only be productive contributing members of our community, but also helps them to provide for their families. As for the employers, we are happy we are able to assist them to grow and stay in North Carolina.

How has NCCARE360 impacted the way you deliver care? What has surprised you?

Before NCCARE360 we used a notebook of resources which we had to update regularly and became cumbersome and time consuming. NCCARE360 provides one place to go for resources. We are able to make multiple referrals in a short amount of time knowing the information is current, and the receiving agency will respond. I believe the NCCARE360 is a great resource, and the surprising part is how easy it is to use. It is very user friendly in my opinion.

What was it like for your organization before working with NCCARE360? And afterward?

Before NCCARE360, we could make a referral and not necessarily know if the person received help unless we followed up and spoke with the agency or client. Now we are able to follow the progression in NCCARE360. 

Based on your experiences so far, how do you see NCCARE360 impacting the standard of care in North Carolina?

Once the system is expanded to cover North Carolina, I can see us making referrals to anywhere in the state for our clients! Many citizens do not stay in one place and may move around. This will allow us to be able to connect people with resources anywhere in the state easily and efficiently. It allows our state to be connected on a resource level that has not been available before. There are many resources available in NCCARE360, and it is a database that can expand as time goes. Allowing all of North Carolina to be connected in assisting our citizens with many needs across our fine state. 

What advice would you give to an organization interested in joining NCCARE360?

Join! It is such an easy way to connect your clients with resources across the state. It also allows providers across the state to connect with you — a win-win situation for providers and clients. Send referrals through NCCARE360, and we will be glad to help your customers as well. 


We hoped you enjoyed our NCCARE360 partner spotlight interview. NCWorks Career Center – Clayton is located at 8988 US Highway 70, Business West Suite 100, Clayton, NC 27250. You can visit them at their office or visit the NCWorks website, a statewide database for applicants and employers, at NCWORKS.GOV. If you have any questions about their services, please call the Clayton office at (919)-553-0953. If you would like to contact NCCARE360’s Community Success Team please fill out the form located here.