CHI Newsletter

The Center for Health Improvement publishes an electronic newsletter periodically throughout the year.

CHI Newsletter,  Volume VI, Issue 1, May 2010: Read about several forums and briefings CHI is hosting this year related to health reform and hepatitis; hepatitis bills CHI is helping to sponsor and support in the California legislature; CHI's new status as a CMAS contractor;Popular health topics among legislative and agency staff; and new funding and a new board member

CHI Newsletter, Volume V, Issue 4, November 6, 2009: This issue of the Center for Health Improvement's newsletter. introduces a project-specific fund-raising campaign for CalHEP and the California Health Policy Forum; announces a November 18 Forum, "Leveraging Public Reports of Health Care Provider Performance to Improve Quality"; announces CalHEP's co-sponsorship of the November 19 Annual Hepatitis C Summit in Los Angeles; reports on CHI President & CEO Peter Reed being named to California's Alzheimer's Disease Task Force; and contains reports of publications, new positions for two members of CHI's board of directors, and a roundup of health promotion news. 

Convergence, Volume V, Issue 3, August 6, 2009: This issue of Convergence reports on publication of a new health policy brief, "Targeting Root Causes to Address Health Inequities and Improve Health: Implications for Health Reform"; three job openings at CHI; CHI's membership in the National Quality Forum and the National Network of Public Health; and a roundup of recent health promotion news.

Convergence, Volume V, Issue 2, June 25, 2009: This issue of Convergence features a note from President & CEO Peter S. Reed, PhD, MPH, announcing that Neal Kohatsu, MD, MPH, was elected to chair CHI’s board of directors; a report on the June 25 California Health Policy Forum, “Tackling Obesity: Crossing Silos to Find Solutions”; an announcement of the publication of a health policy brief, “New Perspectives: Investing in Resilience to Promote Healthy Aging”; a report on CalHEP’s Spring meeting; a note encouraging colleagues to support the Alzheimer’s early detection campaign; and a roundup of health promotion news.

Convergence, Volume V, Issue 1, April 6, 2009: This issue of Convergence contains a message from CHI's new President & CEO, Peter Reed, PhD, MPH, about the importance of prevention and health promotion and CHI's partnership with National Public Health Week; reports on the latest California Health Policy Forum, "Aging Well in Place," hosted by CHI; covers Karen Shore's presentation on Worksite Wellness to the League of California Cities; notes Peter Reed's most recent publication in the journal International Psychogeriatrics; and announces Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's selection of CalHEP's Peter Kennedy Lawford as a member of California's Public Health Advisory Committee. This issue of Convergence also introduces a new feature: "Prevention News Roundup."

Convergence, Volume IV, Issue 4, December 5, 2008: This issue of Convergence announces selection of Peter S. Reed, PhD, MPH, as the next president and CEO of the Center for Health Improvement.

Convergence, Volume IV, Issue 3, May 8, 2008: This issue of Convergence announces that CHI reopens its search for the next president and CEO of the Center for Health Improvement.

Convergence, Volume IV, Issue 2, April 2, 2008: This issue of Convergence announces selection of Donald M. Vickery, MD, MPH, as the next president and CEO of the Center for Health Improvement.

Convergence, Volume IV, Issue 1, March 7, 2008: This issue reports on plans by California’s two health departments to institutionalize a worksite wellness program piloted by CHI, a upcoming meeting of the California Hepatitis Alliance where Christopher Kennedy Lawford was to speak, launch of the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality Chartered Value Exchange program, and two health policy forums held by CHI in California’s Capitol.

Convergence, Volume III, Issue 3, November 8, 2007: This issue reports on an October 25 California Health Policy Forum that tackled the issue of how Proposition 63, which became the Mental Health Services Act, is transforming the state’s mental health service two years after the ballot initiative passed; on how a program of worksite improvements and interventions led by CHI helped maintain the health status of employees at California’s Department of Health Services; and on CHI’s publication of a policy brief, “Syringe Exchange in California: Policy, Programs and Progress.”

Convergence, Volume III, Issue 2, July 10, 2007: This issue reports on the first annual meeting of Aligning Forces for Quality, hosted by CHI, that bought together all 14 Aligning Forces communities in Seattle; CHI’s selection by the Agency for Healthcare Research & Quality to support a Learning Network for Chartered Value Exchanges; and a session of CHI’s California Health Policy Forum that brought more than 60 state legislative and agency staffers together to learn about the results of the Commonwealth Fund’s National and State Scorecards on Health System Performance, which measured health care outcomes, quality, access, efficiency, and equity.  

Convergence, Volume III, Issue 1, March 8, 2007: This issue announces the upcoming schedule for the California Health Policy Forum; and expansion of Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Aligning Forces for Quality program.

Convergence, Volume II, Issue 2, November 1, 2006: This issue announces the availability of a rural HCV toolkit that gathers best practices for providers and patients in preventing hepatitis C and in caring for people with the virus; and it reports on results from CHI’s study for the California Office of the Patient Advocate showing that Californians want more information on the quality of their health care providers and how to navigate their HMO services.

Convergence, Volume II, Issue 1, July 27, 2006: This issue reports on the availability of materials from the California Health Policy Forum on land use, healthy eating, and health disparities; and the selection of four pilot communities to participate in the precursor to the Aligning Forces for Quality project, supported by grants from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

Convergence, Volume I, Issue 3, November 14, 2005: This issue announces scheduling of three California Health Policy Forums on: “Health Care Financing & Delivery Macro Trends,” “Macro Public Health Trends,” and “State Innovation to Advance Quality.” Also reported is another new project with CHI teamed with The California Tobacco Control Alliance to work with Sacramento County to encourage tobacco cessation and reduce exposure to second-hand smoke within hospital and health clinic settings.

Convergence, Volume I, Issue 2, July 25, 2005: This issue reports on a discussion of hepatitis C surveillance at a CHI roundtable attended by members of CHI’s nine-county Hepatitis Collaborative and medical experts; on CHI’s in-depth look at evidence-based model programs aimed at improving children’s health that link school, community, families, and primary health care resources; and the start of a needs assessment by CHI to help the Office of the Patient Advocate in California’s Department of Managed Health Care understand what HMO enrollees need to know about their health plans.

Convergence, Volume I, Issue 1, February 2005: The inaugural issue of CHI’s electronic Ezine reports on the launch of the California Health Policy Forum and the California Department of Health Services Worksite Wellness Study. The issue also reports that CHI’s breakthrough collaborative to improve the quality of diagnostic processes for children with Autism Spectrum Disorders were to be highlighted at the National Initiative for Children's Healthcare Quality annual forum at the end of February.