Sage Advice Newsletter - Winter 2023

Minnesota Department of Health sent this bulletin at 03/01/2023 04:27 PM CST
Sage - Minnesotas Cancer Screening Program

Sage Advice Newsletter 

Winter 2023

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February is Heart Health Month

Red Heart

Hennepin Health Richfield Clinic Rocked the Red for their Go RED Day on Feb. 10. Staff wore red and participated in a Zumba demonstration provided by Catherine Molinett of CM’s Fitness and Dance Studio in Richfield to kick-off Zumba being offered as another Health Behavior Support Service (HBSS) for patients enrolled in SagePlus. All of this was to celebrate Heart Health Month and to create awareness about heart disease in women.  

Heart disease and stroke cause 1 in 3 deaths among women each year. Many women don’t know they have heart disease. The most common heart attach symptom in women is chest pain or discomfort. However, women are more likely than men to experience other symptoms like shortness of breath, nausea/vomiting, and back or jaw pain.  

Women can lower their risk for cardiovascular disease by managing their cholesterol, blood pressure and blood sugar, staying active, not smoking, reducing alcohol intake, getting enough sleep, managing stress, and eating healthy.   

SagePlus helps with their heart risks by offering free health and behavior health screenings and enrolling them in lifestyle change programs like Zumba, Yoga, Walk with Ease, nutrition sessions, diabetes education classes, health coaching, and others. SagePlus is for women between the ages of 40 and 64, who are uninsured or underinsured and meet income guidelines, and who have recently had a breast or cervical cancer screening. Some of these interventions are offered at the clinic and some are offered in the community.  Women have options.   

There are some simple things you can do to be heart healthy. Learn more about heart disease on the MDH website.

For more information about SagePlus, visit mnsage.com or call 1-888-6HEALTH. 

Community Conversations

Did you know March is Colorectal Cancer Awareness Month? Join AICAF during our Community Conversations series happening throughout March and receive a $5 Starbucks gift card!

Sign up for Community Conversations here.

Link to Blue Beads Conversation Flyer

Virtual Cancer Support Circle

AICAF is excited to host their Virtual Cancer Support Circles facilitated by Patty Bird (she/they) on Thursdays from February to June starting at 6 p.m. CT! Support Circles are open to Indigenous cancer survivors, caregivers, and other relatives impacted by cancer. Register for Virtual Cancer Support Circles here. 

For questions or more information please email AICAF at health@aicaf.org. 

Link to Support Circle Flyer

New Sage Logos - Coming Soon!

Sage Programs has been working with a   graphic design firm for the past year to develop an updated Sage logo! The refreshed logo is meant to represent wisdom and life, and is a unique blend of MDH and Sage branding. Sage will also have new brochures and other materials that partners will be able to print for their own use. There will be a full guide with instructions on how to use the new logo for co-branding materials. More details coming soon! 

Celebrating Cervical Cancer Prevention and Awareness Month

Lowry Bridge

 

This year, Governor Walz proclaimed January as Cervical Cancer Prevention and Awareness Month. 

Click here to view Governor Walz's proclamation.

In recognition of this month, nine different landmarks agreed to light their buildings teal on Jan. 17 including the 35W Bridge, the Lowry Bridge, Allianz Field, Target Field, US Bank Stadium, IDS Tower, Capella and Water towers in Eagan and Eden Prairie.  Cervical cancer survivors joined together for an “At Your Cervix” reception in Minneapolis to commemorate the lighting and to celebrate the news that cervical cancer incidence is down 65% among women under age 25. The American Cancer Society attributes this decrease to HPV vaccination.  

