Gov. Pritzker shuts down all schools starting Tuesday #COVID19

[VIDEO] All K-12 schools in this state and this includes Chicago Public School have been shut down by the state of Illinois effective next Tuesday and classes are expected to resume at the end of the month March 30, 2020. Check out this statement from CPS and below is an ig post from CPS regarding this closure.

CTA's response to coronavirus

I've witnessed this one morning on my commute to work on the CTA Red Line a worker at least on the head car wiping down seats and hand rails. CTA is showing us their response to the coronavirus which has caused the cancellation of the downtown St. Patrick's Day parade.

Read more about CTA's response below. And I'm glad to know there will be no drastic changes to service as authorities continue to deal with the outbreak. Good for those who depend on public transit.

Our crews continue to work all hours of the day to ensure trains, buses and stations are cleaned and disinfected daily.

Learn more on what we’re doing at: https://t.co/ZiZcINrAHf pic.twitter.com/DHo6wYGiO4

— cta (@cta) March 11, 2020

In the state so far there have been 25 confirmed cases of coronavirus in Illinois. It was in the news that a CPS employee was one of those 25 confirmed cases. I hope everyone take whatever precautions you can I've heard wash your hands the most among other things as far as avoiding this virus.

Be careful out there has been quite the operative term on this blog as of late.

Block Club Chi: After Losing A Friend To Suicide, Englewood Woman Starts Company To Get Black Chicagoans Talking About Mental Health

I truly wish this young lady the best of luck in this endeavor. Hopefully what she does will get Black Chicagoans to talk about mental illness

Three years ago, Englewood native and marketing professional BreAnna Moss lost a close friend to suicide.

While grieving, she wondered what she could do to get communities of color to open up about mental health issues.

“He was one of those people who lit up a room no matter where he was and he was one of those people you could lean on and dump all of your stuff on,” Moss said of her friend. “He would give you great advice, wonderful advice, and we just thought he had really thick skin and didn’t know he was going through so much with PTSD and other traumas that may have happened both in the military and before because he grew up in Chicago.”

The stigma surrounding mental health runs deep in her neighborhood, Moss said, and she knew there needed to be a new approach to speaking with communities of color about these issues. Her idea? Use music and poetry to get people talking.

“Mental health and mental wellness is stigmatized in Black and Brown communities,” she said. “We don’t talk about it. We push folks to go to church. I’m not saying church is not a place you can go but we kind of push people to go to church first when sometimes you need an approach that includes praying, an approach that includes a physician — a doctor — someone who is objective about the situation that can speak to you and talk you through some things.”


Moss, 25, officially launched her marketing and consulting firm, Fresh Kulture, in March. She said her goal is to connect clients with Millennial audiences and create events centered around music, poetry and collective healing.

Heartland Alliance Health South Side Health Center Grand Opening

This information was sent to the blog sometime last week

• Heartland Alliance Health has opened a new healthcare center at the corner of Halsted and Garfield. On Friday, July 20, 2018 come check it out at their Heartland Alliance Englewood Health Center Grand opening celebration.
  
  This organization has worked hard to build a health center that will address many of the health- related issues people in the community often face - including primary medical, substance use treatment, mental health/psychiatry, insurance assistance, medical case management, specialty referral care, and chronic disease management including HIV/AIDS care. Walk-ins are welcome. EVERYONE is welcome.
  

The grand opening is set to take place
Friday, July 20, 2018
1:30 PM to 4:40 PM
Englewood Health Center
5501 S. Halsted Street

Here's a number to call for an appointment though for further information also (773) 275-2586

Here's another flyer for more details.

Capitol Fax: “There is a greater racial gap in infant mortality rates today than there was during slavery in America”

From a press release you might've seen at Capitol Fax:

U.S. Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), along with U.S. Representatives Robin Kelly (D-IL-02), Jan Schakowsky (D-IL-09), Bobby Rush (D-IL-01), Mike Quigley (D-IL-05), Cheri Bustos (D-IL-17), Danny Davis (D-IL-07), Brad Schneider (D-IL-10), and Bill Foster (D-IL-11) today pressed Governor Bruce Rauner on what steps his Administration is currently taking—or plans to take—to improve maternal and infant health outcomes in Illinois, as well as to reduce the stark racial disparities.

