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| "Nashville is at a crucial juncture in its history. We are not yet a truly diverse city,
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Thursday, July 17, 2008Joseline Vasquez saved from head-sized tumor, thanks to surgery at Vanderbilt and Shalom Foundation Joseline Vasquez, a 2-year-old child from Guatemala, is at Vanderbilt Children's Hospital recovering from surgery to remove a large tumor that had grown to the same size as her head. The surgery was funded by Brentwood-based Shalom Foundation, which has a video on its site featuring Dr. Stephen Goudy, who conducted the surgery. As discussed by Dr. Goudy, the Shalom Foundation is currently focusing its donations on Guatemala. Vanderbilt Children's Hospital International Services is blogging Joseline's visit here with both stories and a slide show. WKRN and NewsChannel5 have text and video reports here and here. From NewsChannel5: A 2-year-old Guatemalan girl is recovering from surgery to remove a neck tumor at Monroe Carell Jr. Children's Hospital at Vanderbilt.Image source: Vanderbilt Children's Hospital International Services  
Monday, May 19, 2008Three arrests reveal Franklin-Mexico drug connection "Large sums of money"WSMV reports here that Franklin Police busted drug runners funneling cocaine from Mexico to Nashville and wiring "large sums of money" back to Mexico in return. Three arrests were made.A similar bust was made by Metro and Brentwood police in June 2005 (story here).
Friday, May 16, 2008Hondurans inspire Nashville teens, doctors, hospital, church Surgery, Spanish majors, call to missions result from visits to Central American nationThe Nashville City Paper reported here about Escarleth Betancourt-Gutierrez, a 15-year-old Honduran girl, and her spinal surgery in Nashville courtesy of support from Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital, Dr. James Netterville, Dr. Greg Mencio, and Harpeth Hills Church of Christ:Netterville discovered Escarleth’s condition two years ago and pulled strings to bring her to Nashville. Dr. Greg Mencio performed the spinal surgery for free and Netterville’s congregation donated the $5,000 for materials needed to perform the procedure.Young members of the Harpeth Hills congregation have been inspired by their trips to Honduras, according to this report by proud grandfather Bailey McBride: Savanna and her brother, Luke, have gone to Honduras since he was 16 and she was 13. They immediately made a connection with the children of Jovenes en Camino, an orphanage near Tegucigalpa. Through the years, they have strengthened their connections in Honduras. Both have studied Spanish in high school. Luke has recently returned from a Spanish immersion program in Costa Rica and will graduate from college with a Spanish major. Savanna will go to college this fall with five years of high school Spanish and plans to major in Spanish and prepare for a life of missions.Photo: Escarleth Betancourt-Gutierrez and her mother (source: Vanderbilt Children's Hospital) Labels: costa rica, faith, health, honduras, spanish
Thursday, January 31, 2008$60k/year Hispanic Liaison job among January Que Pasa listings The Hispanic Nashville Notebook hosts a job site called the Workbook, but it is not the only Hispanic or bilingual employment listing in Middle Tennessee.Franklin's Latin Market Communications circulates a monthly job listing in the bilingual paper Que Pasa and also makes the list available by e-mail. Many (but not all) of the Que Pasa jobs require bilingual language skills or are otherwise more attractive to the Hispanic job-seeker than opportunities in the general job market. For more information on the Que Pasa job listings, contact Eva Melo at eva@latinmarketcommunications.com The January 2008 Que Pasa jobs are below, including a $60k/year Hispanic Liaison position in Smyrna: HISPANIC LIAISON:Que Pasa job listing reproduced with permission. Labels: business, education, english, health, immigrants, justice, spanish
