SEQUOIA HEALTHCARE DISTRICT’S ANNUAL COMMUNITY
REINVESTMENT NEARLY $9 MILLION IN 2010

REDWOOD CITY — Final budget balancing shows Sequoia Healthcare District’s community reinvestment in healthcare will total nearly $8.6 million for the fiscal year ending June 30, using only $7.4 million in tax revenues, an accomplishment made possible by judicious use of investment income and revenue generated by a profit sharing agreement with the operator of Sequoia Hospital.

Total administrative costs were less than 8 percent of total program spending. All administrative spending was financed through use of reserves and profit sharing.

The new 2010–11 fiscal year budget projects more than $9 million in 10 program areas for the fiscal year ending June 30, using only $7.2 million in tax revenues,

Sequoia Healthcare District is a 60 year-old public agency that reinvests property tax revenues in a variety of health and wellness initiatives, from nursing education to school health, medical/dental clinics to placement of public defibrillators.

Don Horsley, president of the publicly elected board of directors that manages Sequoia Healthcare District, said the balance sheet shows the district follows through on its mission statement to improve residents’ access to quality healthcare.

“This $9 million commitment for the coming yeaer provides funding to our local school districts to help them retain physical fitness programs and school nurses, funds the nurse training program at Cañada College to address the shortage of nurses in our community, funds community clinics in North Fair Oaks and Belle Haven that provide primary medical care for families and supports dozens of community-based organizations that provide health-related programs for children, adults and older adults,” Horsley said.

“The budget shows we are fulfilling our mission.”

Sequoia Healthcare District operated Sequoia Hospital until 1997, at which time it turned over operations to a major healthcare provider, Catholic Healthcare West (CHW). The district continues to fund pension obligations for employees who worked for the hospital up to that date, but under the transfer agreement passes through an annual payment from CHW that completely funds that obligation. CHW’s pass-through payment is $2.85 million annually, a figure not included in these income and expense figures.

Administrative cost figures for the next fiscal year would be less were it not for the November election of three board members. The County of San Mateo conducts the election and bills each political jurisdiction for its appropriate share of the cost, which in the district’s case is $250,000. Board members Horsley, Arthur Faro and Jack Hickey are up for reelection.

The coming year’s budget boosts spending on healthy youth and school health programs to $1.5 million from about $350,000 last year. The new School Health Initiative will help four school districts partially restore school nurses, wellness and fitness programs and physical education activities in 34 district schools for kindergartners through high school.

The school districts are Belmont-Redwood Shores, San Carlos, Redwood City Elementary and Sequoia High School.

Healthcare grant amounts for next year are unchanged from last year for: Children’s Health Initiative ($1.35 million; nursing education and training ($1 million); Samaritan House ($570,343); North Fair Oaks children’s and adults’ clinics and Willow Clinic ($2 million); Ravenswood/Belle Haven clinic ($250,000) and HeartSafe (public defibrillators, $250,000).

A matching challenge grant to the nonprofit Sequoia Hospital Foundation to assist it in fundraising for new medical equipment at Sequoia Hospital and a new Women’s Health Center is $1.25 million.

Grants to 36 community nonprofit healthcare organizations is budgeted at $1 million, the same community grant program funding as before after taking out items that have been reallocated and enhanced under the School Health Program.

June 9, 2010

REDWOOD CITY — Addressing the fact of a childhood obesity epidemic and the virtual disappearance of public health programs in the place where children spend most of their days — in school — directors of the Sequoia Healthcare District Wednesday approved a $4.5 million, three-year cooperative arrangement with four San Mateo County school districts to restore a minimal number of school nurses, licensed vocational nurses, wellness coordinators, health educators, physical education instructors and counselors in public schools.

The first-year commitment is $1.5 million, which will supplement the $350,000 in grant funds Sequoia Healthcare District already provides to pay for 3.5 full-time equivalent school nurse positions this fiscal year. Subsequent years will be funded at a minimum $1.5 million annually.

