In this issue:

Adamsville Regional

Health Center Opens to

Large Crowds

1

Oak Hill collaborates

with Foundation on

grant for troubled kids

1

A Healing Garden

grows!

2

H e a l t h S e r v i c e s

celebrates its new faces

2

Health Services adds a

new lead poison sleuth

2

Oak Hill Collaborates with Behavioral Health’s Not-for-Profit

Foundation to Land a National Grant to Help Troubled Kids

Hundreds of residents from the community turned out and

created a capacity crowd for the grand opening of the Adamsville

Regional Health Center on Thursday, June 7th. The expanded

facility, which is located at 3700 Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, SW,

is a major component of the Board of Commissioners’ signature

comprehensive program to reduce and eliminate the high rate of

health disparities across Fulton. “The important thing is the fact

that the public health has been expanded to include jobs, housing,

library services, and all of the factors that impact the lives of the

citizens,” says Fulton County Vice Chair Emma I. Darnell. The

Adamsville Regional Health

Center is the county’s third

integrated care facility to open within the last three

years. Like the previous two facilities, Adamsville

will offer primary care, public health, behavioral

health and dental services, and housing and

employment assistance. The project cost $8 million.

(L-R) County Manager Zachary

Williams and Commissioners

John Eaves, Emma I. Darnell &

William “Bill” Edwards

The Fulton County Oak Hill Child, Adolescent &

Family Center received a $2,000.00 grant from the

American Psychiatric Foundation to train employees

at seven Fulton County Schools on identifying

behavioral health disorders in youth. “The school

administrators are very excited to participate,” says

Jennifer Bartl, Behavioral Health Program Manager.

“They want education for their staff about what an

appropriate behavioral health referral looks like.”

The award is the first time Oak Hill has collaborated with the Fulton Life Enrichment

Foundation, Inc. on a grant application. The Foundation is a non-profit organization

established six years ago to help Behavioral Health & Developmental Disabilities raise

philanthropic funds for children's health initiatives. “I was very excited to hear we were

awarded this grant,” says Christine Greene, Foundation President. “It’s small but it’s a great

start for our fundraising efforts to help the children of Fulton County,” she adds.

A Health Services monthly online publication

June 2012

Fulton County Health Services

E-News E-News

Adamsville Health Center Grand Opening Attracts a

Standing Room Only Crowd from the Community

ABOVE: Jennifer Bartl

(middle) reviews policies for

implementing behavioral health

services for kids.

Clients arriving for their appointments at the West Behavioral Health Center

have been experiencing an unexpected but pleasant surprise. The floor to

ceiling windows in the main hallway are providing dramatic views of a colorful

container garden that is blossoming with flowers, vegetables, fruits, herbs and

plants. The fragrant smells and flora are attracting butterflies, and the

admiration of passersby. The concept was the brainchild of Scheril Williams,

Behavioral Health Clinician, who wanted to incorporate nature into the

therapy group that she leads called “Healthy

Relationships - A Healthier You”. “It has been very

helpful for some clients,” she says. “They enjoy

seeing something that they created come to life and

grow, and it encourages group participation.” Williams purchased

most of the items, but staff have donated plants and seeds too.

With Her Training Completed, She is Now a Certified Sleuth

in the Cause for Kids Exposed to Lead Poisoning

Meet the Many New Faces in Health Services & Those Who

Have Been Promoted to New Positions

Have a story for E-News? Please contact Brian Williams, Program Development Specialist, at:

brian1.williams@fultoncountyga.gov. By telephone, please call (404) 613-3789.

June 2012

ABOVE: Scheril Williams

plants seeds in the contain-

er garden. RIGHT:

Patricia Knowles admires a

flower.

Through the Planting of a Therapeutic Garden, a Behavioral

Health Clinician Enables Her Clients to Blossom!

Christina Swann, Environmental Health Specialist, has just completed extensive training to

become a certified Lead Inspector and Risk Assessor. She will be on the front lines in de-

termining the cause of elevated lead levels in children, which impacts 250,000 kids be-

tween the ages of one to 5 years old in the US annually. “I am experiencing a boat load of

knowledge that definitely needs to be distributed throughout Fulton County”, says Swann.

Lead was banned by the government in 1978 for use in homes and schools. Physicians and

medical facilities must report elevated lead levels in children because it is potentially harmful.

LEFT: Patricia Cwiklinski, WIC

Nutrition Manager. MIDDLE:

Al Wright is now Emergency

Preparedness Administrator

ABOVE: Christina Swann

chats with Malcolm Saunders

about lead cases in Fulton

RIGHT: New High Impact HIV Prevention Grant staff: Brandi Ahmed, Gemina Albritton, Samantha

Almond, Sue Bell, Sabrina Clark, Evelyn Dooley, Latoria Dunn, Katrina Freud, Veronica Hartwell,

Hyoun-Kyoung Higgerson, Sandra Hollman, Devika Howard, Ricketta Jackson, Kenneth Johnson,

Marcus Johnson, Teresa Kochinsky-Bell, Raymond Lewis, Tamika Martin, Tierra Miller, Patrisha

Omigie, Tonya Reeves, Erica Taylor, Mercedes Wilkinson, Kelly Williams, Courtney Kelley, Court-

ney Kelly & Ykeshia Williams