Do you have a resource or success story (“gem”) to share for a future issue? Submissions for each week’s Thursday publication are due by noon every Tuesday to Health.MakingitBetter@state.mn.us or community specialists for:
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The Minnesota Department of Health has
published a Community Health Worker (CHW) Toolkit for prospective employers.
The purpose of the
toolkit is to assist employers and organizations in planning for the hiring of
CHWs. The CHW role provides culturally-specific education, system navigation,
advocacy and outreach services to diverse communities. CHWs can improve health
outcomes for communities and individuals, reduce overall health care costs by
helping patients avoid more acute care and improve patient experience. CHWs can
also enhance relationships between communities and health systems, public
health agencies, hospitals, clinics and community-based programs.
The toolkit is now
available at http://www.health.state.mn.us/divs/orhpc/toolkit.html.
Funding for the creation of
the toolkit was provided by the Center for Medicaid and Medicare Improvement,
via the State Innovation Model (SIM) grant.
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Active Schools Minnesota video launches
OSHII has launched a
new video to promote the Active Schools Minnesota initiative.
The video highlights
why getting students moving is important and what schools can do to increase
time for students so they’re more active during the day.
SHIP grantees are
encouraged to use the video to get more schools involved in the Active Schools
Minnesota initiative.
The video features
interviews with teachers and administrators from Sebeka and Kelliher schools.
Watch the video here.
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Input Needed | Healthy
Food Retail Training | March 7-8
Date: March 7-8, 2017
Planning has begun for
the Healthy Food Retail Training. Your thoughts and input are needed to
help us plan this two-day training.
If you have a specific
topic or input on what the agenda should include, send them to Emily.Kilbourn-Shear@state.mn.us.
Watch for registration
details and
additional opportunities to give input in January.
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This is a reminder that the Power of Produce
(PoP) Club application closes on Friday, Dec. 30. Get your application in
before the deadline!
The PoP Club is a
farmers' market incentive program for children. Each week, children receive a
$2 token to spend on fresh fruits and vegetables and food plants. The goal
of the PoP Club is to empower children to independently make healthy food
choices. Its secondary goals include bringing families together to the farmers'
market, increasing the amount of fruits and vegetables children are eating at
home, and promoting the sale of fresh, locally-grown produce.
This application is intended to provide farmers' markets or partnering
organizations with the resources, funds and technical assistance to implement
the PoP Club at their respective local market.The link to this online
application is below.
PoP Club Grant
Application: https://umn.qualtrics.com/SE/?SID=SV_57widdAPvjVhiXb
Farmers' markets or local
partnering organizations, such as local public health, non-profits and
businesses, can complete the application for a local farmers market. Only one
application should be submitted per farmers' market. Farmers' markets that
don't currently offer the PoP Club are encouraged to apply.
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BikeMN, in partnership with the Minnesota
Departments of Health and Transportation, will offer Bikeable Community
Workshops in 2017 between mid-May to mid-July.
If you feel your
community is a great candidate for the workshop, please fill out the
application online. This is a competitive process, and a limited number of
communities will be selected.
Communities are
eligible if they have not had a Bikeable Community Workshop in the
past. Any questions can be directed to Kelly.Corbin@state.mn.us.
Applications are due
Jan. 9, 2017.
Application pdf and
planning guide are available here, as well as submission application: http://www.bikemn.org/collaboration/bikeable-community-workshops
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Bike Alliance of Minnesota is looking for five
new schools to host the Walk! Bike! Fun! Curriculum training in April or May of
2017.
If you would like to host a
Walk! Bike! Fun! Curriculum training during spring of the 2016-2017 school
year, complete the application here. Deadline to apply is midnight on Feb. 3,
2017.
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Webinar Wednesdays
Monthly
webinars will be held until Kick Butts Day! The webinars will cover tips and
tricks, mini-grants, additional resources that are offered to support the Kick
Butts Day events, and more.
