I
Bessie Wetzell Newspaper Library
Health district considers
school-based lone clinic
Location , staffing and community response all
deciding factors
VOL. 133
N O . 14
8 Pages
Wednesday, April 2, 2014
Morrow County, Heppner, Oregon
March winds blow in
much-needed moisture
v«rr ■*-»•» y i i n d ir a f c U j I j K v < iuo J
According to NOAA’s
National Weather Service
in Pendleton, the blustery
weather in March blew in
some much-needed rainfall
in South Morrow County.
P recipitation totaled
2.31 inches during March,
w hich w as 0.79 inches
above normal. Measurable
precipitation o f at least .01
inch was received on 16
days with the heaviest, 0.92
inches, reported on the 10"’.
T h e h ig h e s t w in d
gust was 42 mph, which
occurred on the 6th.
The NWS preliminary
d a ta a ls o re p o rts th a t
tem peratures at Heppner
a v e ra g e d n e a r n o rm a l
during the month o f March.
The
average
te m p e ra tu re w as 4 4 .6
degrees, w hich was 0.4
degrees above normal. High
temperatures averaged 55.9
degrees, w hich was one
degree above normal. The
highest was 67 degrees on
the 16th.
L o w t e m p e r a tu r e s
a v erag ed 33.2 d e g re e s,
w hich w as 0.3 d eg rees
below normal. The lowest
was 22 degrees, on the 2nd.
T here w ere 12 days
with the low temperature
below 32 degrees. There
was one day when the high
temperature stayed below
32 degrees.
\
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The outlook for April
from N O A A ’s Clim a.te
Prediction Center calls for
near-normal tem peratures
and
near-normal
precipitation. Normal highs
for Heppner rise from 59
degrees at the start o f April
to 64 degrees at the end
o f A p ril. N o rm al low s
rise from 36 degrees to
40 degrees. The 30-year
normal precipitation is 1.51
inches.
The
National
W eath er S e rv ic e is an
o ffic e o f th e N a tio n a l
Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration, an agency
o f th e U .S . C om m erce
Department.
Public meeting planned
to discuss new county
admin building
M orrow County will
be hosting a com m unity
in fo rm a tio n m eetin g to
re c e iv e c o m m e n ts and
suggestions for the new
administration building to
be built in Heppner.
The m eeting will be
held Wednesday, April 2,
at 5 p.m. at the M orrow
C ou n ty F a irg ro u n d s in
Heppner.
The project m anager
and the a rc h ite c ts w ill
be a v a ila b le to a n sw er
q u e s tio n s and h e a r
comments.
The M orrow County
C o m m issio n e rs w ill be
a tte n d in g a ls o , an d
encourage the community to
attend. First-draft sketches
o f the building and floor
plans will be available.
Anyone with questions
may contact Karen Wolff
at the M orrow C ou n ty
Courthouse, 541-676-5620
or k w o lff@ c o .m o rro w ,
or.us.
Heppner to host tri
county band festival
The annual Tri-County
Band Festival is coming to
Heppner on Wednesday,
April 9.
More than 192 students
from H ep p n er, lo n e ,
Irrigon, Boardman, Grant
Union, Arlington, Umatilla,
Stan field and W eston-
McEwen high schools will
participate in the day-long
event.
After a day o f practice,
the students will present
a concert at 6:30 p.m. at
Heppner Elementary School
under the directorship o f
g u e st c o n d u c to r A ndy
Carey of Pendleton. Family,
frien d s and com m unity
m em bers can attend the
concert for a nominal cost
o f $2.
The ev en t has been
an area tradition for more
than 40 years, and Heppner
music teacher Rick Drake
says he is pleased Heppner
is able to host the festival
this year.
“It promises to be an
exciting day and terrific
concert,” Drake says.
By April Sykes
The M orrow County
H e a l t h D i s t r i c t is
contem plating opening a
school-based rural health
clinic in lone, depending
on the lone com m unity’s
response and other factors,
M CHD CEO Dan G rigg
to ld the b o ard at th e ir
regular m eeting Monday
night in Irrigon.
