Care Program

The West County Anne Arundel County Chamber of Commerce will sponsora Volunteer Appreciation Reception from 5:30 to 7 tonight at the BWIHoliday Inn in LInthicum.All members who have volunteered their time and talents to the chamber will be honored.Hors d'oeuvres will be served, and there will be a recognition ceremony.Information: 672-3422.DAY CARE DIRECTOR NAMEDNancy DeCandis has recently been appointed director of the Meade High School Teen Infant Day Care Program.As director, she is responsible for the day-to-day operations of the center, where 15 babies are cared for while their parents continue their high school education.

When your life is already in chaos, more chaos is likely to follow. But theAnnie E. Casey Foundationsays it won't let that happen to the children affected by its decision to close Casey Family Services this year ("Casey foundation ends foster care program," July 16). Given the foundation's outstanding record of serving the most vulnerable children over the last 36 years, I trust it will do everything possible to maintain stability for the kids in its program Casey's decision to remain committed to increasing adoption through increased awareness, education and technical assistance is laudable.

When your life is already in chaos, more chaos is likely to follow. But theAnnie E. Casey Foundationsays it won't let that happen to the children affected by its decision to close Casey Family Services this year ("Casey foundation ends foster care program," July 16). Given the foundation's outstanding record of serving the most vulnerable children over the last 36 years, I trust it will do everything possible to maintain stability for the kids in its program Casey's decision to remain committed to increasing adoption through increased awareness, education and technical assistance is laudable.

About 30 foster children in Baltimore stand to lose their social workers — for some the one constant in lives prone to turmoil — as the Annie E. Casey Foundation begins a new mission intended to extend its reach. The Baltimore-based foundation will close its Casey Family Services, a 36-year-old program that oversees the care of 400 foster children in seven states. Casey says the move will free up $18 million to $20 million a year to help increase adoptions and help other organizations that assist foster children.

A top aide to Parris N. Glendening acknowledged yesterday that the governor's plan to eliminate a state disability program could force people onto the streets and said the administration is trying to find ways to prevent that from happening.Carolyn D. Davis, a deputy chief of staff, said the administration intends to work with state and Baltimore housing officials to determine whether existing rent subsidy programs can help keep recipients from losing their apartments when their monthly benefits end July 1.But Ms. Davis told members of the Senate Budget and Taxation Committee that the governor has no specific plan in mind and does not intend to appropriate more money for the purpose.

When Violet Whoolery took a nasty tumble down her front steps in October and broke her back, her family thought that she might have to abandon her Brooklyn Park home for a health care facility.But last week, the 79-year-old was in her bed at her home on Cresswell Road in Anne Arundel County, surrounded by family photos and cards. A nurse cared for her as her two daughters looked on and her great-grandchildren played in another room.Harbor Hospital Center's Home Health Agency program allowed Mrs. Whoolery's family to keep her at home.

For the first time in a decade, the state saw a decrease in the number of children entering its costly foster care program, Gov. William Donald Schaefer announced yesterday.In the 12-month period that ended June 30, the state placed about 3,100 children in foster care because of neglect or abuse. That was less than the Department of Human Resources expected, and slightly less than the number of children who entered care in the previous year.That drop -- from 3,162 in 1992 to 3,110 in 1993 -- was the first time the number of new cases had decreased in 10 years.

Day care providers participating in a state subsidy payment program protested yesterday at the Maryland Child Care Administration, claiming the agency has been late with their checks. The American Home Daycare Association, a national organization with about 200 members in Baltimore, stormed into the agency's downtown Baltimore headquarters and tried to deliver to its executive director, Linda Heisner, a "Turkey of the Year" award. About 20 protesters eventually were granted a 20-minute meeting with state officials -- including Heisner's boss, Calvin Street, who is deputy secretary for programs.

For 14 years, social worker Margaret Brown helped low-income families in Carroll pay for child care, steering them through a complex state bureaucracy. In July, Mrs. Brown and 82 other social workers statewide who admin actual subsidies for day care is included in the governor's budget, Mrs. Brown and welfare advocates are worried that without workers to oversee the program, some low-income families would be lost in the system.Social services officials say the work performed by the "purchase of care" staff probably would be assigned to employees who handle applications for Aid to Families with Dependent Children, medical assistance and food stamps.

In the wake of severe funding cuts, a Maryland health care program that aids uninsured residents will curtail its operations this month. The University of Maryland's fleet of traveling health clinics won't make stops anymore in Glen Burnie, Cumberland and in a few locations on the lower Eastern Shore. In all, the budget for the School of Nursing's Wellmobile will be cut in half. "We're going to work to design a program that fits within the budget constraints," said Wellmobile's director, Susan Antol, who's still not sure of all the changes.

