Hello again Appalachian Counseling. Rachael and I traveled to the strange land of Florida, where we picked oranges, cavorted with swans, saw the latest Coen Brothers' movie, and got trapped in UF vs. FSU football traffic on I-75. Here's hoping your Thanksgiving was gut bustingly grand.It looks like we're almost out of the woods in our transition to NueMD. While there will be kinks in any system, we surely didn't need it to be as kinky as all that. The teams that have worked to correct and fine tune the NueMD/billing/paycheck thing deserve your pats on their backs.
And now Christmas, Hanukkah, Kwanzaa, winter solstice, and the new year are coming. Whichever holidays you're celebrating, make sure you adjust your schedule well ahead of time to prevent any problems. Holidays can be difficult times for many of those we serve, so help them plan for the best while giving them supportive Plans B as well.
Polly Penland sends a quote that might help us through the holidays:
An elder Cherokee Native American was teaching his grandchildren about life. He said to them, "A fight is going on inside me. It is a terrible fight, and it is between two wolves. One wolf represents fear, anger, envy, sorrow, regret, greed, arrogance, self-pity, guilt, resentment, inferiority, lies, pride, and superiority. The other wolf stands for joy, peace, love, hope, sharing, serenity, humility, kindness, benevolence, friendship, empathy, generosity, truth, compassion, and faith. This same fight is going on inside of you and every other person too." The children thought about it for a minute and then one child asked his grandfather, "Which wolf will win?"
The old Cherokee simply replied: "The one I feed."
Someone with some serious organizational talent created an awesome AppCoun provider directory here. Check it out and make corrections/updates as needed. You can use it to make internal referrals and also figure out who's who.
Rachael Smith: "I've gotten a provider directory together of therapists to start. We can add CS workers and their specialties and Doctors. At this point, therapist info. was most in demand. I'm allowing everyone to be collaborators which means you can add and edit your own info. Just make sure if you are clicking on a text box, that you double click before you start editing. If you single click and start typing everything already in that box will disappear. Some people did not send me any info, so those people might want to complete their own info."
The Child and Family Community Support staff is planning a fantastic Christmas party. The invitation is here. Be sure to let Kenny McAbee know how many of you are coming and how many folks you're bringing. I can't wait. This is my favorite party of the year.
Attention all employees, adult family members, and guests!!!!
This year’s theme is: An Ugly Christmas Sweater. Prizes will be awarded for the most outrageous Christmas sweater. All other dress attire will be casual.
This fun-filled event will take place on Thursday, December 20, 2007 at 6:30 p.m. and will be hosted by Jubilee Community Church located on 46 Wall Street in downtown Asheville.
This year we will be having a potluck dinner and will be asking each location to provide a certain dish. All beverages will be provided. Please look at the following list for what each location is responsible for.
Johnson Street- Soups and Sides
Alliance/Asheville – Desserts
Williams Street – Main Dishes
5th St/Kanuga – Salads
Tapestry/Country Club - Appetizers
Please contact Kenny McAbee (kmcabee@appcounseling.com) with the dish you wish to bring and number of guests, no later than December 17th..
This is an evening that is promised to bring much joy, laughter, and memories for months to come. This will be a casual party for all to relax and to have a great time.
Your entertainment guest and drama team for the night will be the Child Community Support Team, also known as "The Smurf Team""
And now it's time for that favorite newsletter feature: Birthdays and Workaversaries! I think it's great that so many of you keep tabs on each others' important dates.Jen Worthen has her first A.C. workaversary on Dec. 14.
Vicki Gaddy is celebrating two years with A.C. on Dec. 14.
Richard Johnson had his two-year-versary on Dec. 1.
Shirley Nicholson is out in front of them by a year, celebrating three on Dec. 1.
Elizabeth Hazelwood blows out her birthday candles on Dec. 5.
Jay Joslin and Kambra Meyer can birthday together on Dec. 7.
Kathy Parris is our Christmas baby on Dec. 25.
Alicia McCrary has hers on Dec. 29.
Vicki asked me to pass this along, "I guess we should let providers that Monica Curbeam decided to leave. Currently there is just myself, Carol, & Teresa on finance team."
The Operations Team wants to let you know that there are a lot of plans cooking:
"- Be on the lookout for new PTO policy that will be much easier to keep up with.
- Looking at beginning client satisfaction surveys
- Working on figuring out reporting for various divisions to make sure nothing falls through the cracks- to assure communication/feedback/and accountability
- Planning to begin accreditation process with CARF in January. When our program is CARF accredited, it means that AC has passed an in-depth review and that we meet rigourous guidelines for service and quality- a qualified endorsement that we conform to nationally and internationally recognized service standards and that we are focused on delivering the most favorable results for the people we serve. The process begins with acquiring the standards manual and beginning the work of making the changes necessary to meet those standards. The benefits are business improvement, risk management, funding access, positive visibility, accountability, and a peer network.
- Reporting on collections/AR: Contractors be on lookout for email explaining things.
- Rebecca Norton, PsyD is now with us at Country Club. She is available to take testing referrals for children and adults. Currently she is only accepting self-pay until we can get her on some panels. Please welcome her and send her referrals!"
Vicki is offering up a couple vehicles for that special someone on your Christmas list:
"I would like to sell my 1997 Gold Infiniti QX4 for $6,000.
And my 2003 Blue Mazda Protege 5 for $9,600."
Lastly, Psychology Today has a list of newly discovered holiday disorders. Click here to read the whole thing:"Angoraphobia (AP): A chronic fear that cousin Harriet from Omaha sent you another homemade sweater for Christmas."
"Calendar Countdown Condition (CCC): An unyielding obsession with how many shopping days are left until Christmas. Constantly reaching for Palm Pilots and notepads, CCC sufferers feel a pressing need to absorb and retain a daunting litany of time zones, store hours and driving mileage in support of their shop-or-drop obsession. "It's amazing," notes Harvard University's Arnold Belfry, who has studied CCC. "Some of these people can't even balance their checkbooks. But can they number-crunch the time it takes to get to the Radio Shack on Route 40? Down to the millisecond." CCC is most commonly found among former math majors, chronic coupon-clippers and old ladies who still use tiny change purses."
"North-Polar Disorder (NPD): The chronic fear that someone is on the roof."
"OCD-AAA: A variation on obsessive-compulsive disorder, in which sufferers are constantly on the verge of panic for fear that they forgot to buy triple-A batteries for their kid's Game Boy."
"Semitic Phlegm Syndrome (SPS): The inability to make the guttural, Hebraic ch sound when pronouncing the word chanukah. Primarily afflicting children, gentiles and seriously lapsed Jews, SPS sufferers become paralyzed with fear that a passing remark about chanukah at the dinner table will cause them to launch unexpected throat projectiles into the mashed potatoes."
Thanks to everyone who sent in submissions to the newsletter. If I left anything out, please click on comments below and leave it there.
I look forward to seeing all of you (and your loved ones!) at the Christmas Party on the 20th.
