 The Tobacco Settlement Endowment Trust (TSET) met with leaders from cities and towns across the state at this year’s Oklahoma Municipal League (OML) conference earlier this month. TSET shared a wealth of resources, including information about TSET Healthy Incentive Grants. These grants are designed to encourage the adoption of policies that promote tobacco-free environments, good nutrition, active lifestyles and employee wellness and fund projects that contribute to healthy built environments.
TSET presented checks of $36,000 each to the cities of Boley, Antlers, Pocola, Chouteau and Muldrow for a variety of projects including a farmers' market, ADA compliant playground equipment, a basketball court and splashpad. Grants can also be used to repair and restore areas that have experienced decay. TSET Executive Director Julie Bisbee explains, “by simply fixing streetlights and creating safe places for the communities to play, you can break down barriers and give everyone the same capacity to engage in healthier lifestyles.”
Healthy Incentive Grant applications for communities opens November 1. For more information, visit our resource page or contact Laura Matlock, program manager, at lauram@tset.ok.gov.
FROM THE JOURNAL RECORD:
Awareness is the first step towards change. The month of September marks two campaigns aimed at increasing awareness in public health: Childhood Obesity Month and World Heart Day. Both campaigns are focused on the impact of lifestyle on the heart and overall health.
More than 30% of Oklahoma kids aged 10 - 17 are overweight or obese, a problem that often follows them into adulthood. Obesity has wide-ranging implications and increases risk for preventable disease and death. To combat this growing epidemic, Shape Your Future and Swap Up, programs of TSET, are providing free resources to help Oklahomans address issues related to obesity early and take back control of their health.
TSET also provides free resources for anyone who needs help quitting tobacco. Heart disease is the leading cause of death in Oklahoma, and smoking contributes to 25% of heart-related deaths. However, Oklahomans can significantly reduce their risk of heart disease and stroke by quitting tobacco. Risk is reduced by half after one year and is completely eliminated after 15 years without tobacco.
Nobody needs to quit alone. Two TSET programs, the Oklahoma Tobacco Helpline (for adults) and My Life My Quit (for teens 13 - 17), offer tools and support for anyone needing help.
Connie Befort, Program Manager for TSET Healthy Incentive Program - Communities, retired this month after 10 years of service at TSET.
Connie was instrumental in the development of TSET's community programs, including Healthy Living Incentive Grants that provide funds to build parks, farmers' markets, playgrounds and more to cities across the state. Since 2012, Oklahoma communities have received more than $7.5 million in incentive grants from the program.
Connie dedicated her career to improving the health and quality of life for all Oklahomans. Prior to joining TSET, she worked at the American Lung Association and was active on policy issues at the State Capitol. She also served as Chairman of the Oklahoma Alliance on Health and Tobacco and Smoke Free Oklahoma.
Connie enjoys traveling and is excited to have more time to explore the world and spend time with her friends, family and beloved pup. Her impact will live on in TSET’s work to improve the lives and health of all Oklahomans.
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The burnout epidemic among healthcare workers is well-documented, and the COVID-19 pandemic has exacerbated the problem to near critical levels.
The Oklahoma Hospital Association (OHA), through WorkHealthy Hospitals (WHH), a grant program of TSET, has developed the Thriving Workplace Resource Hub, with free organizational and individual resources for hospitals leaders and clinicians. They are also working to develop on-demand trainings and additional support to help address this serious problem.
Read more here.
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Episode 18 of the TSET Better Health Podcast explores the fascinating work of the Oklahoma Center for Adult Stem Cell Research (OCASCR), a program of TSET. From blindness to COVID-19, stem cell research has shown exciting promise in regenerative care. Dr. Courtney Griffin, scientific director at OCASCR and Julie Bisbee, executive director of TSET, sit down with TSET Better Health Podcast hosts to talk about this new frontier in medical research.
"Regenerative medicine is really just the study of how to take those tissues and organs
that do get damaged throughout our life, either by disease or by injury, and then how to
restore them back to their uninjured or healthy state," said Dr. Griffin. "And so as scientists around the world are finding just those right formulas of cocktails of drugs to push stem cells in the direction of healthy cells, that opens the door to then apply this stem cell knowledge and research toward any disease that we can imagine within the body."
Learn more here.
Available on TSET's website and everywhere podcasts are listened to: Spotify, TuneIn, Stitcher, PodBean, Google Podcasts and Apple Podcasts.
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