Baltimore Medical System won a nearly half-million grant to develop a program for patients with both chronic diseases and behavior health needs. The $498,906 from CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield will be used to develop a unique-in-the-state turn on patient centered medical homes, a model where a team of providers work to achieve better quality care for lower costs by coordinating patient care. The participants in this program will get integrated care blending primary care, psychiatric care, low-threshold counseling and social services.

About 60 percent of the doctor practices that are participating in a special patient-oriented program from CareFirst BlueCross BlueShield have save on health care costs and improved care, the insurer said Thursday. Those were the goals of the patient-centered medical hom e iniitative, according to CareFirst, which launched the program in January 2011 as the state was forming its own similar program. The practices earned increased reimbursements from CareFirst based on the savings they achieved against the projected care costs for 2011 for the insurer's members.

In the wake of severe funding cuts, a Maryland health care program that aids uninsured residents will curtail its operations this month. The University of Maryland's fleet of traveling health clinics won't make stops anymore in Glen Burnie, Cumberland and in a few locations on the lower Eastern Shore. In all, the budget for the School of Nursing's Wellmobile will be cut in half. "We're going to work to design a program that fits within the budget constraints," said Wellmobile's director, Susan Antol, who's still not sure of all the changes.

David Allan Minges, a 49-year-old veteran administrator for several public service nonprofits, has been hired as executive director of the Healthy Howard program, the Ulman administration's attempt to extend access to affordable health care to the uninsured. "I think it's a great opportunity, based on my experience working on new initiatives," Minges said yesterday. And since he's lost 50 pounds in five months through diet and exercise, he said, and lowered his blood pressure in the process, he's especially ready for the kind of preventive health care the program is aimed at. The program is to begin offering services to county residents Oct. 1. The intention is to enroll about 2,000 people in the first year, eventually extending the access to the roughly 20,000 county residents without health insurance.

Union Memorial Hospital threw open its doors yesterday to retired NFL players in need of replacement hip or knee surgery, then sat back to wait for the rush. Or not. Even as Dr. Les Matthews, the chief of orthopaedics at Union Memorial, and Dr. Frank Ebert, the associate chief, formally celebrated making the cut on the NFL's joint replacement team, they acknowledged that they had no idea who or how many were coming. What they know is that Union Memorial is one of 14 medical centers nationwide selected to participate in the newly created NFL Player Care Foundation, which will provide access to world-class medical technology and financial assistance to vested players who need it. The program will be funded by the NFL Alliance - consisting of the league, NFL Players Association, NFL Alumni and Pro Football Hall of Fame - and is the league's latest response to complaints of neglect from former players.

Sister Mary Gemma Neville, who established and led pastoral care programs, died of leukemia Wednesday at University of Maryland Hospital. She was 82. A deeply spiritual woman, she loved keeping journals, which eventually led her to write her own psalms and poetry. She thought of writing in her journal as corresponding with God. "If you have a favorite friend with whom you share your thoughts, you might write to them," she said in a 2005 Sisters of Bon Secours newsletter article. "With this, it's basically the same thing."

WASHINGTON -- Long-term care, a key selling point of President Clinton's health plan with the nation's seniors, could run into trouble because states, already burdened by Medicaid costs, will have to contribute to this new program as well."

The argument happened two years ago -- one of those emotional scenes played out daily by teen-agers and parents around the world. Now 16-year-old Bob DeFelice can't even remember what it was about.Bob can recall, though, how the clash ended: He stormed out and stewed during a long walk around the apartment complex where his family lives."That was the only time I ever thought of running away from home," he says. "But while I was walking, I started to think about what I had. I had parents who cared for me. And I was glad I had them.

Cocoa, with her soft brown fur and fuzzy white tail, nuzzled into the crook of 15-year-old Walter Humpel's elbow and buried her face in his T-shirt. "She hears all the noise, and it makes her a little scared," Walter explained as he stroked the back of his favorite rabbit's neck to calm her and make her feel safe. Truth is, Walter said, spending time with Cocoa in the pet-care therapy center at High Road School in Dundalk helps him feel calm and safe, too. "When you're here, you don't worry about what's happening," he said.

Eighteen months after the University of Colorado created a department to prepare undergraduates for a broad range of careers in health care: medicine, physical therapy, physician's assistant and more, that department has 1,200 students, making it the second-most-popular on campus. A similar program at State University of New York at Stony Brook on Long Island has grown to 370 graduating students last year from 35 four years ago. And at Marquette University, which in 1997 became among the first to offer a basic science degree in human health, the course of study has become more popular than any other.