Here's
the schedule:
Jan. 11, 2017 — Training Up to
Kick Butts
Feb. 8, 2017 — Kicking
Butts Through the Media
March 8, 2017 — Kicking
Butts Online
Click here to RSVP for webinars.
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Inspiring Bold Action: The Minnesota Tobacco
Control Conference
Date: Jan. 24-26, 2017
Location: RiverCentre, 175 Kellogg Blvd. W., St. Paul
Cost: $100
THEME
Preparing for Action:
The Next Horizon for Minnesota Tobacco Control
FOCUS AREAS
1. Eliminating Tobacco
Inequities*
2. Working Together to Take Bold Steps for Policy Change in Tobacco Control
3. Sustainability of Tobacco Control in Minnesota
OBJECTIVES
Conference
participants will leave with:
1. An understanding of
key tobacco prevention and control issues and a roadmap for collaborative
change work that sustains our long-term efforts.
2. An understanding of the important role they play in creating a state where
everyone is free from the harms of commercial tobacco.
3. An understanding of the disparities faced by commercial tobacco users and
why these inequities exist in Minnesota.
4. Confidence and a sense of urgency to use newly acquired knowledge and skills
to reduce tobacco inequities.
*Includes but is not
limited to communities of color; indigenous communities; LGBT; urban and rural
populations; those with mental illness or substance use disorders; the
homeless; those of lower socioeconomic status, as well as other groups with
persistently high tobacco use rates.
“Tobacco use” refers
to manufactured commercial tobacco in all forms (cigarettes, cigars, smokeless,
hookah, etc.), as well as all forms of electronic nicotine delivery systems
(ENDS), and not the traditional, sacred, medicinal, spiritual, or ceremonial
use of tobacco by American Indians and other groups.
Registration and
Conference Website
www.mntobaccocontrolconference.com
Register here.
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MDH and ALA are partnering to offer a limited
number of travel scholarships to SHIP grantees working on tobacco prevention
and control to attend the Statewide Tobacco Conference Jan. 24-16, 2017.
Scholarship applications, questions and communication should go directly to
Erin Simmons at erin.simmons@lung.org.
Conference Website
www.mntobaccocontrolconference.com
Scholarship
Eligibility
Because funds are
limited, there are a few eligibility requirements to be aware of. The
applicants applying must be:
- More than 60 miles from their permanent work station to
St. Paul River Centre.
- A SHIP Tier 1 grantee.
- Working on tobacco prevention in either point of sale
or smoke-free housing community setting.
We will first award
one scholarship to the eligible SHIP grantees. Please refer to the schedule
below. If funds remain, we will do a second call for eligible applications to
send additional SHIP staff or coalition member. This second round is on a first
come, first serve basis. ClearWay or TFC funded CHBs are not eligible to apply.
What is included?
- $50 Registration Fee (registration code will come from
ALA if approved for scholarship)
- Round trip mileage (Federal rate is 54 cents/mile)
- Dinner Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings
(maximum of $16 per meal and can’t include alcohol)
- Up to two nights at the Intercontinental Hotel, which
is adjacent from the conference site. (arranged directly by ALA with the
hotel on applicant’s behalf)
Reimbursement basis
only, except for hotel cost which ALA will pre-arrange and paid directly.
Timeline
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1st call for applications open Wednesday, Nov. 23; due
no later than Monday, Dec. 12.
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2nd call for applications open Tuesday, Dec. 13; due no
later than Friday, Dec. 30.
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If approved, the final reimbursement form and receipts
are due to ALA by Monday, Feb. 6.
Application Form
Please complete this
brief application and email it directly to Erin Simmons at erin.simmons@lung.org.
Date of Request:
Applicant Name:
Grant Name:
Email:
Phone:
Please use the
guidance on page one for the maximum allowable amounts per line item.
Reimbursement Basis:
Conference
Registration Fee $ ________
Approximant Mileage
Costs $ ________
Meals $ _______
Total Approx.
Requested Amount: $ ________
Pre-Arranged by ALA:
Intercontinental
Hotel, St. Paul: Check one or both nights you need a hotel.
