Purpose Fall 2021 Edition

Fall/Winter 2021

On the

EVE

of 50

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On January 1, 2022, CCI Health & Wellness Services steps into its 50th year

s I look ahead to that moment, I am struck by the

birthed CCI and the dedicated hearts and hands which

glow that comes from 50 candles burning. I’m

developed it into what we have today. I look forward to

proud to share that our future looks bright. The

sharing those names and stories during our celebratory year.

five decades of trials and triumphs that shaped us

have also prepared us prepared us for an era of growth and change. With the new year will come a new name, new logo,

For now, I acknowledge those who are CCI’s current caretakers. I am thankful to the donors who fortified us

new associated colors, and new spaces from which to serve.

fiscally, the partners who amplified our voice, the patients

We are entering a new season.

team members. CCI staff continue to show up and offer

In this period, we get to reimagine our contribution to

of our communities. They demonstrate ingenuity and

Montgomery and Prince George’s counties.

Our first step will be to expand our reach while broadening our scope. This will happen through increased services, enlarged sites, and the launch of new access points. We will continue to be changemakers and disrupt the status quo to

who trusted us to take care of them, and each of our everything they have to advance the health and well-being innovation, support teammates and our mission, and lead with compassion and care even on the most difficult days.

Because of them, I know that we will still be serving this region at the end of the next 50 years, operating within trends that we set and evolving existing models of care.

deliver health equity. Our movements will remain nimble and our thinking agile to keep up in a landscape where speed is the new currency.

However, during the past year, my journey has reminded me of the importance of slowing down, taking a deep breath, and expressing appreciation. The next phase of CCI’s life cycle is anchored by growth and change built on a foundation of gratitude. I am thankful for the pioneers who

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Sonya Bruton, Psy.D., MPA President and CEO CCI Health & Wellness Services

Give eal .

Give o .

Give Locally.

CCI Health Services is more than just a doctor's office.

It's a nonprofit medical practice grounded in community Give Health. service. Since 1972, CCI has been striving to create a mo Give to CCI. equitable health care experience for local communities m CCI Health Services is more than just a doctor’s office. It’s a nonprofit medical practice grounded in community service. Since 1972, CCI has been striving to create a more equitable health care experience for local communities made vulnerable by social, economic, and cultural barriers.

vulnerable by social, economic, and cultural barriers.

When you give When you giveto toCCI CCI,you're you’re supporting supporting the CCI H ALTH S IC S (C health and wellness journey of 60,000+ friends the health and wellness journey of 60,000+ Prince George’s County. A home and build trusted re andfriends neighbors. and neighbors.

A Fede meeting

C S (CCI) is a community health center serving ontgomery a Make a Difference. unty.Join At our CCI,Board patients have the opportunity to establish a medi of Directors.

CCI Health & Wellness Serviceswith we know we cannot care team. stedAtrelationships their

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do our work without the support and voices of our communities. The input our patients and neighbors provide is vital to what we do—keeping individuals and communities healthy.

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A Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC), CCI is dedicated to That’s why we need people like you, who believe that meeting the community’s unique health needs. That means we o we can build better health together.

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You can make all the difference in the health and wellness of your friends, family, and community.

Learn more about becoming a CCI Board Member.

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Health care to all

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A#ChooseCCI discount on a sliding scale

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Telehealth

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RUN BABY RUN 5K RACE

RUN baby

Run

Neighbors, supporters, and families alike came out to participate in CCI’s 4th annual Run Baby Run 5K race!

Nearly 200 attendees joined us for some exercise through beautiful Brookside Gardens-one of our best turnouts yet.

Abigail Hines, came out on top in the women’s group, clocking in a fantastic time of 20:46, while Jordan Johnson was the men’s winner, finishing the race at a very impressive 17:32.

Our community baby shower, hosted by CCI’s own WIC Co-Director Jose Luis Diaz, was a huge success, drawing in 48 families (over 100 people!) to the event. And when all was said and done, we raised over $43,000 for our prenatal services—a record for the race!

We want to thank each participant, vendor, and fundraiser for their involvement this year. We look forward to next year’s event!

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Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

We want to thank each participant, vendor, and fundraiser for their involvement this year. We look forward to next year’s event!

Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

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SUMMER EVENT

BLOCK

Party

of the year

Over 500 neighbors joined CCI for our first-ever block party! For a sunny afternoon at our Greenbelt health center, families enjoyed fun activities, dined on delicious (and free) food, and danced to the latest hits spun by DJ Dre. More importantly, though, those who came received essential, preventative health care services, including HIV tests and first doses of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Our team planned the event to help families unwind after a stressful year and to encourage the youth in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties to take their health and well-being seriously. It was a day filled with delighted adults, smiling children, and empowered neighbors. The block party exemplified what CCI does best—showing our community that we care by connecting with them on a personal level. We can’t wait to start planning next year’s event!

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Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

BLOCK PARTY

Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

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ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES

Achievements CCI is a team driven by results and impact. In everything we do, we strive to reach peaks and set new standards in health care. Thousands of neighbors in Montgomery and Prince George’s counties depend on us to do our jobs well and be there for them in their time of need.

Here’s what our team has accomplished in the last six months alone.

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Our President & CEO, Dr. Sonya Bruton, received the

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HRSA awarded CCI with two Community Health Equality

2021 Health Care COVID-19 Hero Award presented by the

Recognition badges: Advancing HIT for Quality and

Daily Record. It was a well-deserved honor. Dr. Bruton’s

COVID-19 Testing. These badges designate notable

leadership has been imperative in navigating through

achievements in access, quality, health equity, and

the pandemic. Our entire team is grateful to have her

health information technology.

experience and guidance.

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5•

Committed to investing in our community, CCI

In July, Dr. Bruton and CCI appeared on Studio 501c3,

purchased a building in downtown Silver Spring to

a Montgomery Community Media program that

house our administrative offices. The new move will

highlights local nonprofits making a real difference in

help us significantly expand our medical space and

the community.

services in the Silver Spring area. Stay tuned for more

During National Breastfeeding Month in August, CCI

information in the new year!

promoted the importance of breastfeeding to our

We invite you to keep track of our work in the community

patients and followers. Our successful campaign

following us on social media @CCIcares on Facebook,

featured the stories of our own WIC Breastfeeding

Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn.

Peer Counselors.

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Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

ACHIEVEMENTS AND MILESTONES

National Health Center Week

Every August, Community Health Centers nationwide

The tour also led to an exciting collaboration with

come together to celebrate National Health Center Week,

Councilmember Glass to reach the community with free

an annual event that recognizes the critical work of health

flu shots at farmer’s markets in Olney in partnership with

centers and the communities they serve. Throughout the

Amerigroup and in Silver Spring with Priority Partners.

week, the many groups that make health centers what they

In total, we vaccinated nearly 150 people! We thank both

are receive special focus and appreciation for being a part

Councilmembers for taking the time to learn more about

of this shared mission.

CCI’s history, service, and value to the community. We look

As always, CCI was happy to join the celebrations. For Patient

forward to working with them more in the future.

Appreciation Day, we distributed goodie bags to our patients provided by UnitedHealth Community Plan of Maryland. And for Staff Appreciation Day, our executive leadership team filmed a special video for CCI’s staff thanking them for their work. They also hosted giveaways and raffles!

National Health Center Week is about health center advocacy, as well. During the week, CCI extended invitations to local elected officials to visit our Takoma Park health center. We were honored that Montgomery County Councilmembers Evan Glass and Will Jawando accepted our invitations. The Councilmembers toured our health center, learning more about services and seeing for themselves CCI staff with council-member Will Jawando

how important we are to the community.

Advocates For All June serves as LGBTQIA+ Pride Month and National Men’s Health Month—two critical issues that impact thousands of our neighbors. Throughout the month, CCI published content to celebrate and raise awareness of both movements to our

And for our National Men’s Health campaign, our goal was to break down some of the harmful misconceptions of masculinity. Expectations of how men should be may hinder them from receiving care, leaving them vulnerable

social media followers.

to preventable health issues. Aided by our male staff who

For Pride Month, we asked our LGBTQIA+ staff members if

much-needed dialogue on the intersection between image

provided their likeness for our campaign, we started a

they would be willing to share their stories to encourage

and health.

acceptance in our wider community. Many of our colleagues jumped at the opportunity to speak their truth. They bravely detailed their experiences through video and text, touching our followers and fostering a deeper understanding of identity and equality for all.

Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

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Board Member

BOARD MEMBER HIGHLIGHT

Service. Eventually, he settled down at the FDA for more than two decades, working in safety surveillance for drugs and biological products. After retiring from the FDA and Public Health Service (PHS), he spent more than five years in Gaithersburg at MedImmune, the manufacturing component of AstraZeneca for vaccines and other biological products.

Dr. Robert Wise CCI Board Treasurer

Although retired now from full-time work, he still provides medical epidemiologic consultations, usually involving COVID-19 and its vaccines over the last year. “I hope and expect to see continued stabilization and growth in our services to people without good access to medical care through other channels. At the same time

Dr. Robert Wise responded in 1991 to a notice in the City of Rockville’s newsletter about an opening for a volunteer position at a local community health center.

that CCI sustains the progress it has made while continuing to further develop, it can serve as an example from which similar organizations can learn, and it can supply critically needed well-informed advocacy for improvements in ways to make medical care more accessible to

With a background in Medicine and Public Health, Wise was no

everyone,” says Wise.

stranger to the world of health care. “I thought that volunteering as a CCI board member would help me to understand how safety-net health care works in this country.” He had majored in Sociology and Anthropology as a Carleton College undergraduate in rural Minnesota and then moved to Chicago for medical school at Northwestern and later to Boston for a

The word “purpose” as defined by dictionary.com means “the reason why something exists.” Wise believes that CCI’s purpose is to provide medical care to people without access elsewhere.

master’s degree in Public Health at Harvard.

Outside of being a long-time board member, Wise enjoys spending time with his wife and video chatting with his children

“The fact that CCI is a fundamentally charitable organization appeals to me, and its evolving integration into our absurdly

and their first grandchild.

complex collection of national health care systems is fascinating.

His most challenging projects include thinning and organizing

until we more radically revise medical care in this country, but in the

files and piles accumulated over the last 40 years and

meantime, I like to feel that in a small way I can support CCI as an

the exploration of a few research ideas in endocrinology,

increasingly important local band-aid covering the medical needs of

hematology, and automotive safety. He also enjoys yard work

people without health insurance. An essential board and management

and biking with his wife.

goal must be to sustain the organization’s financial stability so that we

Understanding safety net health services will probably remain elusive

can continue serving this primary target population, people who lack Wise was fortunate to have experiences in rural Guatemala, first

health insurance or face language and cultural barriers to care from

for a few weeks in a vaccination program as an undergraduate

other sources. Other key objectives include constantly looking for

and then for a couple of months as a medical student. He also

ways to enhance the quality of our services and to extend the scope to

lived in Guatemala for a year as a resident in International Health

additional kinds of care to more people.”

with the Pan American Health Organization and then had a few

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consulting jobs in West Africa, followed by two years as a U.S.

Wise believes in the mantra, “If a job is worth doing, it’s worth

Public Health Service officer in CDC’s Epidemic Intelligence

doing right.”

Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

RUN BABY RUN 5K RACE SPONSORS

Thank You CCI Supporters!

Everyone deserves quality and affordable health care.

And remember: it takes a community to change a

Unfortunately, society’s inequities make access difficult

community. Each of us needs to do our share to ensure

for many of our neighbors. Barriers such as inadequate

our friends, family, and neighbors remain healthy. If you

housing, poverty, and underinsurance threaten the well-

haven’t already received your flu shot for the season, be

being of already underserved populations, increasing their

sure to get one as soon as you can—and encourage those

risk of preventative illness and death.

close to you to do so, as well!

Greater health equity is essential to the community, and

On behalf of the entire CCI team, thank you for your

that’s why CCI commits to using our voice and influence to

unwavering support and dedication to both our patients

tirelessly advocate for lasting change in health care. And as

and our mission.

a diverse team reflective of the patients we serve, we are in Gratefully,

a unique position to achieve it.

Jennifer Pusatere But we can’t do it alone. We need your passion and support

Development Director

to help us advance our mission in creating a more equitable health care experience for all. We invite you to make a gift towards our efforts and our critical services by visiting www.cciweb.org/get-involved/. A monthly contribution will have the greatest impact!

Purpose Newsletter — Fall/Winter 2021

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Attn. Jennifer Pusatere