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Show 1 Times 0JuneHilltop 20, 2C02 9 Health Organizational Health Center measures employee needs We look forward to exploring different avenues, for sharing these principles and ideas with management and employees at by David R. Larsen Organizational Health Center director Hill to enhance employee satisfaction and productivity. In addition, as directors review the results of the recent Chief the past year Hill AFB has set up a new center for civilian employees, It's called the Organizational Health Center. The center applies the principles of the social and behavioral In sciences to help foster a healthier more productive working environment The type of health we are concerned with here is both psychological, or mental and physical, since these two are very much related. But our primary focus is psychosocial. Being physically ill, or in chronic pain, can be depressing. On the other hand, researchers have thoroughly documented the link between mental or emotional health and physical If a person experiences a great deal of mental or emotional stress on the job, it's likely to translate into physical problems as well. We need to consider what we eat and drink, how much exercise we get, and how we treat each other, as well as how we interpret events, and what we allow ourselves to think and dwell on, if we are to achieve optimal physical and mental health. And of course the healthier a person is the more productive he or she will be. Located in the southeast corner of Bldg. 1 102's third floor, the Organizational Health Center has been conducting organizational stress evaluations, and training in suicide and workplace violence prevention since it was established last August. The first Organizational Health Center in the Air Force was established at McClellan AFB, Calif., in an effort to reduce stress and prevent suicides among base employees facing base closure. Now, an Air Force instruction mandates suicide and workplace violence prevention training for all employees, both civilian as well as military. well-bein- g. At Hill AFB, Master Sgt Wes Morris from the Life Skills Support Center and I have been busy the past eight months, ensuring all employees receive this prevention training. However, the scope of our organization extends beyond the prevention of suicides and violence as important as that tasking is. There is much that can be done to help employees and management create environments that are not only free of disruptive, hostile or depressing influences; but where employees feel valued, respected and empowered to be more creative and productive. The OHC and EEO offices have conducted more than 24 organizational stress evaluations in the past three years and found many outstanding supervisors on this base who know how to effectively empower their employees to achieve their potential. We hope to highlight their good ef forts, as well as principles from social and organizational psychology and ideas from corporate America that yield good results in future Hilltop Times articles. of Staff Climate Survey, the OHC is available with a variety of resources and classes to help management create healthier, more productive climates. Another service the Health Center provides is personal counseling. Rita Roybal, a licensed clinical social worker, joined the center's staff in April. She has been a counselor in Utah and Japan for 20 years, and has worked in civil service for nine. She is the first licensed counselor employed on Hill AFB dedicated to the civilian workforce. Roybal coaches people in how to deal effectively with stressful, painful and hurtful situations so they function at a higher level and feel better. Her adult cases have ranged from mild anxiety and marriage and family challenges, to chronic mental illness and domestic violence. She has worked in the Utah State Penitentiary doing cognitive restructuring, taught classes in the social sciences at Salt Lake Community College, and taught marriage and family relations and transition management at Air Force Family Support Centers in Japan, Turkey and at Hill AFB. Employees with personal or family concerns, especially if they are work related, or affecting their ability to do their job, For other organizational health may contact Roybal at Ext. issues, call Ext. Civilian employees who haven't had suicide and workplace violence prevention training within the past year should arrange it on Outlook to "Larsen, or sending an by calling Ext David R." as soon as possible. TRICARE Program supplements military care resources with civilian professionals Medical care can sometimes be a confusing subject but armed with the right information you can make the best choices for your family's health care needs. Military medical care has been in existence since the late 1700s. In 1884, Congress directed that the "medical officers of the Army and contract surgeons shall whenever possible attend the families of the officers and soldiers free of charge." CHAMPUS the Civilian Health and Medical was started Program of the Uniformed Services by the U.S. Congress in 1963 to help ease the pressure placed on die military health care system. In 1967, retirees, their family members and surviving members of deceased military sponsors were given medical benefits under the CHAM-PUprogram. CHAMPUS eventually evolved into what is now known as TRICARE Standard in most of the country, and different benefits were added over time. Today, nearly 5.5 million people are eligible for TRICARE benefits. What TRICARE offers TRICARE was originally developed by the Department of Defense to provide the best possible health care options for eligible personnel, active duty family members, retired members of the uniformed services and their families and survivors. ;;Today TRICARE is a regionally managed health dare program for active duty and retired members of the uniformed services, their families and survivors. It brings together the health care resources of the Army, Navy and Air Force, and Supplements them with