Tuesday, January 22, 2008Ethnicity, visa status are not cost concerns, say Vanderbilt and St. Thomas hospitals "The more expensive patients in the Hispanic community are the same as the ones in the Caucasian community"St. Thomas Hospital and Vanderbilt University Medical Center spokesmen bucked the implication that Hispanic Nashvillians and/or visaless Nashvillians hurt their overall missions of healing, according to this Tennessean article on the intersection of immigration and health care:A patient's legal status doesn't matter at St. Thomas Hospital in Nashville, where spokesman Paul Lindsley said the main mission is to care for the poor. "We treat all persons, regardless of their situations," he said. Article cites "hate group" report without further commentA cite of questionable origin slipped into the article, raising the issue of a broader problem not raised by the Tennessean: the influence of extremism in the nation's immigration policy debate. One sentence after describing as "sketchy" the available data on health care costs to underground expatriates, a report is cited on the subject without any mention by the Tennessean that the sponsor of the report was recently added to a list of hate groups.Denouncing scapegoat approach to health careIn a previous Tennessean report in August 2006 TennCare director Dr. Darin P. Gordon is said to have testified before a Congressional hearing that a small percentage (an estimated 0.2%) of the TennCare budget is spent on underground internationals. The Tennessean said that Gordon "rejected the idea that illegal immigrants are sneaking onto the TennCare rolls for regular medical care, saying the program has always required various types of documentation for enrollment." Shortly after the hearing in which Gordon appeared, the Tennessean published an editorial denouncing legislators' finger-pointing at illegal immigrants and their failure to propose broader health care solutions. The editorial tracked the sentiment of a 8/16/06 letter to the editor from Nashville ER emergency physician Michael Hasty.Legislative attempts to inject visa status and citizenship checks into the hospital setting have been rejected by various Middle Tennessee health care providers, even when it would cost them federal funds. The providers and their associations who have come out on record against immigration-based health care decisions are HCA, Vanderbilt (story here), the Tennessee Hospital Association, and the Bedford County Medical Center in Shelbyville (story here). Rather than constricting its pocketbook to shy away from health care for underinsured and international patients, HCA and the HCA Foundation donated $1.5 million (story here) to the Siloam Family Health Center, which serves primarily refugees and immigrants. The Memorial Foundation, the Cal Turner family foundation and other local organizations have given substantial support to Siloam (story here). Labels: business, health, immigrants
Thursday, January 10, 2008Charlemos Spanish tonight, bilingual health volunteer Scarlett Martin to speakSpanish conversation group meets across from Belcourt Theatre in Palette GalleryTwice-monthly Spanish conversation group Charlemos Spanish announced tonight's meeting with speaker Scarlett Martin:Volunteer interpreter of Spanish, Scarlett Martin, will talk about her work with Siloam Family Health Center at the Thursday 10 January meeting of Charlemos Spanish. Labels: argentina, events, faith, health, mexico, spain, spanish
Wednesday, November 21, 2007Siloam helps Nashville refugees from over 100 countries "Culturally sensitive, thoughtful continuous care on the front end can save a lot of money for the city of Nashville in the longterm."WKRN reports here on Nashville's Siloam Family Health Center, which provides healthcare to refugees who have come to Nashville from over 100 countries:Of the nation’s 100 largest metropolitan areas, Nashville, Tennessee ranks number one in the number of new immigrants. Labels: faith, health, statistics
Tuesday, October 30, 2007Tango with Your Heart: November 10 at Ibiza Free event to raise awareness of Hispanic women's heart diseaseJoint effort of Nashville Public Television, Tango Nashville, American Heart Association Dance performances and lessons, food, heart screeningsOn November 10, Nashville Public Television teams up with the American Heart Association and Tango Nashville to raise awareness of women's heart disease in the Latino community.
