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November 17, 2022
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Dear Colleagues,
November is a time to reflect, remember, and give thanks. When I reflect on all we’ve accomplished at BPHC this year – despite new challenges and a third year of the COVID-19 pandemic – I’m extremely grateful for the BPHC team and all you do.
In case you haven’t seen it yet, the Surgeon General’s recently published “Framework for Workplace Mental Health and Well-being” is also on my mind. One of his five Essentials is “mattering at work.” While you’ve heard it before – it bears repeating again: Our work matters. It matters to health centers, and to the patients and communities that they serve.
This year, I had a number of opportunities to engage with many health center leaders and staff in person for the first time since 2019. At every meeting, I heard stories about their experiences serving their communities throughout the many changes of the COVID-19 pandemic. I also heard the same two words over and over: “THANK YOU.”
These were not thanks to me, but rather thanks to all of BPHC for your continuous support this year, and in the past two years. This Thanksgiving, join me in taking great pride in the work we do.
I want to close with an important reminder that it’s not just only about the work – it’s also about you: Week after week, you give us your best to make BPHC successful. I know that often means other important things take a back seat. During this winter holiday season, and throughout the coming year, please make your health and well-being a priority. Take time to take care of yourself, to do things that restore your energy, refresh, and recenter you.
I wish you and your loved ones a relaxing and safe holiday!
With heartfelt gratitude,
Tonya Bowers
Acting Associate Administrator
Bureau of Primary Health Care
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What's New
Jim Macrae Wins Presidential Rank Award
Congratulations to Jim Macrae for receiving the 2022 Presidential Rank Award — Distinguished Service, the highest recognition in the Senior Executive Service! He joins 11 senior career HHS employees who received presidential rank awards in other categories. Read about Jim and the HHS winners on the Presidential Rank Award Program page on the HHS intranet.
“Jim is an amazing leader whose contributions to our mission and the nation’s health have changed the way health care is delivered, making it more equitable and accessible in communities that have been underserved for far too long. He’s also just an incredibly generous and kind colleague to us all,” said HRSA Administrator Carole Johnson. “Jim will be the first to say that this award reflects the outstanding work of the entire BPHC team and the dedicated public servants across HRSA.”
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2022 Federal Benefits Open Season
Federal Benefits Open Season is underway! This is your once-a-year opportunity to change, cancel, or enroll in health, dental, and vision coverage, as well as enroll or re-enroll in the Federal Flexible Spending Account (FSAFEDS). The season ends on Monday, December 12.
If you are satisfied with your current health, dental, or vision plan, you do not need to take any action — your enrollment will continue automatically. However, if you want to continue enrollment in FSAFEDS, you must affirmatively re-enroll.
If you’d like to enroll in a new plan or make changes, visit the following websites:
Changes made during Open Season will be effective on Sunday, January 1, 2023.
Here are some of the many tools available to help you make decisions:
Virtual Benefits Fair and Webinars
Visit the Benefeds website for information on opportunities for you to get information live and to ask questions.
HRSA’s Office of Human Resources’ 2022 Open Season Benefits SharePoint site
- FAQs
- Information on insurance premiums
- Plan comparison tools
- On-demand insurance carrier videos/webinars
Office of Personnel Management’s Benefits Open Season Website for Active Federal Employees
FSAFEDS
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Newsletter Deadline Changes Next Week
We will not publish a BPHC Insider next week. Newsletter submission deadlines are changed for Thanksgiving:
- For the December 1 Insider, submissions must be approved by COB on Tuesday, November 22.
- For the November 29 Digest, submissions must be approved by COB on Wednesday, November 23.
We’ll hold late submissions for the subsequent issue. If you have questions or concerns, please email the Digest or Insider mailbox.
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Native American Heritage Month and DEIA Summit
In November, we recognize Native American Heritage Month, which is an opportunity to celebrate the rich and diverse cultures, traditions, and histories of American Indians and Alaska Natives.
Learn more about Native American Heritage Month, as well as the rich histories and contributions of Indigenous peoples past and present:
Interested in learning more about Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility (DEIA)? Register for the upcoming 2022 DEIA Summit: A Whole-of-Government Approach to Disability Employment. The purpose of this year’s Summit is to model a whole-of-government approach to integrate disability employment across all areas of DEIA in the federal workforce. Questions about the Summit? Email the OPM Disability Employment Program at DisabilityEmployment@opm.gov.
Tuesday, December 6, through Thursday, Dec. 8
9:30 a.m.-4:15 p.m. ET
Registration page
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CFC Updates
BPHC Virtual Turkey Trot
This Thanksgiving, let’s take the opportunity to move our bodies! Join us for our virtual BPHC Turkey Trot! Let your CFC office keyworker know you want to participate so they can put your name on the sign-up sheet:
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OHCPM: Pamela Fountain & Vanessa Jones
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OHCIO: Michelle Parker
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OPPD: Tirzah McClinton
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OQI: Zaneta Clarke and Yardia Ruffin
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OSBO: Jasmine Hawkins and Thailaya Haynesworth
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OAA: Matthania Volmy
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DWM: Annette Nelson
The office that logs the most miles at the end of the Turkey Trot gets a feature in the BPHC Insider!
