Evolve Behavioral Health Services
Healthy Connections
My Kids Pediatric Clinic
Evolve Behavioral Health Services
Healthy Connections
My Kids Pediatric Clinic
Evolve Behavioral Health Services

Mental Health Awareness Month

May is recognized as Mental Health Awareness Month.

Did you know that mental health problems are common in at least one out of every five people? This can cause people to think, act, and feel differently than they usually do.

For a person going through these difficulties, the different feelings are very real and often scary. Evolve Behavioral Health can help. We have both in-clinic and telehealth appointments.

Learn more at www.evolvebhs.com

#EvolveWithUs #YouAreNotAlone

Call Today. Get Tested Same-Day

Healthy Connections is offering same-day COVID-19 testing at all of its clinics this week. This includes patients who the state of Arkansas now requires to be tested before elective surgeries.

Patients should call (888) 710-8220 for an appointment. Same-day appointments are available at all locations. Test results are being received within 24-72 hours.

Healthy Connections can also test patients, regardless of symptoms. This is being done at clinics in Little Rock, Hot Springs, Mena, Malvern, Arkadelphia, Mount Ida, and De Queen. See the map below for testing locations.

Last week, Arkansas Gov. Asa Hutchinson announced that outpatient elective surgeries can resume beginning on Monday, April 27. For patients to be eligible for these procedures, they must meet several requirements, including having a COVID-19 test within 48 hours of the procedure. This is being done to ensure the safety of both the patient and the clinic staff during the procedure.

Healthy Connections is doing this COVID-19 testing at its clinics in Little RockHot SpringsMenaMalvernArkadelphiaMount Ida, and De Queen. Call (888) 710-8220 for appointments. Visit www.healthy-connections.org for more information, including COVID-19 updates, testing locations, and more. These tests can be done regardless of patient symptoms. Healthy Connections can also work with surgical providers to test their patients before the procedure.

The complete requirements that were announced included:

  • The procedure must be scheduled so the patient is not expected to spend the night in the hospital
  • The patient must not be sick and does not have a lot of underlying medical conditions.
  • The patient has had no contact with a COVID-19 patient within the previous 14 days.
  • The patient has no symptoms of COVID-19.
  • Patients must be tested for COVID-19 within 48 hours of the scheduled surgery.

Healthy Connections specialists, including Pittman Moore, MD (OB/GYN)Richard Bennett, DPM (podiatrist), and Vito Calandro, MD (cardiologist) will also resume some surgical procedures.

Healthy Connections dentists in Mena and Hot Springs are still open and doing “emergency” procedures. These procedures include most services that aren’t considered maintenance.

Nonprofit Healthy Connections strives to fill the healthcare access gaps in Arkansas. Since its founding in 1998 as a home-visiting program, Healthy Connections has provided much-needed health, dental, and social services to families from nearly every lifestyle. Healthy Connections accepts Medicaid, ArKids 1st, Medicare, and most private health insurance. There is also a sliding-fee scale for patients without health insurance, based on total family income.

Most health insurance covers COVID-19 testing at no cost to patients. Healthy Connections is waiving patient fees for COVID-19 testing for sliding-fee scale patients who qualify.

The Healthy Connections community health network offers primary care/family medicine, general dental services, and specialties including pediatrics, cardiology, podiatry, women’s health, and chiropractic. Evolve Behavioral Health and Medication Management, a division of Healthy Connections, provides mental health services.

Nonprofit Healthy Connections opened in 1998 as a home-visiting program. Primary Care health clinics now stretch from De Queen to Little Rock and help provide care where there are disparities in healthcare access. Healthy Connections also offers specialties, including Behavioral Health, Dentistry, Pediatrics, Podiatry, Cardiology, Chiropractic, and Women’s Health, depending on location.

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Save Our Clinics: Congress Must Aid Health Centers

Community Health Centers of Arkansas CEO LaShannon Spencer wrote a guest column this week in Arkansas Democrat-Gazette / ArkansasOnline.com . Community Health Centers, like Healthy Connections, Inc., are doing everything we can to fight COVID-19, but we must survive and thrive after this crisis. We’re appreciative of what Congress has provided thus far, but Community Health Centers need much more help from Washington, D.C.

Click the link below to read the column in its entirety. Click here to learn more about Healthy Connections.

Save our clinics

Congress must aid health centers

LASHANNON SPENCER
SPECIAL TO THE DEMOCRAT-GAZETTE

When the novel coronavirus hit Arkansas, community health centers rose to the challenge, immediately shifting our business model. Unlike some private providers restricting who they see, we’re proud that we test residents for COVID-19 while taking special precautions to still meet the traditional health-care needs of our loyal patients.

“I have seen several families who were just so grateful that they were being seen. We have had families tell us that they were turned away elsewhere,” reports Dr. Rebekah Beyers, a pediatrician for Community Clinic in Springdale. “One mother told us she trusted that we would not tell her to come in unless we thought it was important and that we would help to keep them safe. Trust from our patients is one of the best things we could hope for.”

Many don’t realize the reach and value of community health centers in Arkansas. Without us, the state’s general health and the economy would suffer.

The 11 members of the Community Health Centers of Arkansas offer COVID-19 testing sites across the state at more than 60 of our clinics—from Siloam Springs to Eudora and from De Queen to Corning.

Without a dependable source from the state or federal governments for personal protective equipment (often referred to as PPE), we’ve scoured hardware stores and asked community partners to help ensure our staff and the public are adequately protected. We’ve kept our clinics open with special screenings in tents or drive-up evaluations to limit access.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE COLUMN

We’re Open for Clinic and TeleHealth Appointments, Testing

The Healthy Connections community health network is open and seeing patients both in the clinic and via telehealth, allowing patients to stay in contact with their providers. These services include evaluation for COVID-19 symptoms.