Thursday, September 27, 2007Tim Chavez loses Tennessean column due to cancer-related absence The Nashville Scene reports here that Tennessean columnist Tim Chavez has lost his job writing columns for that paper after going on disability leave for leukemia:Tim Chavez, the love-him-or-hate-him Tennessean columnist known for his advocacy of the poor, afflicted and otherwise marginalized, has survived a two-year-long battle with leukemia that nearly killed him. But while he ultimately managed to keep his life, he couldn’t hang on to his job.The Hispanic Nashville Notebook has approached Chavez about writing for this site. Labels: health
Thursday, May 17, 2007Connect to Argentina this weekend: events in Nashville include Luis Palau, Tango Milonga, Fabian Bedne fundraiserBedne, Palau and tango all have roots in the South American nationOther weekend events include dinner over Spanish, Charlemos party, CoverKinds Hispanic health care event, and El Trio de Hoy concert  Tango 'Milonga'Thursday(Argentine Tango Social/Dance Gathering) Charlemos y ComamosThursdayA second dinner-and-conversation Spanish chat club has sprung out of the Charlemos Spanish group. A Charlemos y Comamos event is scheduled for this Thursday, May 15 at 7pm, at Nola Restaurant at 2912 West End Ave.  Luis Palau's Nashville CityFestSaturday/SundayArgentina-born evangelist Luis Palau expects 70,000 attendees at a combination music/sports/entertainment/evangelism event in downtown Nashville at Riverfront Park. Nashville Sister Cities Charlemos Spanish partySaturdayCelebrating international friendships and saying goodbye to Isabel de la Huerga and Ignacio Orviz.  CoverKids information at Hispanic community eventSaturdayOn May 19, learn more about and sign up for CoverKids, during an event at the Progreso Center, 2720 Nolensville Pike. The event is sponsored by the Hispanic Community Group of Tennessee. CoverKids provides comprehensive health insurance to uninsured children who do not qualify for TennCare.  Fabian Bedne fundraiserSunday Cordially invite you to attend our gala event FUNDRAISER FOR THE FUTURE On Sunday afternoon May, 20, 2007 From 3 to 8 p.M. At Club Ibiza 15128 Old Hickory Boulevard (615) 331-0382 RSVP Mary-LindenSalter at dosmulas@hotmail.com or Miguel Torres at ubqui2s@yahoo.com (615) 203-1885 http://www.bednefor31.com  El Trio de Hoy in concertSunday"El Trio De Hoy will be in concert at Faith Outreach Church Labels: argentina, arts, faith, health, spanish, sports
Tuesday, May 15, 2007March of Dimes grant will bring teen pregnancy outreach to Hispanic girls The Tennessean reports here that a new March of Dimes grant will bring the Birthing Project's teen pregnancy outreach to Hispanic girls."The girls are paired with volunteers, called 'sister friends,' who go with them to doctor's appointments, talk to them about staying in school, offer parenting tips and occasionally head into the delivery room." "The babies of teenage mothers in Tennessee are often born too early and too light, weighing less than 6 pounds. It's why many of them don't live to see their first birthdays." "Studies show teenagers often have poorer pregnancies than adults because they may be unhealthy before they get pregnant, are less likely to get prenatal care early and their bodies aren't always ready for the tremendous burden of carrying a fetus to term. In Tennessee, the rates of teen pregnancy have been creeping up since 2001, after a brief decline." "There are nearly 20 girls in Nashville's program now, and the focus is on black teens between the ages of 14 and 19, but participation isn't limited by race. The results have been encouraging." "This month, the March of Dimes will award Nashville's Birthing Project a grant to add more girls and provide outreach to Hispanic girls." Photo by Omar Junior Labels: health
Tuesday, March 27, 2007Trafficking, health, and cinema: today's agenda of the Nashville Task Force on Refugees & Immigrants The Nashville Task Force on Refugees & Immigrants will be meeting today. This is not the same event as today's Tennessee New American Day on the Hill sponsored by the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition. Anyone interested in this subject but not going to the Hill event is welcome to attend: Labels: arts, health, immigrants, justice
Tuesday, March 20, 2007Belmont U grad students bring physical therapy aid to Guatemala Missions blog offers first-person perspectiveFor the first time in Belmont University history, eleven physical therapy graduate students and a clinical instructor spent their spring break on assignment in Guatemala City, Guatemala.At the Hospital Infantil de Infectologia y Rehabilitacion (Children's Hospital for Infectious Disease and Rehabilitation), home of the only hospital PT wing in all of Guatemala City (population 5 million plus), the Belmont PT graduates worked with children with developmental delays as a result of having gone untreated for normal childhood diseases and also with trauma patients — accident victims or those whose illnesses have led to brain damage. They also taught modern physical therapy to Guatemalan doctors and nurses. The team posted pictures and narratives of the March 3-10 trip in this Physical Therapy Missions Blog. Labels: education, guatemala, health
Thursday, January 25, 2007Progreso Community Center opens The Hispanic Community Group of Tennessee (HCGT) issued this press release announcing the opening of its Progreso Community Center:HCGT inaugurated its Progreso Community Center on January 16, 2007, with around 70 people from the Hispanic community and general community in attendance. Upcoming activities at the Progreso Community Center include: 1. Meeting of the Nashville Latino Health Coalition (NLHC) on January 30, 2007, at 6:30 p.m. 2. English classes beginning on February 1, 2007, on Thursdays at 6:30 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Juan Canedo, President of HCGT, mentioned that this community group was founded on February 22, 2006, and it is the first Hispanic grassroots membership organization in Nashville, Tennessee. HCGT operates under a 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization. Canedo also said that this community group was created out of the need for a democratic and participatory membership organization in the Hispanic community. Therefore, HCGT’s motto is “voice and vote for each member.” He explained that the creation of HCGT was conceived and led by diverse members of the Hispanic community, such as day laborers, owners and employees of small businesses, and women workers. Their organizing capacity has been manifested through collective community action processes that achieved social changes for the benefit of the Hispanic community, in particular, and the Nashville community in general. Francisco Reyes, an HCGT member, said, “I want to invite every one in the community to become members, too, and help each other.” Membership in HCGT is free and open to the public. Progreso Community Center is located at 2720 Nolensville Pike, Suite 210, near Thompson Lane, Nashville, in the heart of the Hispanic community. To obtain more information about Progreso Community Center, HCGT membership, English classes, and other community activities, call (615) 587-0365, visit the website (www.hispanictn.org) or write to info@hispanictn.org Pictures of the opening are posted in the Hispanic Nashville Scrapbook on Flickr.com.
