• Tiz the Season for Colds and Flu

• Wellness Lab & Flu Shot Program

• Wellness Lab & Flu Shot Program Calendar

• You’re the Cure Network

• Working on Wellness

• Spotlight in Wellness

• Benefits Corner

• Employee Assistance Program

• Safety Tip!

• Water Aerobics

Each new school year brings with it new goals. The MISD Board of Trustees has included increasing Wellness strategies and participation in their goals for 2005-06.

All staff are highly encouraged to join in the lab screenings which are designed to help employees monitor their physical well-being. If problems are detected early, the chance for successful treatment greatly increases.

Rio Grande Regional Laboratory will visit each campus this fall to draw blood samples and administer flu shots. All employees and their family members may participate. (There is a fee for family members.) See your school nurse to sign up for the wellness screening or to schedule a mammogram.  Check the schedule and see when the health care professionals will be at your work location.

You don't have to be a doctor to save lives - just an advocate with the American Heart Association and its division the American Stroke Association. You’re the Cure is a nationwide network of people dedicated to finding a cure for heart disease and stroke.

You’re the Cure advocates contact legislators to ask for more funding for medical innovations to stop heart disease and stroke. They also advocate for public policies that prevent and treat heart disease and stroke.

Join the American Heart Association’s You’re the Cure Network Today!

We'll make it easy for you to email, fax, phone or even visit your legislators. And we'll keep you informed on the progress you're making as one of the very important voices for the cure. In just a few moments, you can make a huge difference. All you have to do is respond to the issues and action alerts that you feel are important.

You’re the Cure advocates have paved the way for today’s lifesaving medical procedures and important innovations that stop heart disease, like placing portable defibrillators in crowded cities and rural areas, improving emergency services and passing laws to create smoke-free work places and public areas.

Join You’re the Cure today. It’s free, and we’ll give you everything you need to save thousands of lives from the nation’s No. 1 and No. 3 killers—heart disease and stroke. Sign up today at www.capitolconnect.com/yourethecure.
 

National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)

Established in 1896, NFPA serves as the world's leading advocate of fire prevention and is an authoritative source on public safety. In fact, NFPA's 300 codes and standards influence every building, process, service, design, and installation in the United States, as well as many of those used in other countries.  NFPA provides tips and recommendations to help make your home a safer place to live.

Click here to view the NFPA Home Safety Fact Sheets .

http://www.nfpa.org

Water Aerobics

Wellness...a way of life!

Well, it’s here—colds and flu season. About this time each year we hear coughing, sneezing, hoarse voices. We see red noses and watery eyes. Here are some helpful hints to prevent the spread of these nasty annoyances.

1. Wash your hands, wash your hands, wash your hands. This is the easiest, least expensive, yet most effective method to prevent the spread of bacteria and viruses. Hand to mouth is probably the most common manner in which germs are dispersed. We all know to wash after going to the bathroom, but we need to improve washing before meals, before touching our eyes or face, and after touching anything which has been touched by someone who is ill.
    

2. Keep spare tissues with you at all times—not necessarily for you, but for others around you who are coughing and sneezing. Help them contain their germs. You do not want them!
    

3. Use disinfectant wipes to clean door knobs, telephones, computer keyboards and any other surface where germs might be deposited by those who are ill.
    

4. Think that you are wearing virtual handcuffs! Imagine that your hands are cuffed behind your back if you are one of those who frequently rubs eyes, nose or face with your hands. That habit can make you prone to getting sick.
    

5. Get rid of that common hand towel at home. Most of us know that each member of our family needs to use a separate bath towel and washcloth, but many of us continue to have a hand towel which is used by several members of the family. To prevent the spread to viruses and bacteria, make sure each member also has a separate hand towel. A good trick would be to color-code each member’s linens so they won’t forget which ones are theirs.
    

6. Buy a good pair of sneakers, and use them. A recent scientific study found that the more active people were, the fewer colds they got.
    

7. Have a cup of tea every day. Researchers at Harvard University found that people who drank tea daily had an increased amount of interferon, an antiviral substance produced by the immune system.
    

8. Get plenty of sleep each day. Lack of sleep drains the immune system.
    

9. Insert moments of relaxation into your day by listening to music, taking a yoga break, laughing with a friend. Stress also suppresses the immune system, do whatever you can to relieve stress.

(This is a summary of an article by Rick Chillot in “Prevention presents….Your Healthy Life”)

Please note: Staff may attend any other campus/site screening.  Please schedule with designated campus in advance.

Wellness on Wednesday Sessions, 4:30 – 6:30 p.m.  All sessions held at MISD Staff Development Center, 1009 N. 10th Street.

Wellness on Wednesday Sessions, 12:00 Noon – 1:00 P.M.  All sessions held at MISD Board Room, 2000 N. 23rd Street.

Staff development sessions for time equivalency regarding Wellness topics are now posted on the ERO (Look under Wellness).

Let me introduce you to Cecilia Salazar, eighth grade math teacher at DeLeon Middle School. Cecilia has been a teacher for nineteen years, and has worked for MISD for eleven years. She has two children, Bobby and Celina who attend Rowe High School. Two summers ago, Cecilia made a commitment to lose weight. She worked diligently over vacation time, balancing diet and exercise.

When she returned to school in August, there was a noticeable, flattering transformation which had occurred—a loss of 40 pounds!! She looked younger and had more energy. I followed up on Cecilia this year. She has kept most of the weight off, continuing to watch her food intake and walking 3--4 times weekly. Cecilia is living proof that healthy habits can change your life. Congratulations Cecilia; you’re in the spotlight!

Sharon B. Wilkes, RN, MA, CPS, CCS, Coordinator, Prevention Services

HEALTH/DENTAL PLAN CHANGES

The transition to American Administrative Group (AAG) as the District’s the new Health and Dental plan claims administrator effective October 1, 2005 is continuing.  This transition includes a change in the pharmacy benefit manager to Script Care with Drug Source as the Mail Order Pharmacy and HealthSmart Preferred Care as the new preferred provider organization (PPO) network for the district’s self funded plan.  The Employee Assistance Program provider will continue to be Deer Oaks EAP Services.    

If you are experiencing service disruptions or have questions regarding the benefits, contact AAG at 1-866-471-6047 or the Employee Benefits Office at 618-6007.

It important that you are aware that all health and dental claims incurred prior to September 30, 2005 should continue to be submitted to Mutual of Omaha.  Contact Mutual of Omaha Customer Service at 1-888-225-0046 or the Employee Benefits Office for claim filing information.  In order for a claim to be considered eligible for benefits, notice and proof of claim must be given no later than December 31, 2005 (three (3) months following the incurred date of charges for service or supply for which the claim is being made).  Claims not received timely (90 days) will not be considered.

Claims incurred on or after October 1, 2005 should be submitted to the address on the back of your new AAG card within three (3) months following the incurred date for service or supply for which the claim is being made.  Contact the Employee Benefits Office if you have not received the ID card or if there are any errors on the card. 

Mr. Andres Silva is the Director of Employee Benefits/Risk Management