Latest COVID-19 Collaboration Updates

Dr. CJ Cook, DBABlog

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Inland Regional Center (IRC) has teamed up with local stakeholders to include service providers on the Executive Committee of the Vendor Advisory Committee (VAC), Client Advisory Committee (CAC), State Council of Developmental Disabilities (SCDD), and the Autism Society of the Inland Empire (ASIE) to connect and collaborate with the two counties’ departments of public health. As a result of this collaboration, we have secured working relationships with both counties and are actively advocating to get our clients, client primary care providers, and service providers fully vaccinated.

We would like to thank the San Bernardino County Department of Public Health (SBDPH) for having been highly collaborative and approving all IRC service providers, client care providers, and clients at their operated vaccine clinics! Also, SBDPH has assigned a liaison for IRC clients to help remove any barriers that may come up in the registration process or at the county-operated site.

IRC will be meeting SBDPH soon to schedule a pop-up location, further helping our clients in receiving the vaccine. We are also excited to be partnering with Loma Linda SAC Clinic, Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP), and Inland Empire Connect to ensure equity in the vaccination process to the most vulnerable in our community.

Although Riverside County has heard our requests to make specific drive-thru sites available for our clients, many of which cannot stand in line for hours at a clinic, these locations have not yet been scheduled. We will continue to work with Riverside County to accomplish this goal.

IRC continues to encourage COVID-19 testing and houses all the details on its dedicated COVID-19 webpage, www.inlandrc.org/coronavirus. This page contains up-to-date information and resources as well as links to federal and state agencies including the Center for Disease Control (CDC), Riverside Department of Public Health (RDPH), and San Bernardino Department of Public Health (SBPDH). Links for location-specific information on available testing and vaccination sites throughout the two-county area that IRC serves can also be found on this page.

In collaboration with the Department of Developmental Services (DDS), a vaccine factsheet was added to the coronavirus page in both English and Spanish. You can also find information on “MyTurn”, the California Department of Public Health’s vaccine eligibility and registration page, so the client, service provider, and primary care provider can register for updates on appointment availability.

Together, as a strong community, we will persevere.

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Dr. CJ Cook, DBA

As Program Administrator, CJ is responsible for the proactive oversight of various units within IRC, including Community Management, Service Access and Equity, and Training and Development. CJ's oversight extends to Language Access and Cultural Competency (LACC), Community-Based Organizations (CBOs), equity in the Purchase of Service (POS), and the National Core Indicator (NCI) project. Furthermore, CJ is tasked with managing the IRC's Performance Contract with DDS and overseeing Emergency Services.

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