networks of civilian health care professionals to provide easy access and y health care to military families. Health care options available for military families through TRICARE are: TRICARE Prime offers beneficiaries the greatest benefit and lowest costs for their health care and is set up much like a civilian health maintenance organization. TRICARE Extra offers a network of civilian health care providers from which beneficiaries can choose and offers benefits that include reduced costs (5 percent less than when using TRICARE Standard), no enrollment fees or formal enrollment process and no paperwork to complete after visiting a health care provider. TRICARE Extra is similar to the civilian health plan known as a preferred provider organization. TRICARE Standard offers beneficiaries a wide choice of health care providers. However, it is also the most expensive health care option offered through TRICARE. In addition, Standard S r r . Network helps beneficiaries with costs Using TriWest Healthcare Alliance's TRI- CARE civilian provider network the TRICARE Extra option can help beneficiaries pharmacies by visiting the TRICARE Central Region web site. Log on to www.triwestcom or www.tricarecr.carson.army.mil and choose "Beneficiary." Using the "Search the Provider Direc- stick to their budget and get quality health care when needed. tory" option, beneficiaries can search for a Active duty family members or military retirees physician by name, specialty or type of pracor family members under 65, can save money tice, or location. A copy of the provider directory is also availby changing the way they access health care. TRIable at the Hill AFB TRICARE Service Center of the network TriWest's providers, Using in Bldg. 545 from 7:30 CARE Extra option doesn't require an enrollp.m. weekdays. Beneficiaries can choose to visit the military ment fee and offers a savings over needs on TRICARE Standard once the annual deductible treatment facility for their health-car- e a is met Annual deductibles, applied to outpabasis; however, TRICARE Prime enrollees are given priority access to the tient services, are: Active duty families of E--4 and below, $50 military treatment facilities as part of their benefits. individual and $100 family Active duty families of 5 and above, $150 Along with cost savings and the variety of choices available by using the provider network individual and $300 family Retirees and family members under 65, $150 "via theTRICARE Extra option, time and maybe , even frustration is saved. With TRICARE Extra, individual and $300 family TriWest has organized a network of civilian beneficiaries don't fill out or submit claims providers in the TRICARE Central Region that network providers complete the paperwork for accept theTRICARE negotiated fee for services. them. Until the implementation of TRICARE Prime Visiting a network provider will yield savings outTRICARE Remote for Family Members, TRICARE will Standard for of 5 percent over and like temporarily apply a waiver of charges for most laboratory patient treatments and exams. health care services for an active duty family smears routine services, Pap eye Beneficiaries can access a list of civilian net- member whose sponsor is currently enrolled in Prime Remote, even under the TRICARE work specialists, hospitals and facilities, mental health or substance abuse facilities and Extra option. a.m.-4:3- 0 space-availab- le E-- X-r- high-qualit- beneficiaries have to fill out their own paperwork and submit their own claims. TRICARE Standard is comparableto a traditional civilian health indemnity plan. Managed health care More than seven out of 10 insured Americans receive their health care coverage through a managed health care plan. "Managed care" refers to a health care system in which doctors, hospitals and insurance plans are linked together through an arranged contract In the case of the military, TRICARE is the organized health care system in which the consumer, or TRICARE beneficiary, has his or her own health care managed in terms of disease prevention, health education and the oversight of the quality of medical care. Managed care plans are organized to save patients money. Participating doctors, hospitals and other health care providers negotiate fees within the plan, so that the patients will be offered lower costs. Because of these savings, beneficiaries are encouraged to use health care providers within the network. TRICARE Prime vs. an HMO TRICARE operates like a managed care plan. TRICARE Prime beneficiaries enroll in the "plan" and receive their health care from a specific team of providers, as they would in a civilian HMO system. From childhood through their golden years, Prime beneficiaries are assigned a primary care manager who will provide and coordinate their care. Like the civilian system which often requires a patient to see his or her primary Care physician before consulting a specialist TRICARE Prime requires patients to see their primary care manager first Rather than diagnosing yourself and directly making an appointment with a specialist who might order expensive and unnecessary tests, beneficiaries must first consult the primary care manager, who might rule out the need for a visit to a specialist. Research shows that this care results system of organized, direct-patiein fewer hospitalizations and lower health care costs while providing optimum, personalized health care. The TRICARE Prime option offers the greatest benefits to individuals. TRICARE Extra vs. preferred providers TRICARE Extra most closely resembles a civilian preferred provider system of health care, where there are also organized networks of health care providers. The TRICARE Extra option for health care saves money over TRICARE Standard when network providers are used. Beneficiaries who choose not to visit a physician within the network will pay more. Under TRICARE Extra, rather than receiving coordinated care from an assigned PCM who is familiar with their health background (like you would with TRICARE Prime), beneficiaries may seek care