Thursday, December 21, 2006Three-year-old Peruvian girl is one face of Children's Hospital doll donation plea "Champ" doll accompanied young patient through surgery donated by Dr. Shelagh CoferThree-year-old Betsy Vilca Sucari managed to charm everyone she met when she visited the Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital at Vanderbilt. To Betsy, a native of Peru, the Americans-- with their strange habits, completely indecipherable language and interesting toys-- were just fun to visit with. But to those who got to know Betsy in the one-and-a-half weeks she was here, her visit was so much more. Betsy had a fast growing tumor in her neck that was beginning to hurt her ability to eat and sleep. It had to be removed and ear, nose and throat surgeon Shelagh Cofer, who met Betsy on a medical mission trip, volunteered to do the surgery for free. The surgery was a great success and throughout recovery, Betsy clung to her Champ doll, which she had named “Perrito,” (Spanish for “puppy”) and within a day or so, she was back to playing and charming once again. Betsy made a great recovery and climbed on a plane one week after surgery and was home with her mother in Peru by two days later.The Monroe Carell Jr. Children’s Hospital is putting out an urgent plea to the community to help save Champ. The Hospital’s canine “champion” isn’t sick, but a stuffed animal made in his likeness that is given to every young in-patient (except newborns) is in critically short supply. “Champ dolls are made overseas and then must be shipped. The only way to make that affordable is to order the dolls in bulk,” said Susan Kohari, interim Champ Program manager. “We need to place an order at a cost of more than $15,000. That will keep us supplied for maybe six months.” Currently the Champ fund stands at less than less than $4,000. Meanwhile, there are only a couple of dozen of the dolls left to give to sick and injured children who are admitted to the hospital. That means by the first of the year there will be no more Champ dolls to give to patients unless additional funding can be found. To keep up with the greater-than-expected demand for Champ dolls, hospital officials are re-designing the Champ to be smaller; more like a “beanie Champ.” “Our patients say they love the beanie style and this will allow us to order smaller dolls in larger amounts and at lower cost,” said Kohari. The current cost is $16.00 for each Champ. If you are interested in supporting the Champ doll program, please send your donation by check to: Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital Champ Fund 2200 Children’s Way Suite 2410 Nashville, TN 37203-1042 Please make checks payable to Vanderbilt Children’s Hospital (put in description line: For Champ fund). The Tennessean also published this story about the call for Champ donations and the response of four Bellevue children.
Wednesday, December 20, 2006Ethnic economic gaps are more pronounced in Nashville
This November story in the Tennessean reported that Hispanic households in Nashville earned $33,376 in 2005, compared to Asian household earnings of $57,678, white household incomes of $50,333, and $27,153 for African-American households in Nashville. The story cited a Census Bureau study, which found that racial disparity is worse here than for the average U.S. city.