The district’s new Healthy Schools Initiative is a collaboration with the San Carlos School District, the Belmont-Redwood Shores School District, the Redwood City School District and the Sequoia High School District.

Thirty-four schools, kindergarten through 12, in the area from Woodside to the Bay, Menlo Park to San Mateo, an area largely contiguous with the boundaries of the Sequoia Healthcare District, will benefit.

The healthcare district has been working with school superintendents for several months laying the foundation for the initiative, and the reaction from the schools was heartfelt as Sequoia directors approved the program.

“At our board meeting tonight we’re going to cut $7.8 million from our budget over last year, while at the same time we’re educating 1,000 more students,” Redwood City School District Board of Trustees President Dennis McBride told his Sequoia colleagues. “To come here and hear you say you’re going to give us money makes me speechless.”

Appreciation came from the community, as well.

Jo-Ann Sokolov, president of the board of the Redwood City Education Foundation, a volunteer organization that fundraises for local schools, said, “At times like this when parents and community members feel so downtrodden because all they hear is bad news and funding cuts, to have an organization like yours that cares so deeply about our children is profound.”

Dr. Emerita Orta-Camilleri, Superintendent of the Belmont-Redwood Shores School District, said educators have

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been aware of the organizational model on which Sequoia’s program is based. “A few years ago our staff and teachers talked about this model, and I want you to know the excitement this has created in our schools.

“We are faced with so many areas where we have to back-burner health and wellness items for the children — this helps a lot. We never have enough. I just think that what you’re trying to do is exemplary. Thank you for taking this role — we’re going to make you very proud.”

Redwood City School District Superintendent Jan Christensen acknowledged the support of the community foundation in the past, but said the need overwhelms even its best efforts. “They’re trying to save music right now, and the timing couldn’t have been better for us.”

Sequoia Healthcare District Director Art Faro spoke for the majority of the board when he said, “our raison d’etre is to keep the community healthy, and we have a program here that has the opportunity to help keep our children healthy. To me, this is a no-brainer.”

Director Faro seconded the motion of Director Katie Kane to approve the program.

The Healthy Schools Initiative is momentous but has precedents. Sequoia Healthcare District funds a number of county health and wellness clinics, as well as 38 community nonprofits that work to assure the health and well-being of children to seniors in hospice.

Sequoia Healthcare District funding helps pay physicians, dentists, nurses, LVNs, educators and a number of health care professionals. The initiative greatly expands its reach into the schools.

The districts and their funded positions and projects under the new initiative are:

San Carlos School District — Wellness Coordinator/Health Educator (1 full-time equivalent (FTE)), middle school counselor, athletic director, teacher development, schools gardens, Safe Routes to School, instructional materials and special events: $340,000.

Belmont-Redwood Shores School District — Wellness Coordinator (.5 FTE), PE Instructor (.5 FTE), Health Educator (FTE), Nurse (.5 FTE), LVN ( FTE), teacher development at all schools, school gardens, instructional materials and special events: $348,000.

Redwood City School District — Wellness Coordinator (FTE), Counselor (.5 FTE), PE Instructor (FTE), LVN, RN, Health Educator (FTE), teacher development, school gardens, Safe Routes to School, instructional materials and special events: $447,500.

Sequoia Union High School District — Wellness Coordinator (FTE), RN (FTE), teacher development, health aid skill development, instructional materials, special events: $238,500.

Go to Walking School Bus Event Coverage on this Website

REDWOOD CITY — In the face of a childhood obesity epidemic that hits Hispanic children hardest, Redwood City 2020, the Sequoia Healthcare District and the Redwood City School District will launch a major initiative Tuesday, June 8 to get Fair Oaks Community School children out of their rides and onto the sidewalks to and from school.

National studies show that one in three children are overweight or obese; the figure for Hispanic children is close to one of every two. The K-5 children at Fair Oaks School are almost all of Hispanic ethnicity and are a prime candidate for a wellness initiative such as the Walking School Bus.