For more information about HPV vaccination, we encourage you to visit www.cancer.org/healthy/hpv-vaccine 

Reviewing Sage Enrollment Forms

Upon completion of the Sage Screening Program patient visit, the clinic must:

  1. Complete the Visit Summary portion of the Sage Enrollment Form on pg. 4
  2. Retain a copy of the Sage Enrollment Form
  3. Mail the original document to the Sage Screening Program within 2 weeks of the date of service 

Likewise, the results from imaging services, cervical services, and procedures must be turned in to Sage promptly. This step is essential to ensure Sage will pay for the women’s services and save women from receiving medical bills.

Please note, the Sage Screening Program will not accept forms later than 120 days after the date of the office visit/service.

Timely Sage Form Submission

Please ensure the following items are completed on the 4-page Sage Enrollment Form before submission to Sage. Incomplete forms will be returned to the clinic for correction and re-submission.  

  • Patient signature (pg.1)  
  • Items number 1,2,4,5-8,17,18,19 (pg. 2)  
  • Visit Summary (pg. 4)  

Updated Eligibility Criteria for 2023

See below for 2023 updated Household Income Eligibility:

 

Household Size 

Annual 

Monthly 

Weekly 

1 

$36,450 

$3,038 

$701 

2 

$49,300 

$4,108 

$948 

3 

$62,150 

$5,179 

$1,195 

4 

$75,000 

$6,250 

$1,442 

5 

$87,850 

$7,321 

$1,689 

6 

$100,700 

$8,392 

$1,937 

Welcoming New Sage Staff

Haley Headshot

Haley Storms-Kruchten is excited to be taking on the role of Clinical Services Coordinator for the Sage Programs. Most recently, Haley has spent the last several years leading the Faribault Public School District through the COVID-19 pandemic. She also has more than five years of experience as an Oncology Clinical Research Coordinator, working in oncology clinics throughout the metro area.  

In this role, Haley will be focusing on strengthening the many relationships the Sage Program has built with their clinic partners. She’ll be acting as a general resource providing onboarding assistance to clinic staff and offering webinars on a variety of topics when needed.  

For those of you who previously worked with Liz Wilson-Lopp, you'll now be communicating with Haley! Feel free to reach out to Haley at haley.storms@state.mn.us with general questions or to introduce yourself. 

Carlie Koberstine recently joined the Sage Program in the role of Clinical Services Consultant. Carlie spent the last four years at the American Lung Association in the Clean Air Division. She also has several years of experience as an Office Manager at a chiropractic clinic and Dietary Supervisor at an assisted living facility.  

In this role, Carlie will be a resource for clinics navigating the Sage Programs. She will provide technical assistance to clinics regarding screening guidelines, screening recruitment, and anything else to increase clinics’ success with the program.  

For those of you who previously worked with Elizabeth Lando-King, you’ll now be working with Carlie. Please feel free to reach out to Carlie at carlie.koberstine@state.mn.us for general questions or to introduce yourself. 

 Carlie Headshot

Learn more about our Cancer Screening Quality Improvement (CSQI) Program

In addition to the direct screening programs offered by the Sage Program, MDH also has a quality improvement program that focuses on facilitating changes in clinic operations that can increase cancer screening rates. The CSQI Program (formally called the Systems Change Program) provides grant funding to primary care clinics to help support the implementation of evidence-based interventions that have been demonstrated to increase breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening rates within their clinic population.  The CSQI Program works with clinics serving communities disproportionately burdened by cancer (e.g., African Americans, American Indians, the uninsured and underinsured, rural residents).  

There are four EBIs that clinics can chose to implement; two are provider-focused and two are patient-focused: 

  • Provider-focused  
    • Provider assessment and feedback 
    • Provider reminders 
  • Patient-focused  
    • Patient reminders 
    • Reducing structural barriers 

Combining patient-focused interventions with provider-focused interventions may best improve screening rates. Partner clinics are implementing or enhancing implementation of at least two EBIs as a part of their grant with the CSQI Program. Future newsletter articles will describe the EBIs in more detail, highlight partner clinic work and share updates from the CSQI Program.  

For more information on our CSQI Program, please contact michelle.brasure@state.mn.us.