The wage disparity must be fueled, at least in part, by low-income immigrants from Mexico. According to this article in the New York Times, "[a]t least one-third of the foreign-born in the United States come from Mexico, census figures show," and "[i]n the United States new Mexican immigrants mostly earn poverty wages by American standards, a median income of only $300 a week, the Pew Hispanic Center reported last year. But that is as much as four times what they would make for similar work at home." Even though Hispanics have a proportionately lower household income, the Tennessean article describes what may be a path to greater income equality: "Marilyn Robinson said the key to stemming the economic disparities is to encourage business ownership." "'If you work hard and have access to business opportunities, then you can generate wealth,' said Robinson, who is president of the Nashville branch of the NAACP." That's good news for Hispanics, who as of 2002 were "opening businesses at a rate three times faster than the national average." (see this column by Tony Snow). Snow and others dispel the notion that the statistics about immigrants should justify a punitive immigration policy (see commentary by Lawrence Downes and Anna Quindlen). Other gaps experienced by Hispanics include health care (reported in the Hispanic Nashville Notebook in this March 2005 article) and mortgage rates (reported in the Hispanic Nashville Notebook in this March 2004 article). Labels: business, education, health, statistics
Friday, September 08, 2006Espi Ralston of Jackson recruits medical interpreters
The Jackson Sun reports in this article that Jackson resident Espi Ralston is recruiting health care interpreters:
"Espi Ralston wants to help the growing Hispanic community in Madison County by training health-care interpreters." "Ralston was born in Seville, Spain, and moved to the United States in the 1970s." "'My older two daughters were born in Nashville, and at that time, I only spoke Spanish,' she said. During the birth of her first daughter, Ralston didn't have an interpreter. For the second daughter, she had two bilingual friends who were studying nursing with her. 'There was a major difference,' she said." "In an effort to increase the number of medical interpreters and the quality of medical interpretation, Ralston is offering a health-care interpreter certificate program in Jackson." "The classes, to be held from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Sept. 14 through Nov. 16 at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital, will train existing medical interpreters or bilingual people who would like to become health-care interpreters. The registration deadline is Sept. 7." "Ralston and partner Martha Kantor 'are initiating collaborative efforts with other local hospitals, such as Regional Hospital, to offer cultural competence seminars, Spanish for health-care professionals, translations, implementation of language access services, and meeting Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations and National Committee for Quality Assurance federal mandates for limited English proficient patients,' Ralston said in an e-mail." Sandra Atherton, the director of volunteer and pastoral care at Jackson-Madison County General Hospital, supported the efforts by providing this example of the importance of the service: "How would you like to sign a consent form in a foreign country and not understand what you are signing?" she told the Sun. "For more information or questions about the course, call Ralston at (901) 763-2045 or (901) 218-4691 or by e-mail at esmartTrans@aol.com." Labels: english, health, spanish
Friday, August 11, 2006Help with unreimbursed care, not immigration, say experts Recapping the Congressional hearing held in Brentwood yesterday, the Nashville City Paper reports that Dr. Darin P. Gordon, the director of the Bureau of TennCare, testified that an estimated 0.2% of the TennCare budget is spent on underground internationals. The Tennessean reports that Gordon "rejected the idea that illegal immigrants are sneaking onto the TennCare rolls for regular medical care, saying the program has always required various types of documentation for enrollment."Both the City Paper and the Tennessean recounted the testimony of Gary R. Perrizo, the director of patient accounting at Vanderbilt University Medical Center. According to the Tennessean, Perrizo attributed about 5.1% of VUMC's total unreimbursed health care expenditures to illegitimized expatriates. The City Paper reported on Perrizo's testimony that "the hospital admitted 174 undocumented patients between Jan. 1 and Aug. 6, 2006, which is a 17 percent increase versus the same period in 2005. In addition, Perrizo testified that between Jan. 1 and March 31, 2006, 504 possible illegal immigrants received emergency care but were not admitted to VUMC." "'We are morally and legally obligated to provide care for anyone who is in urgent need,' Perrizo said. But that moral commitment and legal requirement to care for those in need has come to carry a significant price tag for hospitals and doctors alike.'" The Tennessean reported that "Perrizo, Duncan and another representative of Tennessee hospitals all asked for the return of federal aid known as disproportionate share payments. Tennessee is one of only two states that don't receive the payments, which help compensate for unreimbursed charity care, they said." Photo: Gary R. Parrizo update 8/21/06: The Tennessean published this editorial denouncing legislators' finger-pointing at illegal immigrants and their failure to propose broader health care solutions. The editorial tracks the sentiment of this 8/16/06 letter to the editor from Nashville ER emergency physician Michael Hasty. Labels: health, immigrants, statistics
