East Valley Community Health Center to Open New Center in Covina

East Valley Community Health Center opens a new center in Covina, at 276 W. College St., in partnership with the Citrus Valley Medical Center Inter-Community Hospital

January 28, 2015 - East Valley Community Health Center will open a new health center this February in the city of Covina, at 276 W. College St. The center, located across the street from Citrus Valley Health Partners’ Inter-Community Hospital, will offer medical services to thousands of individuals throughout the community and will provide a better continuity of care for patients who access care through emergency rooms.

“The opening of this new center represents East Valley’s dedication to fulfilling its mission of providing high quality, accessible, and affordable health care services across the San Gabriel Valley,” said Alicia Mardini, East Valley’s Chief Executive Officer. “The opening of this new center affirms our commitment and ability to deliver consistent and reliable access to preventive and primary health care.”  

“We are proud to have partnered with East Valley in bringing this new health center to our community and look forward to continuing this innovative partnership in the future for the benefit of the patients both of our organizations serve,” said Rob Curry, Citrus Valley Health Partners’ President & CEO.

The new Covina facility will provide both primary health care services  and mental health services to children, teens, and adults. Women’s health services will be offered including prenatal care. Services also include patient management of critical health conditions such as hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, and asthma. East Valley currently operates three other sites in the San Gabriel Valley, in West Covina, Pomona, and La Puente and has provided quality health services to thousands over the past 45 years.

“This new center and collaboration with Citrus Valley Health Partners gives our organization the extraordinary opportunity to continue expanding and delivering East Valley's patient-centered philosophy of health care to the community," said Dr. Chinhnam Hathuc, D.O.., Chief Medical Officer of East Valley Community Health Center. “Our team of health care professionals is proud to have the opportunity to serve an even larger number of patients than before.”

Patients on Medicare, Medi-Cal, or with no insurance are welcome. A team of bilingual staff provides enrollment assistance to individuals and families who want to sign up for Covered California or Medi-Cal.

Patients are encouraged to make appointments over the phone but walk-in patients are also welcome. To make appointments, patients can call (626) 919-5724.

The East Valley Community Health Center is a 501 (c) 3 nonprofit organization dedicated to provide quality and accessible comprehensive health care and education to medically underserved populations of the East San Gabriel and Pomona Valleys. www.Eastvalleyhealth.org

Citrus Valley Health Partners is a nonprofit comprehensive health system made up of Inter-Community Hospital in Covina, Queen of the Valley Hospital in West Covina, Foothill Presbyterian Hospital in Glendora, and Citrus Valley Hospice in West Covina. 

Residents Come to Help Build Community Art Project at East Valley Community Health Center

 On Saturday, January 10, 2015, East Valley Community Health Center hosted a community painting party at its Pomona location for individuals, families, and businesses from across the San Gabriel Valley as part of its Adopt a Butterfly Campaign. Beginning this past October, East Valley began to offer donors the opportunity to leave a lasting legacy on the Pomona community and adopt a ceramic butterfly that they would be able to paint and decorate and that would be permanently placed on a large ceramic mural outside of the Pomona health center location. More than 70 participants in the event were provided with painting supplies and a 4”, 7”, 9”, or 15” ceramic butterfly to decorate. The event took place from 2­—4 p.m. at East Valley in Pomona, at 1555 S. Garey Ave.

The painting event was just one piece of the creation of a large art mural, entitled “Catching Hope,” which celebrates health, wellness, and community participation.  The mural is being created in handmade ceramic tiles and will depict the silhouettes of children at play as they reach to catch bubbles and butterflies suspended in the air. These bubbles will each have images of health and healing to symbolize the community’s aspirations for wellness, growth, and prosperity. The artwork, which will be finalized in the spring of 2015, will be installed on the clinic’s exterior front wall, facing Garey Avenue. The artist chosen to create the mural is Alison Petty Ragguette, a professor of art at California State University—San Bernardino. She was selected through a public art competition organized by East Valley during the summer.  

Following the workshop, the butterflies will be glazed and high-fired in a kiln. The final step is the installation on the wall.   

East Valley Community Health Center Introduces Free Nutrition Classes

East Valley Community Health Center invites patients and visitors to join our health professionals as they host weekly classes on nutrition. The free classes, which are offered in both English and Spanish, help to educate you on the importance of a healthy lifestyle and provide advice and tips on how to create healthy eating habits.

Hosted by nutritionist Dahlia Marin, the 4-week-long nutrition classes focus on general nutrition, healthful meals for people with diabetes, buying food and cooking healthy meals, and food safety. Each lesson will help you understand the importance making of healthy food choices and the role that they play in your lifestyle. The classes, which gather approximately 25 students each session, encourage them to actively participate and share their own stories. They are open to all visitors and provide relevant information to all age groups, from parents of young children to elderly individuals.

“As registered dietitian nutritionists we see each day how important nutrition is in greatly alleviating, treating, but especially preventing so many chronic diseases which are affecting our communities today,” said Marin. “Our realistic, hands-on approach with nutrition education provides our population the opportunity to effectively translate what many consider a science, into simple, everyday practical solutions to improve their health and quality of life.”