The United States is one of only 13 developed countries in the world where the rate of maternal mortality—the death of a woman related to pregnancy or childbirth either during pregnancy or up to a year after the end of the pregnancy—is worse today than it was 25 years ago. Each year, an estimated 700 to 900 women nationwide now die as a result of pregnancy or childbirth, with black women significantly more likely than white women to die from pregnancy related causes. In 2016, Illinois had more than 150,000 births, with 72 pregnancy-associated maternal deaths and 985 infant deaths. In Illinois, black women have 3.5 times higher mortality rates than white women and black infants have nearly 3 times higher mortality rates than white infants—far worse than the national average.

“The United States is one of the very few developed countries where deaths related to pregnancy or childbirth are increasing—and there is a greater racial gap in infant mortality rates today than there was during slavery in America. This is simultaneously unacceptable and heart-breaking,” the members wrote. “More must be done to help women and infants across Illinois—especially black mothers and babies—and we look forward to hearing what your Administration plans to do to assist in these efforts.”

Woah!  

We have an Athletico Physical Therapy location in our area

We got this pic from a manager at the local Athletico Physical Therapy office at 8301 S. Holland Road, Unit A. They just wanted us to let the community know that they're in the area and are one of the options for physical therapy nearby.

Lead testing at CPS

In light of recent social media and blog posts about maintenance issues and lead issues at city schools we now see stories about lead testing of drinking water. Of course in an earlier post about lead poisoning shared here on this blog it was over lead based paint in some older schools.

The Sun-Times and DNA Info shares articles on this and also a listing of those schools tested for lead via CPS. In addition at DNA Info you see a google map that show which schools have testing positive for lead and those that have tested negative.

Also, the lead poisoning testing was noted on Capitol Fax in a post on Thursday where north side legislators and educators invited Governor Rauner to tour a school. Unfortunately this invitation was noted as a "stunt".

Because there is still no budget from Springfield CPS can't say if they are going to have summer school this year also via Capitol Fax. We also see a further debate regarding charter schools or even newer charter or otherwise.

DNA Info: Chatham Methadone Clinic Meets With Local Group Over Complaints

So the Chatham methadone clinic is in the news once again:

The clinic, Nuway Community Services, 110 E. 79th St., was the subject of a neighborhood meeting in January, where residents complained of clients loitering and littering, which is bringing down the overall quality of the community. Violence is also a concern.

Jerry Davis-EL, a certified alcohol and drug addiction counselor at Nuway, said he has been meeting with a group organized by the Greater Chatham Alliance since April.

Davis-EL said that the clinic has addressed the early morning loitering problem but added that if the community knew the clients better there would be less tension.

“We need to let [neighbors] know these people are human,” he said referring to the clinic’s clients. “We have to show them some love, be transparent and let them know we’re here for them.”

Davis-EL, who has been meeting with Greater Chatham Alliance vice presdent Cee Powell, wants to see a health screening bus as well as a back-to-school drive to benefit the area. He wants to have both toward the end of August.

“My thing is, if you’re in this community, you need to give back; let’s look at the real issue, which is these people need some hope,” Davis-EL said.

Here's hoping some progress will continue to made on this issue. Here's hoping that the community knows more about what this clinic does for their clients.

Progress IL: No Trauma Center, No Obama Presidential Library

Overtime on this blog, we have written about the need for a trauma center on the south side. The last time you might have seen a story here about that was in November when there had been a march highlighting this issue. Activists on the south side had a meeting regarding a trauma center recently:

A coalition of South Side residents and community groups is pushing back against the University of Chicago over its bid for the coveted Barack Obama presidential library and museum.

At a townhall meeting Thursday night, dozens of South Side residents delivered a stern message to the university: No trauma center, no Obama library.

Members of the Trauma Care Coalition, which hosted Thursday's meeting, said the university has an obligation to its community to improve access to emergency health services. If the university is interested in building the much sought-after Obama library, it should also make reopening its adult trauma center a top priority, according to the South Side activists.

The University of Chicago opened a Level 1 adult trauma center back in 1986, but closed it in 1988 in an effort to cut costs. Currently, there are no Level 1 adult trauma facilities on the city’s South Side. And that forces seriously injured people to travel miles away to other parts of the city for medical care.

The University of Chicago currently runs a trauma center for children up to age 16 at Comer Children’s Hospital, and activists have been demanding that the age limit for those accepted at the facility be raised to 21.

