Desert Health News July-August 2024

. In September 2023, students from Coachella Valley HS Health Academy (CVHS) and their Health Occupations Students of America (HOSA) chapter brainstormed their next community awareness project. There are plenty of causes and needs in the world, but the fentanyl crisis stood out as the main contender of issues that needed attention. Already in conversations with Eisenhower Health to increase work- based learning opportunities for students, CVHS students connected with family medicine doctor Ashraf Zadshir, MD. Dr. Zadshir not only endorsed the idea to produce a fentanyl awareness event in collaboration with the students, but also garnered support from hospital leadership and the Family Medicine Residency program to host the event at the Annenberg Center of Health Sciences Center at Eisenhower. Over the period of five months, the students worked with UCR School of Medicine resident physicians to research data related to the fentanyl crisis. They scheduled a series of speakers to present at the newly named “Fentanyl Town Hall” and invited all desert high school health academy students to attend. The Fentanyl Town Hall was hosted on March 7, 2024, with just over 200 attendees. There were four presentations by physicians affiliated with Eisenhower Health Emergency Department, psychiatry services, addiction treatment and even some representatives from law enforcement and social services. The evening was capped by a panel discussion. With so much awareness and news coverage, it seemed that the fentanyl crisis would eventually fade, yet the problem has significantly increased across the U.S. and throughout the world. The information learned from the Fentanyl Town Hall will be used to drive more extensive research and management of the crisis. Critical lessons learned include that synthetic fentanyl can be mixed in any drug, increasing potency and toxicity, which has been the leading cause of increased mortality. The model from this inaugural town hall is evolving into more opportunities for work-based learning, street medicine with resident physicians, and development of educational topics Eisenhower Health can host once or twice a year. CVHS Health Academy and Eisenhower Health share something in common: community health. Dr. Zadshir has been increasingly enthusiastic about the partnership with students and instrumental in extending the possibilities of work- based learning she sees in a captive audience who will one day be our next health care providers. Invaluable partnerships such as these help keep motivated students on the right path through high school, college and into the workforce right back here in our community. Simon Moore is the Coachella Valley High School Health Academy Coordinator and a HOSA Advisor and can be reached at simon.moore@cvusd.us. www.DesertHealthNews.com July/August 2024 Medical News The Valley ' s Leading Resource for Health and Wellness 7 The Fentanyl Town Hall team at the Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower Students represent in professional attire for the career enhancing experience. Presentation and media relations are part of the learning program. www.palmspringsendodontics.com www.ranchomirageendodontics.com Laser Endodontic Treatment Laser energy enhances the effect of disinfectants used in the canals further eliminating bacterial infection. Ozone Therapy for Endodontics An advanced preventative therapy that fights off bacteria and pathogens which typically cause most oral health problems. 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F Palm Springs, CA 92262 PERSONALIZED CARE FOR THE ENTIRE COACHELLA VALLEY Hood and Price embrace the work of others not always respected in traditional scientific circles such as Dale Bredesen, MD author of The End of Alzheimer’s (2020) and a range of functional medicine practitioners. Putting their theories into practice, Hood founded the Seattle-based Institute for Systems Biology. In their book, the authors describe efforts to set up a health system based on scientific wellness, and while these efforts have not yet been successful in medical practice, they remain optimistic about this projected transformation. If more andmore people vote with their feet and practice scientific wellness today, health systems will be forced to take notice and begin the transformational change. Dr. Scherger is founder of Restore Health Disease Reversal in Indian Wells, a clinic dedicated to weight loss and reversing chronic medical conditions. To schedule a consultation, call (760) 898.9663 or visit www.restorehealth.me. Health Care’s Transformational Change Continued from page 6 CVHS Health Academy and Eisenhower Health Partnership By Simon Moore, M.Ed., MHA, EMT