Celebrate Classified Employees Week
March 5-9, 2018
I want to give you all a very sincere thank you for the wonderful and caring ways you do your job each and every day. You make a difference! Please take time each day to care for yourself.
Retiring Done Well Workshop
The 4J Joint Benefits Committee, in partnership with Cascade Heath, is offering a free Retiring Done Well workshop. The class will take place:
- Tuesday, March 13, 2018
- 4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
- Roosevelt Middle School Library
It’s not just about the money. Are you concerned about how you are going to create a graceful retirement for yourself? This workshop will help you visualize your ideal retirement, explore who you are now and where you are heading, and consider your use of time and social connections.
Please RSVP by Tuesday, March 8th to Diana McElhinney: mcelhinney_d@4j.lane.edu or 541-790-7679.
Retiring this Year?
Retirement planning is not something that can be done in a day, a week, or even a month. The best plans are the ones that provide enough flexibility to allow us to make changes if the need for doing so becomes evident.
To achieve this kind of flexibility and to come out with the best series of investments to help you achieve your goals, it is good to work with a retirement planner to make the process simpler and to help expose you to ideas and investments you might not be aware of.
Retirement planning can be a difficult and sometimes mysterious process, but professional planning can make the process a whole lot simpler.
Ready to Retire? Please allow yourself plenty of preparation time. If you are considering retirement sometime this spring or at the end of the school year, there are three steps you’ll need to take: contact PERS to begin your Service Retirement process, notify your supervisor, and then contact me to learn about your 4J benefits.
To get advice regarding your PERS retirement, you will need to work with your financial planner or directly with PERS. To contact PERS call 1-888-320-7377, or visit their website at http://oregon.gov/PERS/. You can find a wealth of information on the PERS website along with downloading forms and signing up for PERS education classes.
March is National Nutrition Month – Celebrate with the USDA’s MyPlate
Join MyPlate this spring in celebrating our favorite topic: Nutrition! If you are trying to eat a bit better, ChooseMyPlate.gov has resources to help you achieve your healthy eating goals this month, and all year long.
Here are some of the resources you can access:
- MyPlate, MyWins Tipsheets: to discover healthy eating solutions for everyday life.
- Interactive Tool: to use to set and achieve your goals.
- MyPlate Videos: to watch and see how simple making healthy choices can be.
- MyPlate for Schools: to find posters, lesson plans, and school meal resources.
- MyPlate for Families: so that you eat better together with resources from this toolkit.
- Stay Connected: to find inspiration through daily tips and resources.
There is more than one way to eat healthy and everyone has their own eating style. Check out MyPlate today!
Eating Spicy Foods May Help People
Consume Less Sodium
According to a Chinese study recently published in the journal Hypertension, researchers found that, compared to participants who avoided spicy foods, those who had a preference for such foods and could best tolerate capsaicin (the key component of chili peppers) were more sensitive to the taste of salt in food and thus tended to consume less sodium – and had lower blood pressure, on average. This may partly be explained by the fact that capsaicin increases activity in some parts of the brain that sodium stimulates, as seen on brain scans done by the researchers.
Classified Sick Leave Bank 2018-19
Enrollment Coming in May
Packets for the 2018-19 Classified Sick Leave Bank enrollments will be emailed on May 1, 2018. Only benefits eligible employees (.50 FTE or greater) are able to participate.
The Classified Sick Leave Bank is intended to extend, to contributing members, additional sick leave days should a long-term illness or injury exhaust the employee’s own paid leave.
Get Healthcare from the Comfort of Your Home
Get healthcare from the comfort of your home, or wherever you like. Introducing Virtual Visits – a convenient and secure alternative to going to an urgent care.
Virtual Visits are part of Moda Health’s Virtual Care offerings, which also include eDoc and the Registered Nurse Advice Line. As a Moda Health OEBB member, you receive the Virtual Visit benefit for a $10 copay, not subject to deductible.
Virtual Visits connects you, via video on your computer or mobile device, with a licensed Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) healthcare provider.
OHSU providers can treat many adult and pediatric (age 1 year and older) non-emergency medical conditions. They can also call in prescriptions.
Use Virtual Visits for the following, and much more:
Coughs, fevers, headaches, insect bites, and minor cuts/scrapes/burns
How it works:
Visit: Virtual Visits – Urgent Care. Once there, you will be asked to use your OHSU myChart account to log in to their system and schedule your appointment. If you do not have an OHSU myChart account, you will be able to create one.
To learn more about our Virtual Care, log in to your myModa account and see “Virtual Care” on the home page. To schedule a Virtual Visit, go to www.ohsu.edu/virtualvisits
PEP Fund 2nd Request Available Now
There are still funds to help reimburse you for job-related trainings, activities, tuition reimbursement, registration or material costs, and conferences and workshops. Second requests are now available. Again, both first and second requests will be processed on a first-come, first-served basis until funds run out. Call me to verify eligibility and funds today!
Wellness Clinic – Open Spring Break
The 4J Wellness Clinic will be open spring break! This may be a perfect time to get your yearly physical or gear up for allergy season.
Regular hours are Monday – Friday, from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. (The clinic is closed for lunch from 1:00 – 2:00 p.m.)
To schedule an appointment please call 541-686-1427.
Reminder: If you miss your scheduled appointment you will be charged $20.
How Much Sleep Do You Really Need?
Eight hours seems to be the standard for the required amount of sleep at night. But does that number hold true for everyone? It depends, according to a special report from the Mayo Clinic.
Infants and toddlers need the most sleep – nine to ten hours at night plus naps during the day. School-age children, including teens, do best with nine to eleven hours a night. Most adults required seven to eight hours of sleep each night.
While older adults need about the same amount of sleep as younger adults, older adults tend to sleep more lightly and for shorter periods than do younger adults.
Do some people just need fewer hours of sleep a night? Yes, it’s estimated that somewhere between 1 and 5 percent of the population sleep six hours or less a night without ill effects. The need for sleep tends to run in families, as does the need for more sleep, which suggests a genetic basis for sleep duration.
Sleeping less than six hours – or more than nine hours – has been associated with increased risk of health problems and greater risk of dying.
The most important factor in determining how much sleep you need is whether you routinely feel rested during the day. Do you tend to feel drowsy, or does your concentration ability decline in low-stimulus situations, such as long drives, reading, watching television, talking on the phone or completing desk work? If this sounds like you, you’re likely not getting enough sleep.
Sleep is that golden chain that ties health and our bodies together.
Thomas Dekker
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This newsletter is reviewed and edited each month by the District 4J and OSEA representatives of the Classified Joint Benefits Committee (JBC).The information in this newsletter is summarized, and is not intended as advice or counsel.