"We're not against the Obama library because we feel like it will bring great resources to the neighborhood, but we also feel that (university officials) need to get their priorities straight," said Trauma Care Coalition member Victoria Crider, a leader with Fearless Leading by the Youth (FLY). "Before they can build such a prestigious attraction, they need to prioritize the lives of the young black people who are dying around them. We've been knocking on the university's door to get a trauma center for almost four years, and we've barely got their attention."

Progress IL: South Siders March To U Of Chicago Hospital In Demand Of A Trauma Center

Photo via Progress IL

It seems from time to time this blog has noted the subject of trauma centers on the south side of town. There aren't any at all and that's the subject of this post from Progress Illinois. This took place on Wednesday and participants marched to the University of Chicago hospital to protest this very fact. Here's the reasoning for a trauma center on this part of town:

Currently, South Sides residents that need treatment for traumatic injuries have to travel long distances to a hospital on the North or West Sides of the city or the suburbs. In an area with a high concentration of trauma cases, particularly due to gun violence, experts and activists say the consequences of such long travels can be dire, costing lives. At the hearing, Dr. Marie Crandall of Northwestern University, who last year published research showing the link between mortality rates and travel times, said gunshot victims more than five miles away from a trauma center have a 21 percent higher mortality rate.

Sun-Times: Rush calls for federal funds to create more trauma centers

Let's hope Rush is able to get this bill through Congress and is able to get some of this money into his district:

In an effort to fix what he called a “dire” need for a South Side Level 1 trauma center, U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush (D-Ill.) has introduced a bill to provide $100 million to create more trauma centers.

Rush said he recognizes that $100 million isn’t enough to sustain the many areas that need trauma centers. But he said that it’s a start.

The bill, called the Trauma Act, was introduced in the U.S. House two weeks ago. A vote has not yet been called.

If the bill is passed, the money would be allocated to trauma deserts around the country, including Chicago. Trauma deserts are those that do not have a trauma center within a reasonable distance, such as five miles.

A Level 1 trauma center provides the highest level of surgical care to trauma patients. Lower-level trauma centers and other hospitals may not have the doctors they need to treat more serious injuries, such as car accidents or gunshot wounds.

Chicago has four Level 1 trauma centers: John H. Stroger Jr Hospital of Cook County and Mount Sinai Hospital on the West Side and Advocate Illinois Masonic Medical Center and Northwestern Memorial Hospital on the North Side.

The withdrawal of the now-closed Michael Reese Hospital from Illinois’ trauma network in 1990 — two years after the University of Chicago Medical Center did the same — has left Chicago’s South Side without a Level 1 trauma center for adults south of 15th Street or east of Western.

Tribune: State gives Roseland Community Hospital another lifeline

Last month Roseland Hospital located at 45 W. 111th St was the subject of many news stories involved a potential closure and it's finances. At the tail-end we found out that it's CEO was no longer on the job (either fired or resigned) and that ultimately it got $350,000 from the state according to the Sun-Times.

More recently this hospital noted as a place where the under-insured and uninsured can receive treatment is getting some more money from the state:

With the dawn of a new fiscal year, Illinois has again advanced Roseland Community Hospital a round of supplemental payments that will help the beleaguered Far South Side hospital's safety net afloat for at least a few more weeks.

Bill Brandt, the chairman of the Illinois Finance Authority, said the state “advanced everything it could” earlier this week so the hospital “can preserve the status quo and ensure minimum health and safety standards are met while everyone continues to try to figure out a longer-term plan to keep Roseland open in some form.”

The amount of the payments wasn’t immediately available, but Brandt said the money should be enough for the hospital to continue paying its employees and accepting patients for at least the next three weeks.

The reprieve grants a new chief restructuring officer and a team of financial analysts additional time to assess whether the hospital, with its deepening financial woes, will be able to continue on as a going concern.

Officials from the governor’s office, the hospital and a team of crisis management and financial restructuring experts are working to determine what role Roseland can play in the community -- whether it can remain an acute-care, full-service hospital or whether its services need to be scaled back. 

It was noted that the Roseland has been in talks with the University of Illinois Hospital and Health Sciences System and Loretto Hospital located on Chicago's West Side unfortunately when the extent of Roseland's financial issues was known talks had broken off. It was estimated that "the hospital needs at least $17 million in the near term to pay down mounting debt and meet current obligations."

What's going at the Roseland Hospital?

