County Council: HFI Community engagement programming begins with Walk With A Doc
HFI community engagement programming begins with Walk With A Doc
{Crown Point, Sept. 13, 2024) More than two dozen people Thursday joined members of the Lake County Health Department and its partner Franciscan Health Thursday for the county's first Walk With a Doc event.
The event is part of the programming offered through the Health First Indiana initiative established by Senate Enrolled Act 4-2023. HFI was created to establish a public health infrastructure through a state and local partnership where services are delivered at the local level.
Lake County Health Officer Chandana Vavilala kicked off the event and thanked the partners that helped make it happen.
"We are all very much excited to be engaging with the community," Vavilala said. The county health department partnered with Franciscan Health to bring the health system's Walk with a Doc program to the county.
Many people associate the health department with things like vaccinations and food safety, Vavilala said. She wants people to know the many varied services the health department offers.
"Right now, we want to let you know we will not just talk the talk, but walk the walk," Vavilala said to kick off the event.
Promoting wellness is one of the Key Performance Indicators for Core Public Health established by HFI. Participating health departments must focus their efforts on a variety of KPls including maternal and child health, tobacco and vaping prevention and cessation, chronic disease prevention and immunizations among others.
"The plan is to continue more and more community engagement programming. We want to be proactive. We want to be healthy. We want to make sure we take good care of our physical health and our emotional health," Vavilala said.
Lake County Council President Christine Cid, D-Sth, joined the program and offered support to participants.
"I'm not just here to support the program, I'm here because I need to walk, too," Cid said.
Cid said that like so many people, she often tells herself she needs to get out and walk but sometimes she does not make the time. The organized walk made it easier to participate.
After a brief discussion the program started with a stretch session and a group walk from the health department at 2900 W. 93rd Ave., to the Erie Lackawanna Trail. Walkers were joined by Dr. Vavilala, her husband nephrologist Dr. Venkat Vavilala, members of Franciscan Health and the Health Department for the walk. The Purdue Extension office participated as well, closing the office for the hour of the walk so all employees could participate if they wished.
Vavilala thanked the Lake County Fairgrounds staff for helping set up and Lake County Emergency Management Association for ensuring the safe cross of 93rd Avenue.
Counties participating in Health First Indiana must report metrics on core public health service delivery in June and December, according to the HFI website. Local health departments report their progress in core service areas like maternal and child health, trauma and injury prevention, chronic disease prevention and more.
These data provide vital information for local health departments to share ideas and collaborate with each other for core public health service delivery, the site continued.
Walk With A Doc will continue Thursday from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. through Oct. 17, and kick off at the health department, 2900 W. 93rd Ave. Each week will include a brief presentation before the walk begins. Vavilala said a variety of doctors and health professionals will be joining the walk throughout the program to answer questions and talk with participants.
Registration is on-site only on the day of the walks and begins at 2:45 p.m.
The following link, https://www.cigna.com/legal/compliance/machine-readable-files, leads to the machine readable files that are made available in response to the federal Transparency in Coverage Rule and includes negotiated service rates and out-of-network allowed amounts between health plans and healthcare providers.
The machine-readable files are formatted to allow researchers, regulators, and application developers to more easily access and analyze data.
EMERGENCY BRIDGE CLOSURE 121ST AVE OVER NILES DITCH
(CROWN POINT AND WINFIELD AREA)
THE LAKE COUNTY HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT IS NOTIFYING ALL PUBLIC AGENCIES AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT THE BRIDGE ON 121ST AVE BETWEEN IOWA ST AND DECATUR ST IS BEING CLOSED IMMEDIATELY UNTIL MEASURES CAN BE MADE TO REPAIR THE STRUCTURE.
THE LAKE COUNTY HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT IS NOTIFYING ALL PUBLIC AGENCIES AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT ARIZONA ST OVER DEEP RIVER BETWEEN 61ST AVE AND 10TH ST WILL BE CLOSED FOR BRIDGE REHABILITATION STARTING MONDAY, AUGUST 26TH AT 6:00 AM THRU , MONDAY, NOVEMBER 25th AT 5:00 PM, WEATHER PERMITTING
THE LAKE COUNTY HIGHWAY DEPARTMENT IS NOTIFYING ALL PUBLIC AGENCIES AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC THAT JOLIET ST OVER ST JOHN DITCH BETWEEN INDUSTRIAL DR AND HART ST WILL BE CLOSED FOR REPAIR STARTING TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 3RD AT 7:00 AM THRU TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 17TH AT 5:00 PM, WEATHER PERMITTING
Hanover Centrals Trap & Skeet team were honored by the Lake County Council for their achievements at the USA Clay Target National Competition in Mason, Michigan, and the AIM Grand National World Youth Championships in Sparta, Illinois.
Hanover Central Students Jaxon Sassong, Bryan Barber, Hank Walkowiak, Kayden Porter and Rylan Porter, were Junio Gold Class C Division champions at the AIM Grand National World Youth Championships in Sparta, Illinois.