Healthy Connections, a nonprofit Federally Qualified Health Center, has clinic locations in Mena, Hot Springs, Little Rock, Malvern, Arkadelphia, Mount Ida, and De Queen. These clinics see patients for primary care/family medicine, including pediatrics-focused clinics in Hot Springs and De Queen. Find a location at www.healthy-connections.org/locations.

COVID-19 testing is no longer limited to high-risk patients only. If you are sick with respiratory symptoms, we can evaluate and test you for COVID-19. You must be evaluated by a provider before any tests will be done.

While a variety of services can be provided via Healthy Connections TeleHealth (on your computer, tablet or smartphone), we can also do a preliminary evaluation for COVID-19 (Novel Coronavirus) symptoms. If a patient meets the criteria, they will be directed to a Healthy Connections COVID-19 location.

Call (888) 710-8220 or make a Healthy Connections TeleHealth appointment at www.healthy-connections.org/telehealth. Many insurances are now covering this testing and waiving copays.

Any person who enters a Healthy Connections clinic will be screened for COVID-19 symptoms.

Additionally, Evolve Behavioral Health and Medication Management is also seeing patients both in the clinic and via telehealth at Healthy Connections locations in Mena, Hot Springs, Malvern, and Arkadelphia. Learn more about Evolve at www.evolvebhs.com.

Healthy Connections and Evolve accept Medicaid, ARKids 1st, Medicare, and most private health insurance. There is also a sliding-fee scale for patients without health insurance who qualify. Medicaid patients may have to switch their primary care provider to Healthy Connections before you can be seen.

Learn more about Healthy Connections at www.healthy-connections.org.

 

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TeleHealth Appointments Now Available

Many Healthy Connections providers are now offering telehealth e-visit appointments during the COVID-19 pandemic.

As social distancing and stay home recommendations continue to increase, Healthy Connections TeleHealth will bridge the healthcare gap and allow patients to see their provider of choice from the comfort of their own home.

Healthy Connections, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), has medical clinics in Mena, Hot Springs, Little Rock, Malvern, Arkadelphia, De Queen, and Mount Ida. These clinics offer primary care medical and behavioral health services and accept Medicaid, ARKids 1st, Medicare, and most health insurance. They also offer a sliding-fee scale for people without insurance who qualify.

Healthy Connections clinics remain open and are seeing some patients at the clinic. And everyone who enters the clinic is screened for flu, strep, and COVID-19 symptoms. This measure has been taken for the health and safety of both our patients and staff.

TeleHealth provides an alternative method for patients to have their appointment with their provider without having to leave home. These visits are done using video conferencing website Zoom (www.zoom.us). Patients can schedule appointments by:

Once the appointment is scheduled, they will be emailed a telehealth consent agreement that can be filled out on a computer, tablet, or smartphone. The patient will receive an appointment link via their email address.

At the time of their appointment, patients will use their computer, tablet, or smartphone to click the link and join the appointment with their provider. Complete step-by-step instructions can be found at www.healthy-connections.org/telehealth.

COVID-19 Update for Healthy Connections Clinics

Artistic 3D illustration of the coronavirus

Healthy Connections clinics remain open during the COVID-19 outbreak. However, we have made some operational changes to many of our locations to help ensure the safety of our patients and staff members.

  • All persons entering a Healthy Connections clinic must be screened before they enter. This includes both patients and staff. Those who are not feeling well or who fail the screening process will be either sent to a designated treatment location or back to their car to receive treatment.
  • Healthy Connections can test for COVID-19. However, it is not appropriate to test everyone who has symptoms. If you are determined to have the flu or COVID-19 symptoms, you will be tested first for flu and then for strep. If those come back negative, you may then be given a COVID-19 test.
  • Our Healthy Connections dental clinics in Mena and Hot Springs are now open 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Thursday for emergency procedures only. The American Dental Association has recommended this change and we are complying with their requests.
  • If you are picking up prescriptions at the Mena clinic pharmacy, you must call the pharmacy upon your arrival. They will bring your prescriptions out to you. No patients will be allowed to visit the pharmacy area of the clinic.
  • The Arkadelphia clinic will now see only OBGYN patients. We have moved Veronica Cannon, APRN, to the Malvern clinic and all primary care/family medicine patients will be seen there. This step has been taken to ensure the health and safety of our pregnant mothers.
  • No patients are currently being seen at the school-based health centers at Acorn, Mount Ida and ASU-Three Rivers in Malvern. Patients in these communities will be seen at:
    • Healthy Connections Mena: 136 Health Park Lane, Mena
    • Healthy Connections Mount Ida: 534 Luzerne St., Mount Ida
    • Healthy Connections Malvern: 900 Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Malvern
  • We are finalizing our process to allow for telehealth/e-visits with your providers. All patients who participate in telehealth/e-visits will need to fill out and return a consent form. Please watch for more information soon.
  • The Hot Springs Chippewa clinic location (1723 Malvern Ave., Hot Springs) will be closed on Friday, March 27. Patients will be seen that day at the Central Avenue location (3604 Central Ave.). The Chippewa clinic will re-open on Monday, March 30.

Healthy Connections is committed to the health and well-being of our staff, patients and visitors. Please bear with us during these times of change and remember that all of these policies are subject to change when new information becomes available.

Please remember to keep checking our COVID-19 page at www.healthy-connections.org/covid-19 for the latest information and tips from our trusted healthcare professionals.