____ Tuesday, January
24
____ Wednesday, January 25
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Minnesota
is ready with resources for residents and housing staff
The U.S. Department of
Housing and Urban Development (HUD) released a rule requiring all public
housing agencies to have a smoke-free policy within 18 months to protect
residents, staff, and visitors from secondhand smoke, reduce fire risk and
maintenance costs and provide cleaner and safer air.
These policies will
create smoke-free spaces in living units, indoor common areas and public
housing agency offices.
Minnesota is well
positioned to offer smoke-free living to all public housing residents. Most of
Minnesota’s public housing agencies already have some smoking restrictions for
their buildings or grounds. Through the Statewide Health Improvement
Partnership (SHIP), local public health agencies are working across Minnesota
to help public housing authorities set smoke-free policies and connect
residents who want to quit smoking with cessation programs.
Property managers and
directors can learn more about HUD’s new rule and get resources at Tobacco Prevention and Control.
Minnesota residents
who want to quit smoking have free access to quit-smoking tools and resources
through QUITPLAN® Services.
Young children and
older adults are most susceptible to the harms of secondhand smoke, including
increased risk of breathing problems and more frequent and severe asthma
attacks.
Secondhand smoke
causes early death and disease in both children and adults who do not smoke.
There is no safe level of exposure. Tobacco smoke contains more than 7,000
chemicals, about 70 of which are known to cause cancer. People in low- and
fixed-income groups have a greater risk of secondhand smoke exposure in their
homes than those in higher income groups.
While Minnesota banned
smoking in nearly all indoor public spaces in 2007 with the Freedom to Breathe
changes to the Minnesota Clean Indoor Air Act, these provisions did not include
smoking in individual or multi-unit housing. Minnesota’s tobacco prevention
community has been actively working to bring cleaner, safer air to all
Minnesotans living in multi-unit housing.
A new Surgeon General’s report raises
concerns about e-cigarette use among youth and young adults. The report comes
amid alarming rates of youth and young adult use of e-cigarettes; in 2015,
about 1 in 6 high school students used an e-cigarette in the past month. The
report finds that, while nicotine is a highly addictive drug at any age, youth
and young adults are uniquely vulnerable to the long-term consequences of
exposing the brain to nicotine, and concludes that youth use of nicotine in any
form is unsafe. The report also finds that secondhand aerosol that is exhaled
into the air by e-cigarette users can expose others to potentially harmful
chemicals.
Minnesota is ahead of the curve in warning
residents about the harms of e-cigarette use. In 2015 the Minnesota Department
of Health issued its Health
Advisory on the Risk of Nicotine for Children and Adolescents, which parallels
dangers highlighted in the new report. This health advisory was issued in
response to new, alarming data on e-cigarette use and related poisonings among
Minnesota youth. Recently, 2016 Minnesota Student Survey data found that 17
percent of 11th graders use e-cigarettes, which is more than double
conventional cigarette use.
The report, which was written and reviewed by
more than 150 experts, is the first comprehensive federal review of the public
health impact of e-cigarettes on U.S. youth and young adults. It also describes
industry influences on e-cigarette use and outlines potential actions to
prevent youth and young adults from the harms of e-cigarette use.
“All Americans need to know that e-cigarettes
are dangerous to youth and young adults,” said U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek
H. Murthy, in releasing the report. “Any tobacco use, including e-cigarettes,
is a health threat, particularly to young people.”
Call to Action
In light of fact that about 1 in 6 high
school students used an e-cigarette in the past 30 days in 2015, the report
recommends:
- Continuing to regulate e-cigarettes
at the Federal level to protect public health
- Raising and strongly
enforcing minimum age-of-sale laws for all tobacco products, including
e-cigarettes
- Incorporating
e-cigarettes into smoke-free policies
- Regulating e-cigarette
marketing
- Sponsoring high-impact
media campaigns to educate the public on the harms of e-cigarettes among
young people
- Expanding research
efforts related to e-cigarettes.
