Blueprint - SPRING 2023

aWordwith Curtis Barnett
Our President and Chief Executive Officer
Taking good care of community health
When we say that we take good
care of our members, it is more
than a focus on only their physical
needs. We recognize that every
single person we touch has a
unique story. Their physical and
mental health, as well as their
socioeconomic factors, all play a
part in their overall health. That’s
why we’re committed to providing
resources that address the whole
health of a person. I’d like to
share a bit about how we invest in
community health.
Investing in a healthier future
Through community investments
and partnerships, we’re working
to ensure that every Arkansan
has access to quality, affordable,
and equitable care. From funding
projects and initiatives directly or
through the Blue & You Foundation
for a Healthier Arkansas, to
supporting local community
spaces, we’re investing in a
healthier future and encouraging
our neighbors to pay it forward.
In this issue of Blueprint, you will
learn about our new initiatives
with the people of Arkansas in
celebration of our upcoming
75 th anniversary. We are already
well under way in training and
certifying more than 750 first
responders, school teachers,
community members and many
others in Mental Health First Aid.
The course provides the training
needed to respond when someone
is in crisis. And we are helping one
school in each of our 75 counties
transform a space within their
facilities into a calming room to
help stressed students have a
place to take a breath, refocus
and gather their thoughts.
In your communities
Did you know our eight regional
and ArkansasBlue Welcome
Centers have community rooms you
can reserve for free to hold club
meetings, classes and more? And
the welcome centers have become
so active in their communities
that we’ve developed a community
events calendar to keep up with all
the educational seminars, fitness
classes and family-friendly activities
they host. You can find a QR code
to the community events calendar
on pages 5 and 12.
Paying it forward
Our employees also invest in
making positive changes within
their communities. Employees at
the ArkansasBlue Welcome Center
in Jonesboro donated an automated
external defibrillator (AED) to
the First Free Will Baptist Church
sanctuary, through the Jonesborobased
Community Health Education
Foundation (CHEF) AED Placement
Program. That donation, and quick
action from his congregation, later
saved the life of Deacon Phil Cook,
whose heart stopped during a church
service. The congregation went on
to pay it forward to another church in
the community, supplying an AED to
First Christian Church (Disciples of
Christ), again through CHEF.
Patient-Centered Medical Homes
Our health isn’t just determined by
our physical needs. It is also partly
defined by social determinants of
health – where we live, how safe or
stressful our environments are, and
our access to quality education,
healthy foods, good hygiene and
transportation. The PCMH program
encourages primary care clinics
to deliver evidence-based care
through innovation and a holistic
approach. Arkansas Blue Cross
helped bring the PCMH program
to Arkansas. We are proud to
be one of the payers rewarding
participating clinics for making a
difference in their communities.
When several people in the town of
Gould, population 837, struggled to
find places to wash their clothes, St.
Elizabeth Health & Dental Center (a
PCMH clinic) added washers and
dryers to its long list of provided
services. The clinic serves as a
gathering place and community
lifeline, providing necessary health
resources to the residents of Gould.
At Arkansas Blue Cross, we live
where you live. Our communities and
neighborhoods matter to everyone’s
health. Taking good care of Arkansas
helps us take good care of you.
2 SPRING 2023