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North Star Project Established by a local pediatrician, Michael Gererity, MD and his wife, Ann Clarke-Gerrity, North Star is dedicated to improving the health and well-being of children in Northern Berkshire County.
Much of this effort consists of raising awareness regarding the health needs, both physical and emotional, of your community’s children.
CHILDREN’S HEALTH PROFILE
Every three years North Star publishes a Children’s Health Profile, a compilation of statistics that examine the status of children’s health locally and compare them to wider trends. This booklet, along with a ballot, is then distributed to various stakeholders in the community. Thus input is gathered regarding what issues the community, whether REACH or other organizations, should be addressing.
From this process several partnerships have evolved including the Healthy Start Partnership and the Morning Star Partnership.
HEALTHY START PARTNERSHIP
This partnership brings together key decision makers from various organizations that serve families during the childbearing years. Included are representatives from the maternity department of North Adams Regional Hospital, Berkshire Nursing Families, WIC (Women, Infants & Children), Childcare of the Berkshires, childbirth educators and local obstetrical and pediatric offices. A recent example of an identified problem was the high rate of smoking among women that give birth at North Adams Regional Hospital. This eventually led to the QuitLinks program that is now funded by the Massachusetts Department of Public Health. The Partnership, in turn, serves in an advisory role for the QuitLinks program.
MORNING STAR PARTNERSHIP
The Morning Star Partnership addresses children’s mental health issues, with a particular focus on strengthening the network of local services. In 2005, the first edition of The Physician’s Resource Guide to Children’s Mental Health Practitioners in the Northern Berkshires was compiled and distributed. Area practitioners and school officials have found this book to be an extremely valuable resource. The book is updated and re-distributed annually.
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