The entire school — staff, teachers, children and parents — have been mobilized to participate in a safe, healthful program that will have them walking the last few blocks to school. The Walking School Bus is part of Redwood City 2020’s community health strategy and is being funded by Sequoia Healthcare District.

Those participating will receive a big welcome at the school as they arrive on foot from three directions exactly at 8 a.m. Sequoia Healthcare District Board of Directors member Katie Kane, school district Superintendent Jan Christensen, school principal Lupe Guzman Larios and supporters will herald their arrival.

Accommodations have been made for media; parking is limited in the area and interested media will be provided maps and materials in advance of coverage.

FAQ

What is a “walking school bus”?

A group of children walking to school safely with one or more adults instead of riding in a car or bus is a walking school bus. It can be as informal as families taking turns walking their children to school, or formally structured. Structured walking school buses can have an identified route with meeting points, a timetable and a regularly rotated schedule of volunteers. The Fair Oaks Community School Walking School Bus pilot program is structured, with gathering points several blocks from school, students and faculty with assigned roles, walking routes and walking times.

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Why is a walking school bus a good idea?

Fewer children are regularly walking to school and more children are becoming overweight, studies show.  A walking school bus can be a regular daily activity that promotes good health for children and adults.  In addition, reducing the number of auto trips to and from school increases safety around the school site, reduces congestion and stress and contributes to improved air quality.

Who sponsors the Fair Oaks Walking School Bus Pilot?

Redwood City 2020 (www.rwc2020.org) and Sequoia Healthcare District (www.sequoiahealthcaredistrict.com) are working with the Redwood City School District to implement the walking school bus model as a component of a community wellness plan.  Fair Oaks School also has been working with the Lucile Packard Foundation for Children’s Health, the San Mateo County Sheriff’s Office and the California Highway Patrol to make safety improvements around the school. As a Community School, Fair Oaks has been very active in implementing a number of health and wellness programs that support RWC 2020’s Wellness Goals.

Sequoia Healthcare District is testing the concept of a Walking School Bus or similar youth wellness program for all of the school districts in its service area, which extends from Belmont to Menlo Park and Skyline to San Francisco Bay.  Sequoia Healthcare District’s experience with the Redwood City School District may be extended to other locations as part of its Youth Health Initiative.

What happens after this pilot program?

The goal at Fair Oaks and other Redwood City School District schools is to devise walking school bus programs tailored to the specific needs of a school site, apply the resources needed to create and maintain safe routes to school and actively involve adults to be a continuing part of the program.  The hope is that within two years every school will sponsor a walking school bus, or in some cases a “bicycle train,” where adults supervise children riding their bikes to school at least once a week.

Safe Routes to School

The Walking School Bus adheres to strategies established by National Center for Safe Routes to School, a federally-supported center and clearinghouse for assistance to communities seeking ways to encourage children to walk or bike to school, to improve the safety of walkers and bikers and facilitate projects that reduce traffic, fuel consumption and air pollution near schools.

Next Steps

Redwood City 2020 and the Sequoia Healthcare District will lead the effort to implement the walking school bus program in the Redwood City School District and intend to expand the program to additional schools.  Each additional school site will require: an assessment of interest and need, access to funds to make safety improvements, a structure to support the program and documentation to track its success.  Through a partnership with Stanford University Urban Design students, a model assessment has been completed at Hawes School in Redwood City and plans are underway to implement the walking school bus model there early next school year.

Sequoia Healthcare District

The regular meeting of the Board of Directors scheduled for Wednesday, June 2, 2010 at 4:30 p.m. has been postponed to Wednesday, June 9, 2010 at 4:30 p.m., 525 Veterans Blvd., Redwood City, CA 94063.

525 Veterans Blvd.

Redwood City, CA 94063

www.sequoiahealthcaredistrict.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

April 8, 2010

Contact:            Don Shoecraft

Sequoia Healthcare District

Public Information

650-594-0556

SEQUOIA HEALTHCARE DISTRICT FUNDS
36 NONPROFITS FOR 2010-11 GRANT CYCLE

REDWOOD CITY — A record 36 nonprofit community health organizations will receive a combined $2 million in Sequoia Healthcare District Caring Community grants as the result of deliberations concluded by the Sequoia Healthcare District Board of Directors Wednesday night.