[VIDEO] Perhaps it's time to look at Roseland Hospital a little more closely. Yesterday's post I focused on the financial picture officials at the hospital alleged that the state owed them money. It's been reported over the years that the state hasn't paid social service providers at the very least.

Well there's more to this story than that. It's also alleged that the hospital has mismanaged their financial resources. Whatever is going on at the Roseland the threat is out there that they may close and also forced to transfer their patients to other nearby hospitals.

All the same, this situation cost the President of the hospital her job. While it seems she was the one who pointed the finger to Gov. Pat Quinn others may point the finger at her for the financial mismanagement at the hospital. Tuesday was her last day at work and has reportedly tendered her resignation weeks ago according to ABC 7. However, it was reported that she had been escorted from the hospital although sources there claim that isn't true. Of course being escorted sends a different message than tendering a resignation long in advance.

Also, the Tribune wrote more about the financial picture of the hospital. The ex-President of Roseland Hospital's financial numbers were disputed it was estimated at first the state owed the privately run hospital $6 million, but later issued a statement as inaccurate. The state had issued an advance supplemental payment of $958,240 to the hospital.

In the meanwhile, it's reported that state officials have been meeting with the administration of Roseland Hospital for the last six weeks. Also as a result of this news there was a rally that took place outside the Thompson Center and of course protests near the hospital as well in fact one was reported on late last month by ABC 7.

Let's hope the hospital will remain afloat. Especially for the ones who need health care services and doesn't have insurance. Especially for those who need emergency care in a short amount of time. What's especially noted is Roseland's crime rate and as a result the need for emergency care before going to another hospital for further treatment.

NBC Chicago: South Side Hospital Ordered to Move Patients

The reason why patients are being moved from Roseland Hospital is because they're expected to close and will not be admitting any more patients. In reading this article, it's not clear who's ordering the hospital to move patients, however it's clear whom the hospital is pointing the finger at for the financial issues:

The Far South Side hospital reported a $2 million deficit at the end of the 2011 fiscal year and faces closure as they prepare to move their patients.

Hospital officials said they were expecting the state to repay them what they claim they are owed, and that they are devastated by the moving notice.

“I’ve seen this hospital do a lot for this community,” said hospital employee Paulette Perry. “I love my job.”

Community members, workers and union leaders protested the closure last week and rallied again Monday, saying Roseland is the only hospital within an eight-mile radius, and is a lifeline to the South Side community members.

“If there’s nothing here at all, period, then where are they going to go? Just lie in the street and die?" one protester said.

The Roseland Coalition, a community group, said closing the hospital would put nearly 50,000 people in the community at risk and 600 employees could lose their jobs.

The hospital let go 60 workers two weeks ago due to the lack of funding and activists are calling on Governor Quinn to use emergency funds to save the center.

The hospital said they will stop accepting patients Wednesday and said Monday they are sending Quinn a bill once more stating they are owed $6 million from the last four years

In an e-mail where this article was sent was this editorial quote: "Roseland needs a Trauma Center not a hospital closing". Also Roseland Hospital is in a medical district which is expected to revitalize that area, however, it seems to be made difficult with a hospital in the red. Also it has been noted that trauma centers are in very short supply in neighborhoods throughout Chicago's south side.

Here's more required reading. CBS2 also talked about the financial picture of Roseland Hospital last month and Gov. Quinn was said to be concerned about the financial picture and also noted the hospital as part of a medical district. One can only hope that a solution is in the works.

Capitol Fax: Senators call for Hamos ouster

Our state Senator Donne Trotter has attached his name to a letter posted to the Capitol Fax blog that express the lack of confident in the leadership of  the state Department of Healthcare and Family Services (HFS) Director Julie Hamos. His name is attached along with his colleague Sen. Martin Sandoval in speaking for the "unified sentiment of our respective caucuses". The respective caucuses being the Black and Latino Caucuses of the IL state Senate. The letter mainly cites the budget cutting that has claimed many healthcare and mental health services and their affect on the Black and Latino communities of this state.

The former Williams Clinic

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What you see above is a Google Streetview of the former Williams Clinic located at 408 E. Marquette Road. It was operated by a family of Black doctors and it seemed they offered a number of services at this clinic including a dentist and a pharmacy. In fact here's an obituary for one of the Williams brothers who originally founded the clinic.

Recently I drove by and it hits me that the clinic is close to the motel near Marquette Road & King Drive that had been recently demolished thanks to the activism of a local minster Corey Brooks - who incidentally was interested in succeeding Jesse Jackson Jr. for the 2nd congressional district seat. In driving by, on that motel property was a rendition of how the new community center Brooks hope to build would look.