Learn More
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The Osteoarthritis
Action Alliance (OAAA) is pleased to release a Request for Applications for the
Walk with Ease Expansion Grants. Funding support for this effort is provided by
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Arthritis
Project.
OAAA is conducting
this mini-grant initiative to support expanded dissemination and delivery of
the evidence-based, cost effective, and arthritis-appropriate Walk With Ease (WWE) programs. Over the next five years, we
will extend WWE by reaching a minimum of 25 states that will embed the delivery
of the programs and develop models for sustainability and ongoing funding.
This year, OAAA
anticipates awarding up to eight grants for up to $7,000 each, with a project
period of up to one year. Funds may be used for instructor training fees,
purchase of workbooks, printing of marketing materials (e.g., brochures,
posters) and for administrative costs (staff support) in managing the
mini-grant project.
Email of Intent
due: Dec. 16 at 10:59 p.m.
Applications due: Jan. 20, 2017, at 10:59 p.m.
Learn more and apply here.
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This week, OSHII shared with SHIP grantees and public health directors the SHIP
Evaluation Data Summary of Annual Partner Sites and Reach Results from SHIP 4 Year 1 and a one-page infographic.
This report demonstrates that SHIP is making a significant
impact across the state.
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There are 2,287 partner sites actively working
with SHIP’s 41 grantees, covering all 87 counties and five cities, to implement
activities that expand opportunities and increase access to healthy eating,
active living and tobacco-free living.
- Significant
work is occurring across all strategy and setting areas.
The report provides a snapshot of statewide work in SHIP 4,
Year 1. Information from this report will be included in reports to SHIP
stakeholders, including the Minnesota Legislature.
The infographic is intended to give a brief overview of the
need and purpose of SHIP, as well as provide examples of SHIP activities and
reach.
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More
implementation guides updated
Two
more SHIP implementation guides have been updated and are now posted on the MDH
website.
Those
guides are for Point of Sale and Smoke-Free Housing. We’ve highlighted major
changes in yellow in the updated guides.
The guides are
posted here. Contact your Community
Specialist with questions.
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Communications | Media Relations | Active Living
Time: 8 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Feb. 1
Northeast | Grand Rapids | Itasca County Family YMCA, 400 River Road, Grand Rapids, MN 55744
Feb. 3
Metro | Northern Service Center, (Rooms 110A and 110B), One Mendota Rd. W., West St. Paul, MN 55118
Feb. 9
Northwest | Bemidji | MDH
District Office, 509 America Ave., Bemidji, MN 56601
Feb. 16
Southwest | Redwood Falls | Redwood Falls Public Library, 509 S Lincoln St., Redwood Falls, MN 56283
Mar. 2
Southeast | Rochester | Southeast Service
Cooperative, 210 Wood Lake Drive SE Rochester, MN 55904
More information coming soon.
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 No announcements this week.
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The Tobacco-Free
Communities Grant Program (TFC) funds local community grants and technical
assistance and training (TA) grants that aim to reduce and prevent youth
tobacco use and address tobacco-related disparities in Minnesota by promoting
community-driven tobacco prevention and control activities and strategies.
Community grantees
implement activities that help build community capacity, change social norms
around tobacco, and foster community readiness and support for tobacco control
policies within their communities. TA providers support community grantees by
ensuring they have the knowledge, skills, and resources to be successful in
reducing tobacco-related health disparities and the negative influence of
commercial tobacco in their communities.
2016-2021
TFC Grantees
Community Grantees
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African Immigrants Community Services
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Ain Dah Yung Center
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Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES)
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Hmong American Partnership
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Minneapolis American Indian Center
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Morrison-Todd-Wadena Community Health Board
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NAMI Minnesota (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
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Pillsbury United Communities
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Rainbow Health Initiative
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Tobacco-Free Alliance
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WellShare International
PSE Technical
Assistance and Training Grantees
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American Lung Association in Minnesota (ALA)
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Association for Nonsmokers - Minnesota (ANSR)
Learn more at http://www.health.mn.gov/tfc.
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