He said th at he has
had several discussions to
explore the concept and
has met with lone School
P rin c ip a l S arah C ran e-
Simpson.
G rig g s a id th a t
he a tte n d e d a s e s s io n
on sc h o o l-b a se d h ealth
clinics at a Rural Health
C o n feren ce in P ortland
last O cto b er, w here he
learned o f the concept. He
said that organizations that
set up and run a clinic on
school property and follow
state certification standards
are eligible for a $60,000
annual operating grant.
He said that establishing
a clinic in lone would go
toward solving the problem
that lone residents have
in traveling the farthest
o f all the Morrow County
c o m m u n itie s to o b ta in
health care.
Factors in the decision
w o u ld in c lu d e w h e re
to locate the clin ic and
s ta f f in g . He s a id th a t
M CH D pro v id ers could
staff the clinic for 10 hours
o f the required 15 hours a
week the clinic would be
open.
G rig g s a id th a t
K im b e rly L in d s a y ,
d ire c to r o f C om m unity
Counseling Solutions, and
S h eree S m ith , d ire c to r
o f the M orrow C ou n ty
Health D epartm ent, both
indicated that they would
be supportive o f the clinic.
G rig g said th a t he,
Crane-Simpson and MCHD
Board Chair Larry Mills
v is ite d a s c h o o l-b a se d
health clinic in Mitchell.
He
planned
a
p resentation concerning
the school-based clinic at
the lone Community Agri-
B u sin e ss O rg a n iz a tio n
annual meeting April 2 at
the lone Legion Hall.
G rigg told the board
that new physician Dr. Dan
Hambleton began working
for the district on March
12 and h as b e e n w ell
received. Grigg said that
Dr. Hambleton and his wife
were “thrilled to be here."
A r e tir e m e n t o p e n
house for Dr. Ed Berretta
w ill be held T h u rsd ay ,
April 24, at St. Patrick’s
Senior Center in Heppner
beginning at 6:30 p.m.
In other business, the
board:
-h e a rd th a t a PAC
(political action committee)
meeting with the goal o f
prom oting the d is tric t’s
I
i
Lord a Marvelous Song,
Songs Mein Grossmama
Sang, and Surely It Is God
Who Saves Me (with Alice
Massey on violin).
Admission is free to all
Inland Northwest concerts,
but donations to this non
profit are always gratefully
accepted. Tax deductible
Season Sustaining
Memberships with voting
rights may be purchased for
$50 at the door.
Following the concert,
the public is invited to
join the performers for a
reception with beverages
and cookies.
For a d d i t i o n a l
information or questions
about Inland Northwest
M u sicia n s, p layin g or
sin g in g in one o f the
ensembles, or the concerts,
c o n ta c t Judi Ma s o n ,
judim asn@ eoni.com or
541-314-5407, or R. Lee
Friese, 541-377-1865, or
the Inland Northwest office
at 541 -289-4696 or inwm@
^
machmedia.net.
upcoming local option tax
levy is set for Thursday,
A p ril 3, at 3 p .m . at
Lexington City Hall. Mills
said that the goal o f that
meeting is to decide what
to do to promote the levy
in each community. Grigg
presented a fact sheet to be
disbursed, which explains
the levy and informs the
public on the district. The
.39-cent levy, which would
be a c o n tin u a tio n and
the sam e am ount as the
previous levy, will come
before the voters before the
mail-in election day of May
22. Hie fact sheet illustrates
that the M orrow County
Health District base tax rate
o f .6050 cents per thousand,
plus the local option tax
o f .39 cents per thousand
is m uch low er than the
health district base tax rates
for John Day at $2.1329
per $1,000, for Burns at
$1.9314 per thousand, and
Enterprise for $1.6373 per
thousand.
-ap p ro v ed jo in in g a
trial membership in a risk
m a n a g e m e n t p ro g ra m
fo r P io n e e r M e m o ria l
Cl i n i c a nd P io n e e r
M em orial H ospital. The
reimbursement to the clinic
and hospital depends on a
com plicated formula that
includes the utilization o f
the district’s services and
number o f claims filed. The
higher the claims, the less
PMC or MCHD would get
in reimbursement.