from specialists whenever they choose and may handle their health care needs on a basis. They won't have to file their own claims with Extra, but won't have the same personalized health care as with TRICARE Prime. TRICARE Standard vs. traditional health nt case-by-ca- se insurance In both civilian health care and TRICARE, there is another choice in meeting health care needs. In the civilian system, visiting a chosen physician or health care provider would cost beneficiaries the most and give them the least amount of consistent, coordinated care. They would also do a lot of the legwork, like filing claims and paperwork, on their own. Similarly, under TRICARE Standard, visiting a health care provider of the beneficiaries' choice will ultimately cost them the most money. They will also fill out their own paperwork and file their own claims. For more detailed information about TRICARE, access the Central Region web site at www.triwestcom orwww.tricarecr.carson.army.mil or visit the Hill AFB TRICARE Service Center in Bldg. 545. A beneficiary service representative will help answer questions, make and coordinate appointments and process enrollments. Through the Cen- tral Region web site, access to TSCs, military treatment facilities and answers to many health care questions are provided. Good communications can improve medical treatment by MaJ. Gen. Leonard M. Randolph Jr. deputy executive director One of the greatest barriers to WASHINGTON (AFPN) between physicians and patients is time. No one seems to have enough of it, these days. However, there are things you can do to enhance communications and make the most of the time you spend in your doctor's office. and Listen to your body. Take time to make a before your appointment, consider writing a diary of the symptoms. Focus on descriptive terms for your symptoms, such as intense, dull, pulsating. Try to relate the symptoms to your activities, time of day and how they compare to other past experiences. Many clinicians find it helpful when a patient can relate a "pattern of experiences." -- Try not to feel embarrassed. Clinicians are highly trained professionals, and must keep patient information confidential. Since there is usually a pattern of symptoms relating to an illness, the clinician often has an insight into how the illness occurred. I le or she may even expect to hear the patient state a potentially embarrassing phrase in order to make a diagnosis. Failure to tell all of your concerns (embarrassing, or not) to your clinician can result in a missed diagnosis with poor outcomes. In the military community, fear of reprisals for having a mental or sexual health problem may be a concern for the patient A patient's COMMENTARY' TRICARE Management Activity illness can affect the unit's military readiness, and possibly tl le patient's career. Fortunately, military clinicians have the same sacred patient relationship as civilian providers, and keep patient confidentiality as R copy! be the cause of your symptoms. For example, simple nose spray can raise the blood pressure, while a high dose of vitamin K can affect one's prescription. Checking with your pharmacist is also very important when taking supplements. Don't believe everything you read. The Internet is a fascinating tool for information (good and bad). Anyone can write articles for the Internet and they do not require any proof for their claims. Bringing in articles from any source to the physician's office can help aid in discussion; however, if the clinician seems cautious, please understand that he or she may not trust the source of information or may have more insight into your particular case. Give yourself time to heal and stay healthy. The best physician plan in the world will not work if the patient is too busy to comply. Taking time off for the rest prescribed can be difficult for "indispensable people;" ask for additional assistance whenever you can. Timers for medications are not only for the elderly, they can help anyone taking medications. Scheduling time for lifestyle changes is just as important Any change takes time, especially if it involves exercise. An exercise prescription may be the best treatment the patient ever takes. Keep the plan simple. The physician may discuss or handout a lot of information. Ask questions of the physician in order to clarify the instructions. Request a telephone consult or schedule a follow-u- p appointment sooner, if you have questions or concerns. Good communication is critical to a good relationship with your clinician, and helps make you a true partner in determining which treatments you might need, and how to maintain your good health. blood-thinnin- their first priority. Not receiving proper treatment may cause more harm to a unit's medical readiness, and negatively affect the patient's long-terhealth. The clinic staff may ask (multiple times) why you are here to see the doctor. This question helps make s'ure that all the proper equipment is available in the exam room. If you only wish to speak to the clinician, just answer that you have several symptoms and are not sure of the problem. Bring a list Always keep a card in your wallet with a list of your g allergies and current medications in case of an emergency. with list clinician is always impoyour prescription your rtant A list of questions or concerns is usually helpful during your visit. As a patient, you may feel rushed, or your may be interrupted. Relying only on memory for symptoms or concerns from the past weeks or months may be not be as accurate as a list, and it can help to check with family members about your family history. The use of a list can also be helpful when talking to a different physician. Communicating consistent information will keep everyone current on your health care. Tell the clinician all the medications and supplements that you are taking. There are many supplements on the market that claim to improve health. Vitamins, herbs, medications, diet pills, etc., can interact with your prescription, and may even Double-checkin- train-of-thoug- g |