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About The independent. (Vernonia, Or.) 1986-current | View Entire Issue (July 5, 2001)
Page 6 The INDEPENDENT, July 5, 2001 Health Notes ByAudeen Wagner Chris Polich: Providence Family Medicine-Vernonia is happy to announce the hiring of Chris Polich, Family Nurse Practitioner (F.N.P.), as a new caregiver at the clinic. He will be working with Laura Nichols, PA. and Mark Livingston, M.D. Chris grew up in Banks, received his BS in Nursing at Lin field College, and worked for 10 years in the field of nursing, and has experience in hospital and outpatient clinic work. He then decided to return to school, earn ing a Master's Degree in Nursing from Montana State University, where he received his F.N.P. certi fication. He chose the program at Montana State because it offered heavy training and experience in clinic work, and for its focus in rural medicine. Chris Pölich, F.N.P. He had received an academic scholarship through the National Health Services Corps, and through this program he was placed in a rural clinic in northern New Mexico. He is Trauma Certified, and also trained in Advanced Cardiac Life Support, so he feels comfortable handling emergency situations. “While my primary focus is not in emer gency medicine, it is vital in rural communities to be able to han dle these kinds of cases when they come up,” Chris said. Chris and his wife, Anne, recently moved to Vernonia with their two small daughters, Caroline, age 2 and Eliza, 7 months. He loves living in a small town...“How many people are lucky enough to be able to walk to work?” he asks. They love the out-of-doors, and until the daughters arrived, Chris and Ann did lots of hiking, camping, mountain climbing and water sports. He and Anne, who is an elementary school teacher, are looking forward to introduc ing their little girls to all of the above when they are a little older. Both Chris and Anne think that Vernonia is an excellent place to live and to raise their family, and Chris is very excited about opportunities at the clinic. No Shows: At the Airport and at the Clinic, when people don’t show up as promised, it presents a problem. (No, they don’t “overbook” at Providence Family Medicine-Vernonia!) This has been an increasing problem, and the staff at the clinic ask their patients to be courteous and give them a call to cancel, if they find they can not keep their appointment. Please call at 9:00 a.m. or as early in the day as possible—this frees up the schedule for others who need to be seen that day. On a recent clinic day, NINE patients did not show up for scheduled appointments, and did not call to cancel. “This created a huge problem for us, and deprived other patients of the opportunity to be seen,” says Laura Nichols, P.A. This is frustrating to a staff that is very conscientious about their goal to provide medical service to our community. Due to an increase in this problem, Providence-Vernonia Clin ic’s policy for the future will be as follows: - The first time a patient does not keep an appointment (and does not cancel), that patient will receive letter from the clinic. - The second time this happens, it will be handled in the same manner. - The third time a patient fails to cancel and does not appear for an appointment, the person will be notified that he/she will no longer be able to schedule appointments; if that patient desires to be seen at the clinic, they can come in and wait for an opening in the schedule. “We all realize that the Vernonia Clinic is seeing more and more patients, and in order to serve everyone, we must make use of all business time. This policy helps us serve more patients,” said Darcy Bell, clinic manager. “We thank our patients for their continued support, and hope that people will be under standing as we continue to bring quality healthcare to the com munity.” Mammovan: The next scheduled visit is July 18. Call the clinic at 503-429- 9191 for an appointment for a mammogram. Disabled child care subsidy increased Adult and Family Services (AFS) manages the Oregon child care subsidy program and offers child care assistance for low income working parents and for parents involved with the JOBS and TANF programs. On April 1 AFS began A new component of the child care payment system now allows enhanced rates to meet the needs of children who require very high level supports in child care because of disabil ities. The majority of children with disabilities can be served with in the AFS “special needs rate.” There are some children, though, who cannot be in child care without significant accom modations on the part of the provider (such as extra staffing or a smaller adult/child ratio). The new system was estab lished to meet the needs of these children. Payments to