It was also a record year in terms of grant requests, with 49 agencies submitting proposals totaling more than $4 million for the cycle. The healthcare district and its Grants Review Committee of community leaders spent more than four months compiling, reviewing and deciding on the grant proposals. The district set four priority areas for grants this year: Basic need; healthy, active, engaged older adults, mental health and youth services.

Caring Community Grant recipients will receive their official notifications at a special reception to be held June 15 at Ralston Hall on the Notre Dame de Namur University campus in Belmont.

Grantees announced at the board’s regular meeting Wednesday follow.

1. Elder Care — Ombudsman Services of San Mateo County: Basic need; healthy, active, engaged older adults: $50,000 to help investigate elder abuse cases, including quality of care, financial and elder abuse at certified long-term care facilities.

2. Public Health Nurse/Wellness Program — Mental Health Association of San Mateo County: Mental health: $20,000 to enable continuation of the Wellness Program at a 24-unit supported housing program in the City of Belmont.

3. Meals on Wheels — Peninsula Volunteers: Basic needs; healthy, active, engaged older adults: $100,000 for meals for homebound elderly.

4. Feeding the Needy — St. Anthony’s Padua Dining Room: Basic needs: $100,000 assisting in providing a hot lunch six days a week to low-income and homeless people. St. Anthony’s Padua Dining Room served 176,000 meals in 2009, averaging 570 per day on 312 serving days. The Caring Community grant will pay for 25,000 meals and related services.

5. Produce Mobile Program/Family Harvest Program — Second Harvest Food Bank: Basic need: $100,000 to help the largest non-profit food provider in the county serve more than 230,000 individuals monthly.

6. New Ventures — Caminar: Mental health: $25,000 supporting a program that serves adults and older adults with psychiatric disabilities with intensive case management, community support, educational and jobs assistance and housing opportunities. Caminar is a 26 year-old program that serves more than 3,600 adults.

7. Family Wellness — Shelter Network: Youth services: $100,000 to help vocational education food service youth improve the diet of low-income and homeless children susceptible to obesity and Type 2 diabetes.

8. School Nurse — San Carlos School District: Youth services: $100,000 for one full-time nurse serving 3,000 K-8 students.

9. School Nurse — Redwood City School District: $100,000 to fund one full-time school nurse to supplement the current staffing level of five school nurses for 16 school campuses.

10. School Nurse — Sequoia Union High School District: Youth services: $100,000 to fund one full-time school nurse to supplement the current staffing level of one nurse to 8,500 students.

11. Life Skills Program — Training and Health Education Center for Youth: Youth services: $75,000 for classroom instruction, peer training, physical activities and drug and alcohol counseling for up to 600 at-risk youth.

12. Special Needs After-School Program — Advocates for Accessible Recreation (AFAR): Mental health, youth services: $25,000 for 70 percent to 100 percent scholarship assistance for disabled youth participating in after-school recreation and fitness activities. Disabilities include autism, Down’s syndrome and other significant physical and mental issues.

13. Embracing the Community Project — Advocates for Children: Basic needs, youth services: $60,000 for inclusion of underrepresented communities, primarily Latino/Hispanic and African American, in Special Advocate volunteer pool.

14. Triple Play Mind, Body and Soul Program — Boys and Girls Clubs of the Peninsula: Youth services: $60,000 to educate youth about nutrition, fitness and healthy relationships by emphasizing their impact on mental health, behavior and social interactions.

15. Collaborative Counseling — Cleo Eulau Center: Youth services: $20,000 to provide direct psychotherapy services to at-risk youth experiencing severe adversity.

16. San Carlos Adult Day Services — Catholic Charities CYO: Healthy, active and engaged older adults: $50,000 providing professional day care services and case management to frail seniors and support for their family caregivers.