Finish your run or walk by COB Monday, November 28. Snap a photo and upload it to the 2022 BPHC Turkey Trot Photo Album. In the file name, tell us who you are and what cause you care about. Use this format: Name_Cause. For example JaneDoe_AnimalRights. (Do not name a specific charity.)
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Giving Tuesday CFC Charity Fair at 5600
Join your colleagues at 5600 Fishers Lane and meet a diverse group of CFC charities. Charities will bring resources and share information on how CFC donations impact their mission to help those in need.
Tuesday, November 29
9:00-11:00 a.m. ET
Atrium
Regardless of whether or not you attend the fair, consider a donation to the CFC on Giving Tuesday. Register and make your pledge today. Remember to use the BPHC Donation Number: 6J8H1Q, to ensure that BPHC receives the credit for your donation. See our CFC bulletin for information on how to donate to a cause that is meaningful to you.
For questions about the CFC campaign, go to HRSA’s CFC site or contact BPHC CFC coordinators Talia Shepheard or Andrew Westrum.
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5600 Fishers Lane Mac And Cheese Bakeoff Competition
Do you have the best macaroni and cheese in town – or at least at Fishers Lane? Represent HRSA in a competition against AHRQ, SAMHSA, and IHS. Contact Talia Shepheard if you’d like to enter. You’ll need to bring your mac and cheese and a serving utensil. Organizers will provide other supplies. Everyone is invited to taste the entries and vote for their favorite.
Tuesday, November 29
2:30-3:30 p.m. ET
Atrium, Pavilions B and C
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Take 5 to Thrive: 5 Tips to Recharge
Leave behind the stress of work and make the upcoming holidays a time to unwind. Use the time to strengthen relationships and make new friends. Try these five tips to recharge:
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Clear your mind by taking a screen vacation (TV, phone, computer). Spend time outdoors, at a museum exhibit, at a concert, or at a sports event.
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Take care of your body. Eat healthy foods. Maintain a regular sleep schedule. Go for a daily walk or run. Practice yoga or mediation. Collect your family health history.
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Journal. Write down your thoughts or reflect on the past year. If you’re a parent, keep diaries about each of your children to gift to them as adults. If you’re a grandparent, send a postcard or a recording of yourself telling a story to your grandchildren.
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Limit your commitments. It’s OK to say “no.” Spend time trying a new recipe, catching up on a good book, or doing a hobby you enjoy.
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Practice gratitude. Write a letter or call someone to tell them you are grateful for them. Do a favor for someone you are grateful for or volunteer with a local charity.
HRSA’s WorkLife Programs page offers resources to help improve your physical and emotional well-being. Here is more information about two of them:
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Worklife4You is a 24/7 personalized assistance program that provides guidance and resources on health and wellness (800-222-0364; TTY: 888-262-7848; username hrsa, password hrsa). You can request a “Be Well Kit,” which includes digital wellness guides and free products mailed to your home, such as a self-care guide, a pedometer, and a stretching poster. To find kits on other topics, type “kits” into the search bar on the site.
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Getting to Know: Policy
This monthly column will help you better understand functional areas (formerly known as divisions) across BPHC and how they work together to support our mission.
Today’s column features OPPD’s Policy. Read the complete interview with Policy leaders, excerpted below.
Tell me about how Policy’s work relates to BPHC’s mission? Policy supports consistency throughout the Health Center Program. For example, we developed and regularly update the Health Center Program Site Visit Protocol (SVP), a tool that supports BPHC staff and health centers in applying policy when they conduct or undergo operational site visits. A major part of Policy’s role is to ensure there is clarity for staff throughout BPHC in applying the Health Center Program requirements. Through our policy documents and resources, we explain the statutes and regulations that form the basis for program requirements in a way that (hopefully) makes sense to both BPHC staff as well as health centers. This helps health center leadership apply this knowledge to their practical day-to-day activities to ensure compliance with program requirements, and supports BPHC staff in managing this compliance.
We also work with others across BPHC. Some examples include working with our OPPD Expansion and Ongoing Investments functional areas to ensure that notices of funding opportunities are consistent with policy; collaborating with OSBO’s Systems functional area to develop the content in HRSA’s Electronic Handbooks and other online systems used by BPHC staff and health centers to manage Health Center Program activities; and teaming up with OHCPM on a variety of compliance resources, including updating and rolling out the SVP.
What jobs are similar to the role you play in BPHC? We are like air traffic controllers directing people where they need to go. We provide guidance to policy inquiries by directing people to the legislative citations or other resources like the Health Center Compliance Manual. Through guidance, we support internal and external stakeholders to ensure they understand how policy impacts their work.
If Policy was a person, place, or thing, what would it be? We are like Alexa. Ask Alexa, ask Policy! No question is a bad question.
Read other columns in the Getting to Know Functional Areas series and email BPHC Insider to request an interview of your leadership to feature your functional area in a future Getting to Know column.
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