the provider will be based on individual assessments of needs. A spe cialist from the agency’s district office will meet with the child’s parents and child care provider to complete the assessment. This will provide a guideline for deciding the child care rate. The regular special needs rate will continue for children who require some special assis tance, but do not require an exceptionally high level of care. To find out if a family is eligi ble for the AFS child care sub sidies, contact your local Adult and Family Services branch office. The office is listed under Rural home repair loans and grants for low-income Home improvement and repair loans for very low- income homeowners in rural Oregon are available from the Rural Housing Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture through the remainder of this fiscal year, September 30. Very low-income families who qualify can receive up to $20,000 at one-percent annual interest, with a maximum re payment period of 20 years. Loans can be used to finance general repairs, improve or modernize a home, remove health and safety hazards and make homes accessible for household members with dis abilities. The agency also has a grant repair program for very low- income rural homeowners. To receive a grant, an applicant must be 62 years or older and unable to repay a repair loan. Grant funds can be used only Jamboree meet Thursday night The Vernonia Friendship Jamboree Committee has selected “Friendships Forever” as the theme for the 45th annual festivities. The winning entry was by Zelma Wall of Beaverton. Mrs. Wall empha sized that six generations of her family have called Vernon ia home! The next meeting of the Jamboree Committee will be held at Lew’s Place, Thursday, July 7 at 7:00 p.m. The public is invited and your input is welcome. For more information, call Randy Parrow at 503-429-1093. for repairs, to remove health and safety hazards or to make a home accessible for persons with disabilities. Grant assis tance cannot exceed a cumu lative total of $7,500. For more information, call the USDA Rural Development office at 503-414-3335. the “State” heading of the phone book’s blue section. If you are already receiving a child care subsidy and want to know about the new rates, con tact your AFS worker. For general information on the new rate system for chil dren with special needs, call Mark Anderson at 503-945-6110. Vernonia Senior Center News It is with heavy hearts we extend our sincere sympathy to our Vernonia Transportation head driver, Terri Baska, her husband Gene, sons Greg, Scott and Kelly, and family over the passing of their beloved son and brother, Rob bie. May the comfort and care of God, their loved ones and friends, carry them through this difficult time. From the Vernonia ColCo Staff and Senior Center INFORMATION NUMBERS COLCO Transportation ........................ 429-4304 Senior Advocate.. 429-9112 Senior Center..... 429-3912 Wiseman/Pierre vows scheduled Mr. and Mrs. Monty Wise man of Vernonia announce the marriage of their daughter, Jennifer Renae, to Douglas Pierre, son of Daniel and Denise Pierre of Winchester, Tennessee. The wedding will be held Saturday, July 7 at 2:30 p.m., in the Vernonia First Baptist Church. Pastor Scott McKin ney of Provo, Utah, will offici ate. Both Wiseman and Pierre are graduates of the United States Air Force Academy. Lt. Wiseman will be sta tioned at Goodfellow Air Force Base in San Angelo, Texas. Lt. Pierre is a pilot stationed at Travis Air Force Base in Fairfield, California. IS IT A SIN TO MOW YOUR LAWN ON SUNDAY? In today’s society, this may seem like a silly question, but it raises profound theological issues. It’s the kind of question that people debate to mask the dark corners of the heart. The Pharisees chided Jesus the same way. One Sabbath, He and the disciples were in the grain fields. The disciples got hungry and helped them selves to some grain. When the Pharisees saw it, they said, "Look! Your disciples are breaking the law!” Jesus knew the questioners were not sincere. They rejected Him as the Son of God, and the motive behind their attack was simply to discredit Him and His follow ers. In the same way today, people raise "moral” issues that take the focus off their own disbelief and hide their insecurity about their non-existent relationship with the Redeemer. The real question isn’t whether you mow your lawn on Sunday, but whether you’ve reponded to the salvation offer of the Redeemer. We invite you to come join us for growth and worship at Nehalem Valley Bible Church. All ages meet for Sunday School at 10:00 a.m. and for Service at 11:00 a.m. NfHMfM VALLfY BlBLf CHURCH 500 CALIFORNIA A V t., YFRNONIA • 50^-429-5578 • PASTOR JtRRY JAMFS CURRfNTLY MHT1WG AT TTK YTRNONLA H£AD START BUILDING
