Archive for the
‘News’ Category

Gainesville Sun

Given the educational institutions we have in our community, Alachua County should perform better than around the middle of the pack when it comes to taking care of children.

Yet Alachua County ranked 31st out of 67 Florida counties in the 2018 Child Well-being Index. The index, released in April by Florida Kids Count, measures the status of children in areas such as educational outcomes, health and poverty.

Florida ranked 40th among states in the group’s 2017 rankings, so being near the middle of the pack […]

WellFlorida News Release

Residents in the service area of Shands Lake Shore Regional Medical Center are invited to share their views about healthcare and the health of their communities. WellFlorida Council is conducting focus groups and surveys for Shands Lake Shore Regional Medical Center throughout April and May. Focus group feedback and survey results, along with research and health data, will be used to assess the region’s most pressing health needs. This information will be made available in Fall 2018 in a community health needs assessment.

Focus […]

WellFlorida News Release

Are you or someone you care about in need of a cancer support group, transportation for medical treatments or financial assistance with prescription drugs? Locate resources for these needs and more on the website www.CancerResourceGuideNCF.org. The Cancer Resource Guide of North Central Florida is a public service of North Central Florida Cancer Control Collaborative (NCFCCC), WellFlorida Council and the Florida Department of Health Cancer Control Program.

The Cancer Resource Guide of North Central Florida lists support groups, community and caregiver resources, financial support services […]

Gainesville Sun

Making a bigger investment in Alachua County’s children would not only help address deep disparities in educational outcomes here, it would benefit all residents.

Local voters will have an opportunity to make such an investment through the Children’s Trust of Alachua County initiative on the November ballot. The measure would authorize an up to a half-mill property tax increase locally over 12 years to fund children’s services, which is estimated to cost the median homeowner only about $3 more per month.

The measure would raise about […]

WellFlorida News Release

Citrus County community members and healthcare providers are invited to share their views on health and healthcare by participating in a focus group and/or taking a survey. WellFlorida Council is conducting the research in May and June for the Florida Department of Health in Citrus.

Focus group participants will earn $20 for roughly two hours of their time. Call WellFlorida at 352-727-3765 for the focus group schedule and to sign up.

The Citrus County Health Survey is available online at www.WellFlorida.org (select “Survey”). Surveys […]

Citrus County Chronicle

THE ISSUE: Citrus County scores slump in health surveys.
OUR OPINION: The fix begins with “we.”

Here’s the bad news:  Citrus County’s score on a nationally respected health survey continues to slide. Among Florida’s 67 counties, our county’s rank has dropped from 44 two years ago to 54 in 2018.

Here’s the good news: Each of us has the power to help turn that trend around, through both individual action and participation in targeted community efforts.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), in partnership with the University of Wisconsin Population Health […]

WellFlorida News Release

The Alachua County Children Services Advisory Board hosted a kick-off for the NewboRN Home Visiting program on Sat., March 17, 2018 from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Alachua County School Board District Office. Speakers at the event included Alachua County Commissioner Lee Pinkoson and Alachua County Advisory Chair Thomas Logan.

The NewboRN Home Visiting program is a coordinated effort to improve the health, safety and future of all babies born in Alachua County. The program is overseen by Healthy Start of North Central […]

WCJB

GAINESVILLE, Fla.  In May 2017 the board of county commissioners in Alachua county formed the Alachua County Children’s Services Advisory Board to make sure all children would be ready to enter kindergarten.
Today, they debuted their new program.
The “Newborn Nurse Home Visit Program”* will send out registered nurses and certified nurse midwifes on home visits to families with newborns to check on the health of both the baby and the new mother.
The visits are funded by the board and will be free of […]

Gainesville Sun

Some have already declared it be the “year of the child” in Alachua County, but a lot of work remains to make that happen.

Alachua County Public Schools must keep making improvements despite a lack of adequate state support. County voters have stepped up in approving local funding for arts and music programs and other priorities, but more help is needed to improve aging school facilities, address disparities in achievement and prepare children outside the classroom.

That preparation begins long before children enter kindergarten. County commissioners […]