Making Your Health Insurance Choices

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Maryland Health Connection (MHC) is Maryland’s official health insurance marketplace. Health insurance information can be overwhelming even for those with advanced health literacy skills, so community outreach and education are necessary to assist consumers in choosing the best health insurance coverage options for their families and themselves. MHC employs Navigators to provide this outreach and education, and ICCI was selected to develop a comprehensive instructional toolkit titled “Making Your Health Insurance Choices” for use in these efforts during Open Enrollment 2016. This toolkit includes culturally and linguistically appropriate instruction manuals, consumer guides, and supplemental materials that appeal to the diverse population of Prince George’s County. As a result of these efforts, thousands of individuals and families now have health care coverage.

 

Bernadette’s House Open House

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BernadetteHousecopyOn January 7, 2016, ICCI Project Manager, Emily Wilson, spoke about the availability of high quality after-school programs for older youth in a panel discussion at the Bernadette’s House Open House event in Laurel, Maryland. Congresswoman Donna F. Edwards, Maryland’s 4th District Representative, was the keynote speaker. The panel discussion also featured Michael Lyles, Esq., Executive Director of the Prince George’s County Human Relations Commission and Chair of the Prince George’s County Human Trafficking Task Force, Jennifer C. Higgins, School Psychologist with District of Columbia Public Schools, and Harri C. Cox, Community Activist and Youth Advocate. The purpose of this event was to raise awareness of critical issues facing our youth and create a forum for collaboration with community stakeholders.

Holiday Toy Drive

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ICCI partnered with the Prince George’s County Department of Social Services to provide children in the county’s foster care system with toys during the 2015 holiday season. The drive was hosted at Charles Herbert Flowers High School, and thanks to the hard work of our mentoring group, Flowers Leading Ladies, we collected 96 items. Every child on our list was able to receive at least two gifts. The children and their families were invited to celebrate the season and receive these gifts at a holiday party sponsored and hosted by the Prince George’s County Department of Social Services.

The Legacies of Leading Ladies

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“The measure of a woman’s character is not what she gets from her ancestors, but what she leaves her descendants.’ – Author Unknown

In June of 2015, several of the mentees in our Flowers Leading Ladies mentoring group had the pleasure of interviewing six dynamic residents of Arbor Terrace Senior Living in Lanham, Maryland. This intergenerational community service project was enjoyed by everyone who participated. The residents shared stories about their lives and imparted wisdom to our mentees, and our mentees updated the residents about their current experiences as young women of color. The residents’ interview responses were compiled in a book titled The Legacies of Leading Ladies that was given to all residents and mentees to cherish forever.

Keep it Moving!

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Jean C. Drummond, was the keynote speaker at Charles Herbert Flowers High School’s annual Mentoring Day on April 2, 2015. Jean, who is no stranger to adversity, started her multimillion-dollar health management and technology consulting firm, HealthCare Dynamics International, with a $450 loan. In her dynamic presentation, “Keep It Moving,” this savvy businesswoman encouraged the entire female student body of this Prince George’s County high school to keep it moving past the obstacles in their lives and keep it moving on the path to success. Her presentation focused on determining one’s purpose and passion, personal branding, and self-love.

Shepherd’s Cove Emergency Shelter Coat Drive

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Shepherd’s Cove Emergency Shelter is the only shelter for women and children in Prince George’s County, Maryland. This shelter, which houses slightly over one-hundred women and children at any given time, was in great need of coats this past winter. Throughout the months of December 2014 and January 2015, ICCI collected 311 women’s and children’s coats. Residents moving out could take coats with them, and residents moving in had coats waiting for them upon their arrival. Several businesses and community groups contributed to our effort and made it a huge success. We are very grateful to HealthCare Dynamics International, the Junior Honor Society of Central Middle School, The MIL Corporation, Thorlabs, Inc., TJ Maxx of Alexandria, and neighbors in our community for their substantial donations.

DC Health Link

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Health insurance information can be overwhelming even for those with advanced health literacy skills. In the spring of 2014, ICCI was contracted to assist DC Health Link (DCHL) with logistical support for several outreach events and activities with an emphasis on health insurance and plan enrollment in the District of Columbia. ICCI provided this support at key community sites throughout the District and provided the logistical arrangements and assignments of In-Person Assisters and brokers. We ensured the look and feel for each event was of high quality and launched the “DC Fact Mob” to share facts about DC Health Link prior to a District-wide enrollment event. Our knowledge of the area and high touch personal strategy ensured that factual information was disseminated to communities during high traffic periods of time.