Monday, July 24, 2006Honduran mission trumps Vanderbilt position for Erin Keckley The Tennessean reports in this article that Nashvillian Erin Keckley has resigned her pediatric medical research position at the Vanderbilt Children's Hospital to become a medical missionary in Honduras."Friday was her last day at Vanderbilt. She resigned to throw herself fulltime into the life of a medical missionary at the Baxter Institute's James Moody Adams Health Center in Tegucigalpa, Honduras." "Her plans are to return to Nashville in six months to work toward a master's degree." "'After that, my goal is to go down there and run that clinic full time,' she says." "'From the first time I went down there, I truly felt I was exactly where God wanted me to be.'" Focus: Faith, Health Labels: health
Thursday, June 22, 2006Hispanic health event reaches 150, more events planned
The Nashville Latino Health Coalition issued this press release on the success of its recent community health event:
A free bilingual community event called “Health Services within Reach - Servicios de Salud a su Alcance,” organized by the Nashville Latino Health Coalition (NLHC) and the Hispanic Community Group of Tennessee (HCGT), was held on Saturday, June 10th, at Antioch United Methodist Church. Around 150 people attended the event, including members of the Hispanic community and representatives of health-related organizations. More than 40 exhibitor tables provided information on available services and other resources, such as the Metropolitan Public Health Department, the Tennessee Department of Health, Nashville General Hospital, various healthcare clinics, non-profit organizations, universities, and others. Following a presentation about the coalition and a participatory discussion session, the attendees also enjoyed Mexican food from local taco stand vendors, a Mexican folkloric dance presentation, and a drawing for door prizes. The event achieved two purposes: (1) Information exchange – for Latino community members to share their needs and concerns with agency representatives; and for agency representatives to provide information and answer questions about available services; (2) Coalition building – to invite Latino community members to participate in the coalition in a collaborative way. NLHC and HCGT plan to follow up on this event with community meetings and collaborative projects that will include direct participation of Latino community members in decision-making and planning. NLHC has around 30 member organizations, including HCGT (a grassroots organization), which encourages members of the Latino community to be part of this coalition. Focus: Health Labels: health
Tuesday, May 17, 2005Hospitals may turn down reimbursement for care of underground expatriates
The Nashville City Paper reports that Nashville hospitals aren't sure whether they want to chase federal money that requires them to interview patients about their immigration status and jump through other hoops to collect the money. The funds are designed to reimburse hospitals for emergency care of underground expatriates.
"'Hospitals don’t want to be in the immigration business,' said Jeff Prescott, spokesman for the Nashville-headquartered HCA Inc." "Prescott said the regulations require hospitals to follow rules in requesting information from illegal aliens. Facilities then must undertake a precise reimbursement process." "'We are evaluating the new regulations and will request clarification to determine if it is worth the cost to implement,' he said." A Vanderbilt Hospital official said that the total money allotted to Tennessee is $1 million, of which Vanderbilt might be able to collect so small a share that the funds may not be worth pursuing.
Thursday, January 20, 2005Hospitals' use of interpreters is on the rise
The Tennessean reports that Nashville hospitals are increasingly using interpreters and interpreting services to assist patients who have limited English proficiency.
Vanderbilt University Medical Center has three full-time interpreters and plans to hire three more, said Johannie Resto, bilingual program director of interpreter services. VUMC also uses free-lancers and telephone interpreters. HCA TriStar Centennial Medical Center offers Spanish classes to all its employees and can call on 16 multilingual employees when interpreting is needed. Telephone interpreters are also used at Centennial, growing from less than an hour of use in 2001 to over 24 hours of use in 2004. The Saint Thomas hospitals use community volunteer interpreters and a telephone interpreting service. Labels: business, english, health, spanish
Thursday, October 21, 2004Meharry develops cultural guide for health care providers
Meharry Medical College has developed the Cultural Competence in Cancer Care booklet in a project with Baylor hospital in Houston.