17. Family-Centered Mental Health — Community Overcoming Relationships Abuse (CORA): Mental health services: $100,000 for comprehensive services for victims of domestic violence and their children. CORA serves 7,000 victims of domestic violence annually.

18. Youth Intervention — El Centro de Libertad: Youth services: $50,000 for peer counseling, school-based prevention and substance abuse outpatient treatment for youth. The program is expected to serve more than 500 school-aged adolescents.

19. Senior Nutrition — Family Service Agency: $50,000- provide nutrition and physical fitness activities for older adults.

20. Senior Day Program — Kainos Home and Training Center: Health and wellness of older adults: $25,000 for a new program for adults with developmental disabilities who are becoming more vulnerable to health problems as they age.

21. Transitions Program — Mission Hospice: Basic needs; healthy, active and engaged older adults: $25,000 for case management and in-home services to those in extended hospice care.

22. Advocacy, Education and Support — National Alliance on Mental Illness of San Mateo County: Mental health: $30,000 for programs to demystify and eliminate the stigma of mental illness.

23. School-based Violence Prevention — Peninsula Conflict Resolution Center: Youth services: $35,000 for intervention programs and prevention at Sequoia and Menlo Atherton High Schools.

24. Youth and Senior Health and Wellness — San Carlos Parks and Recreation Department: Youth services; healthy, active, engaged older adults: $50,000 for the San Carlos Adult Community Center and San Carlos Youth Center to support nutrition and social activities for youth 10-17 and for older adults.

25. Hope House for Women —Service League of San Mateo County: Basic needs: $30,000 for health and nutrition services to low-income, high-risk, mostly uninsured women with the goal of changing behaviors for a lifetime.

26. Académicos Soccer Program — Sheriff’s Activities League: Youth services: $25,000 supporting a comprehensive program of recreational play, academics and volunteerism for 250 seven to 13 year-olds.

27. SMART Program — San Mateo County Police Chief’s and Sheriff’s Association: Mental health: $100,000 helping to fund “SMART” teams that affect law enforcement response to mental health calls and minimize trauma of individuals subject of these calls.

28. Adaptive Physical Education Program at Veterans Memorial Center — Veterans Memorial Center: Healthy, active and engaged older adults: $50,000 for exercise and physical activity for medically-referred seniors.

29. Nutrition Program — Women’s Recovery Association: Basic health and nutrition: $20,000 to fund nutrition program at the Women’s Residential Program, a group home for adolescent girls.

30. High School Health and Wellness — Youth and Family Enrichment Services: Youth services: $50,000 for gender-specific health and wellness education for youth at Sequoia High School, Woodside High School and Redwood Continuation who are otherwise not engaged in programs.

31. Outpatient Clinic — Children’s Health Council: Youth services: $25,000 to fund a clinic for children from birth through adolescence with developmental, behavioral, emotional and learning challenges.

32. Healthy Gardens, Healthy People Collaborative — Collective Roots: Basic needs, youth services: $50,000 to engage youth in active outdoor education to promote health and improve nutrition in families and school communities.

33. Redwood City Middle and High School Summer Camp and Environmental Education Program — Hidden Villa: Basic nutrition and youth services: $50,000 – to support school gardens and science education in RWC schools.

34. Housing and Supportive Services to the Homeless — InnVision The Way Home: Basic needs: $50,000 to house and transition the homeless. InnVision served 26,000 persons, served 500,000 meals and provided 165,000 nights of housing in 2009 in the Silicon Valley from Redwood City south.

35. Lesley Terrace Assisted Living Facility — Lesley Senior Communities: Healthy, active and engaged older adults: $50,000 to assist in bringing online a new 24-unit assisted living facility for extremely low-income seniors.

36. Part-time School Nurse and Part-time School Counselor — Portola Valley School District: Youth services: $50,000 to serve medically involved students and to meet county-mandated requirements for which funding is not provided.

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