Then it also hit me, I wonder if Brooks might find a way to thrown in some health care services at his future community center. Indeed perhaps he could find a way to take over the Williams Clinic property which is currently a church.

I do wish to know what happened to Williams Clinic. My dad used to patronize their practice back in the day and continued to do so until it appears that the Williams family were no longer involved in that business. I'm not entirely certain when they closed but surely someone could fill in some details.

BTW, this post is going into some unfamiliar territory as far as a particular issue such as health care. Medical services are necessary no matter your income level and this area around the former clinic is considered low-income. The question to ask here is whether or not it's possible for an independent clinic such as this could exist today. Would the economics of health care today keep independent medical professionals from operating?

GCA Announcement: Free dental screenings

Here are some brief details about this event but refer to the flyer below

• The Chicago Colgate Bright Smiles, Bright Futures, Traveling Dental Bus is coming to Chatham:
  September 1, 2012
  10 am - Noon
  8245 S. King Drive
  For school age children: 5-12
  Each child will receive a take home oral health bag with educational handouts and fun tips.

GCA ANNOUNCEMENT- Barnes Walton Dental Colgates Free Dental Screenings

Walgreens offering free HIV test = June 22-24

One of our local Walgreens is one of only 3 in the city offering free HIV testing. (the others are North in Uptown and in the SouthWest, near Midway).

From the Greater Than AIDS website

In partnership with Greater Than AIDS and National HIV Testing Month, Walgreens is proud to offer FREE HIV testing at select Walgreens pharmacies on June 22-24 from 3-7PM. Check out the list of participating stores below. Don’t see a pharmacy in your area? Go to hivtest.org to find an HIV testing center location near you.
CHICAGO > AIDS

In partnership with the AIDS Foundation of Chicago
WALGREENS

5435 SOUTH KEDZIE AVENUE

(northeast corner of Kedzie & 55th)

CHICAGO, IL 60632

(773) 436-7396
WALGREENS

11 E 75TH STREET

(corner of 75th & State Streets)

CHICAGO, IL 60619

(773) 224-1211
WALGREENS

4720 N MARINE DR

(southwest corner of Marine & Lakeside)

CHICAGO, IL 60640

(773) 769-1315

http://www.greaterthan.org/2011/06/walgreens-free-hiv-testing-locations/

Free flu shots available at sites for Chicago Dept. of Health

Courtesy of ABC7 and thanks to EveryBlock for noting the sites in our community on certain days:

• Wednesday OCT. 13 Chatham Satellite Senior Center 10am-1pm 8300 S. Cottage Grove
• Thursday OCT. 21 6th Ward Office 10am-1pm 406 E. 75th Street
• Monday NOV. 1 Abbott Park Satellite Senior Center 10am-1pm 49 East 95th St.
• Wednesday NOV. 3 Mather's More Than a Café 9am-3pm 33 E 83rd St.   

You can see a complete listing of all the dates and all the sites where you can get a free shot around the city at the link to ABC7.

Also watch this video with regards to why you should get a flu shot why you shouldn't get a flu shot.

Chicago readies health care high school

You know this was the first year for a magnet engineering program at Harlan, perhaps in some of our neighborhood schools we could include a health-care profession program as well. Who says we should only institute such programs in newly constructed high schools?

Chicago Public Schools this fall will open the city's first charter high school specializing in health care, a move local hospitals hope will help relieve chronic workforce shortages.

The school, which recently used a lottery system to enroll a freshman class of 160, will have a heavy emphasis on math and science. Juniors and seniors will be able to earn credits by shadowing hospital workers and interning as assistant nurses and in other professions.

Planners aim to prepare students for health- and science-related college programs and certify them for entry-level jobs in health care, such as pharmacy technicians or assistant physical therapists.
...
The Instituto Health Sciences Career Academy will set up shop temporarily on the Chicago campus of National-Lewis University, at 122 S. Michigan Ave. It will seek a permanent site in the Pilsen neighborhood.

Instituto del Progreso Latino and the Metropolitan Chicago Healthcare Council, a trade group of hospitals and other medical providers, applied to CPS to form the school. It’s one of nearly 100 city schools formed under Renaissance 2010, the city’s six-year-old plan to open innovative schools in poor neighborhoods.