These nutrition classes are just one part of a larger vision of health and wellness at East Valley. Within the past few months, multiple new programs that focus on both patient and employee health have been launched, including free Zumba classes and a course focused on diabetes management and a Wellness Council for employees. In addition, starting in January, students from Cal Poly Pomona will be providing mini nutrition lessons to patients in the East Valley lobby.  

East Valley Community Health Center Invites Local Artists To Submit Proposals for Artwork for Pomona Clinic

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

Contact: Clara Potes-Fellow
Advancement and Communication Director
(626) 919-4333 ext. 2221
cfellow@evchc.org

CALL FOR ARTISTS
East Valley Community Health Center Invites Local Artists To Submit Proposals
for Artwork for Pomona Clinic

August 4, 2014— East Valley Community Health Center has launched a request for proposals (RFP) that provides local artists an opportunity to display their talents and be recognized in the community by creating and implementing a permanent public art project.  The artwork will be installed on the outer wall of East Valley’s recently inaugurated health center in Pomona. The selected artist or team will be given a budget of $33,000 to complete the project. 

“The successful proposal will help define East Valley Community Health Center’s façade as a cultural space, bringing positive attention to the building and ultimately contributing to the cultural legacy of the City of Pomona,” said East Valley CEO Alicia Mardini.

The project will have a community component that provides the opportunity for students enrolled in local schools to participate in the creation of the final work. The competition is open to artists who work or live within the cities of Pomona, La Verne, or Claremont. 

Art proposals must be delivered to East Valley by 1 p.m. on September 22. Proposals must include a written description of the vision, a high resolution picture of the design concept, a budget worksheet, a detailed plan for involving local students and taking the project from concept to reality, the artist(s) resume and high resolution pictures of past artwork. The selected artist or artist team will be announced in early October 2014.

To download the RFP, including the rules, timelines, and the process for submitting proposals, please go to Twitter.com/EastValleyCHC; or to East Valley’s website at http://Pomona.evchc.org/art-project/

Founded in 1970, East Valley Community Health Center is a Federally Qualified Health Center serving families in the East San Gabriel Valley and Pomona Valley. In 2013, East Valley provided nearly 80,000 health care visits to nearly 26,000 unduplicated individuals. East Valley also serves an additional 5,000 people every year with outreach, education, and prevention services. 

National Health Center Week Is Just Weeks Away

National Health Center Week 2014 (NHCW) Kicks off on August 10-16th.

East Valley Community Health Center celebrates National Health Center Week (NHCW) from August 10 – 16 by hosting numerous events that promote health and wellness for residents of local communities. Health Center Week celebrates more than 9,000 health centers around the United States, which provide services to millions of people each year.

The public is invited to come to East Valley’s local centers to take advantage of a variety of free health screenings, including blood pressure and blood sugar testing. In addition, the centers will offer free health insurance assessments and help individuals to set up medical or dental appointments. East Valley will also offer fun activities for kids such as face painting and free book giveaways.

As part of the celebration, EVCHC will host these wellness-day events open to the public:

• Monday, August 11
2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
East Valley Community Health Center – West Covina
420 S. Glendora Ave.
West Covina, CA

• Tuesday, August 12
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
East Valley Community Health Center – Villacorta School
17840 Villa Corta St.
La Puente, CA

• Wednesday, August 13
10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
East Valley Community Health Center – Pomona
1555 S. Garey Ave.
Pomona, CA

• Thursday, August 14
2 p.m. to 4 p.m.
West Covina Plaza
112 Plaza Dr.
West Covina, CA

NHCW was started by the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) almost 30 years ago to raise awareness about the mission and accomplishments of America’s Health Centers as local solutions for affordable and accessible health care. State and local governments also join in the national celebration of NHCW and issue proclamations that recognize the contributions of America’s Health Centers. President Barack Obama has also issued Presidential Proclamations marking NHCW, noting that “Through their work, health centers strengthen our health care system by helping reduce emergency room visits and easing health care burdens for families across America."

A New Health Care Home for Pomona Residents

East Valley Opens Its New Pomona Location

 

After much anticipation among East Valley Community Health Center staff and patients alike, East Valley has opened the doors of its new Pomona facility. The 25,000 square foot health care home located on Garey Avenue received a warm reception with a ceremonial grand opening on April 15.

Approximately 250 guests ranging from representatives of the federal, state and local government, key donors, local businesses, EVCHC staff, and friends of the institution converged at the new location to see the fruition of five years of careful planning, fundraising, and construction.

The event kicked off with serenading from the local Ganesha High School choir , followed by the dedication ceremony, opened by East Valley board chairman, Thomas Allison, followed by personal testimonies by Chief Executive Officer Alicia Mardini and longtime patient Rebecca Armendariz.

Commendations were presented to the Center by Senator Norma Torres, Congresswoman Gloria Negrete McLeod, Assemblyman Freddie Rodriguez, and Pomona Mayor Elliot Rothman.
The dedication was followed by a ceremonial ribbon cutting in which CEO Alicia Mardini and Mayor Rothman cut the ribbon.

Guests took tours of the health center, which highlighted East Valley’s newest technology, the staff and the environmentally friendly design. Representatives from Southern California Edison took footage of the Pomona facility to feature East Valley’s utilization of solar energy and eco-friendly fixtures through out the building. As the festivities ended, the Center opened its doors to the first patients and began offering primary care, dental and mental health services.