-learned that Pioneer
Memorial Clinic in Heppner
will submit its application
for Tier 2 Patient Centered
P r im a r y C a r e H o m e
c e rtific a tio n soon, w ith
the application for Irrigon
M edical C linic taking a
while longer as the district
works out agreements with
Good Shepherd M edical
Center and Kadlec Medical
center for “transitional care
requirements.”
- l e a r n e d t h a t th e
electronic medical records
project is on schedule. Grigg
said that training and testing
o f data is progressing in the
financial and revenue areas,
with final “m igration” to
EM R p lan n e d for M ay
12. He said th a t c lin ic
c o n v e rs io n is to s ta r t
this week with m eetings
planned to decide which
data will be converted from
patient paper charts. He said
that the clinic system will
start the week o f May 5,
with “go live” planned for
June 17.
-learned that W arren
Rosen from the Im aging
D epartm ent has decided
to retire early. W ith his
d e p a rtu re , c u rr e n t lab
manager Betty Hickerson
will now head both imaging
and lab departments. Grigg
said that a radiology tech
from Pendleton is willing
to provide coverage while
a full-time radiology tech
is located.
- l e a r n e d t h a t th e
d i s t r i c t ’s s e a rc h fo r a
primary care director o f the
clinics is ongoing. Carmelo
Di Salvo o f Heppner will
be the project manager for
the implementation o f the
electronic health records
in the primary care clinics.
Di Salvo has a Doctorate
o f Strategic Leadership in
o rg an iz atio n lea d e rsh ip
and a m aster’s degree in
business administration.
- l e a r n e d t hat the
d istric t’s union contract
with the A m e ric a n
Federation o f State, County
and Municipal Employees
is to expire on June 30, and
the union and the district
have reached a tentative
a g re e m e n t on a uni on
contract. The next step will
be ratification by union
members.
-h e a rd t h a t a t a s k
force had been created to
increase the availability
o f A u to m ate d E x tern al
D e f i b r i l l a t o r s in t h e
Boardman community
and do m ore CP R/ AED
training.
-received the following
f in a n c ia l re po rt for
February: MCHD received
$680,137 in gross patient
revenue; $65,575 in total
revenue deductions,
$127,629 in tax revenue,
$26,108 in other operating
revenue for $768,299 in
total operating revenue;
$757,359 in total operating
expenses and $14,160 for
a non-operating gain for a
-See HEALTH DISTRICT/
PAGE EIGHT
A r e a p a s t o r s in v it e d
to s u b m it E a s t e r
Inland Northwest Chorale
to perform at SAGE Center
In la n d N o r th w e s t
M usicians presents the
Inland Northwest Chorale
concert “Spring into Song”
on Saturday, April 5, at 7
p.m. at the SAGE Center,
101 Olson Rd., Boardman.
The concert w ill be
under the direction o f R.
Lee Friese with Myrna
Van Cleave, formerly o f
Heppner, as accompanist.
S election s w ill include
A frican A llelu ia (w ith
p e r c u ssio n ), B eau tifu l
Brown Eyes, Sing to the
Currently, 65 certified SBHCs operate in 21 Oregon coun
ties, with 12 sites currently in the planning and development
phase. -Map courtesy o f Oregon School-Based Health Alliance
m essages
E a s te r is A p ril
20. The Heppner Gazette-
Times invites area pastors
to submit Easter messages
to be published in the April
16 edition. The deadline is
4 -H
&
Friday, April 11. at 5 p.m.
M essages can be
dropped off at the Gazette
office, emailed to editor@
rapidserve.net, or faxed to
541-676-9211.
F FA
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ALL MARKET ANIMAL
FEED & SUPPLIES
Morrow County Grain Growers Green Feed & Seed
242 W. Linden Way, Heppnw » 676-9422 » 989-8221 (MCGG main offlc«)
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