North Nashville's Matthew Walker Comprehensive Health Center is using the guide; treats large minority population including Hispanics. Sensitivity to cultural differences increases communication and opportunities for good care. Labels: health
Wednesday, October 13, 2004New Saint Thomas facility will shorten health care wait for uninsured
$3 million project
9,000 square feet 394 Harding Place Recent caseload: 15,000 patients from 32 countries Nancy Anness, Executive Director of Saint Thomas Community Health Centers Paul Lindsley, Director of Saint Thomas Hospital Public Relations Labels: health
Wednesday, October 06, 2004Immigration interview cut from hospital reimbursement regulations"Tennessee hospitals won't have to ask emergency room patients questions about their immigration status to get reimbursed for serving undocumented immigrants." "A federal government plan that would have required such questions was scrapped last week. Hospital officials said they were pleased and relieved by the announcement, which means that Tennessee hospitals will receive $4.4 million over the next four years for providing such care, with none of those strings attached." "State hospital officials, and those across the country, had opposed the plan to ask all indigent ER patients questions about their immigration status, saying it would deter sick patients from accessing care, potentially leading to bigger public health problems." The Tennessean Labels: health
Monday, September 27, 2004New Saint Thomas facility will nearly triple size of Hispanic-focused clinic"Saint Thomas Health Services expects to break ground soon on a $3 million clinic aimed at serving Nashville's growing Hispanic community." "The 9,000-square-foot stand-alone building is to be located at Nolensville Pike near the Harding Place intersection. Construction is to begin immediately following the ground breaking Sept. 30. Completion of the project is expected in spring 2005." "The existing 3,500-square-foot clinic was opened in December 2001 after a thorough study by the hospital to determine the level and type of needs of Nashville's multicultural population, said Greg Pope, vice president of Saint Thomas' philanthropic foundation." "Saint Thomas considers the facility to be an 'outreach clinic designed to meet the multiple needs of new immigrants locating in Nashville,' particularly Hispanics, said Nancy Anness, executive director of community health centers for the hospital. Patients of Hispanic ethnicity make up about 85 percent of the existing clinic's patient volume." Nashville City Paper Labels: health, statistics
Tuesday, September 07, 2004Mercy Children's Clinic treats Hispanic children without health insurance"When 2-year-old Mariana Garcia got a hacking cough, mother Ana Cruz knew where she could take her and it wouldn't matter that they are uninsured and don't speak English - Mercy Children's Clinic." "The faith-based pediatric healthcare ministry treats children from birth to 18 years of age and encourages care for those without insurance or who are enrolled in TennCare. It's treated more than 4,500 children with help in great part to runners and walkers each year at the Franklin Classic." "'It's very important because the children get treatment,' Cruz said with the help of Veronica Cropper, the clinic's Hispanic Patient Advocate." The Tennessean
Thursday, August 12, 2004Hospitals say federal immigration reimbursement might not be worth it"Congress has approved $1 billion in federal funds to reimburse hospitals across the country in the next four years for emergency care provided to illegal immigrants." "'The big issue is, in order to get these dollars, do we have to be policemen and report these individuals?' asked Craig Becker, president of the Tennessee Hospital Association. 'We don't believe it's our role to determine if someone is in this country legally or illegally. It's our role to take care of the patient.'" "The CEO of Bedford County Medical Center in Shelbyville is giving consideration to the new policy. Bill Macri says his hospital spends $3 million a year to cover the costs of patients who can't pay." "Although the hospital never asks anyone's immigration status, Macri assumes that there are illegal immigrants among the non-paying patients whom emergency room doctors treat every day. It's a fact of life in places like Shelbyville, where thousands of Hispanic workers have flocked in recent years to work in meat-packing plants, factories and on farms." "'It would be nice to have some subsidy,' Macri said. But requiring staff to ask patients questions about their immigration status in the emergency room 'puts a significant burden on us,' adding to overworked me |
“Tango With Your Heart” is made possible by a generous grant from WNET-NY and coincides with THE MYSTERIOUS HUMAN HEART, a four-part series by producer David Grubin that aired on NPT and PBS stations nationwide this Fall. “Tango with Your Heart” is sponsored by Nashville Public Television, American Heart Association, Tango Nashville, Ibiza Night Club Club, Monsal, WHEW La Ley 1380am, WKDA Latina 900am and OSHi International Flowers.
Photo by