We are excited to announce the arrival of the newest addition to our SOCPA family of pediatricians, Kenson Lo, MD, MPH! Dr. Lo will begin providing care on Monday, May 13th, and will primarily see patients in our Ladera Ranch and San Clemente locations.

After obtaining his Master of Public Health at Yale University School of Medicine, Dr. Lo continued on to receive his M.D. at Tufts University School of Medicine in Boston, Massachusetts. Dr. Lo completed the Pediatric Residency program at Children’s Hospital of Orange County (CHOC), and is board-certified by the American Board of Pediatrics.

Please join us in welcoming Dr. Lo to the practice! To schedule an appointment, please call us at (949) 770-4242.

For additional information, please click here to view Dr. Lo’s profile.

Today kicks off National Nurses Week!

National Nurses Week is celebrated annually from May 6 (also known as National Nurses Day) through May 12, (the birthday of Florence Nightingale, the founder of modern nursing). Each year, National Nurses Week focuses attention on the diverse ways America’s nurses work to save lives and to improve the health of millions of individuals. This year, the American Nurses Association (ANA) has selected “Delivering Quality and Innovation in Patient Care ” as the theme for 2013.

In honor of National Nurses Week (and every week), we wish to recognize our wonderful SOCPA nursing staff and express our thanks for the caring contributions you make to our practice. We are proud to have you as an integral part of the SOCPA team and we salute you!

Lactation Consultants Heather Borsuk and Eva Stark

We are delighted to introduce Internationally Board Certified Lactation Consultants Heather Borsuk and Eva Stark to our SOCPA families and the community!  Heather and Eva provide positive and compassionate one-on-one lactation counseling in a safe and relaxed environment, giving you all the knowledge, confidence and support you need.

Both consultants completed their lactation education at  UC San Diego, and bring many years of experience helping mothers all throughout Orange County.

Heather lives in San Clemente, is married and has one son, Jake, who is 7 years old. Eva lives in Mission Viejo, is married and has four daughters, ages 9, 7, 2 and 10 months.

They offer flexible hours, including weekend and evening appointments at SOCPA’s Ladera Ranch location, or private in-home visits.

To schedule your consultation please contact:

Heather Borsuk at (949) 370-9950
Monday, Wednesday and Friday

or

Eva Stark at (949) 212-5844
Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday

On April 1st, 2013, the TRICARE West Region contract will transition to and be managed by United Healthcare Military & Veterans (it is currently managed by Triwest Healthcare Alliance). Please rest assured that this will not affect our physicians’ status as TRICARE Primary Care Managers (PCMs), and we will continue to be contracted providers of service.

It has been noted that there are some demographic errors and omissions in the newly published TRICARE provider directory regarding our doctor’s home offices and phone numbers. We are working together with United Healthcare Military to correct this issue. The correct home offices for our doctors can be viewed here.

For more information regarding the TRICARE West Region transition, please visit the TRICARE website by clicking here. We are honored to continue this care to our military families!

All SOCPA offices will be closed for regular and after hours care on Monday, February 18th, in observance of the President’s Day holiday. Should your child require care, please refer to our holiday after hours schedule.

We hope you enjoy a happy and safe President’s Day weekend!

SOCPA’s Ladera Ranch office was one of the stops for the production crew of “Quiero Mi Baby”, a reality program which airs on MTV’s Tr3s network. Quiero Mi Baby takes an inside look at what happens when an expecting cross-cultural couple begins the often challenging process of having a baby. A visit to Dr. Ball was in order as Mom, Dad, and baby Vienna come in for her check up and immunizations.

To view the segment, please watch the video below.

A new law in California states that children in the Healthy Families program must be moved to Medi-Cal (CalOptima in Orange County).  The transition will take place over a one-year period, beginning in 2013.  All Healthy Families members will be receiving letters from the State of California that explain the changes to the program.  (For a sample of the letter, please click here.)  Per the State of California,  members with Healthy Families coverage will not lose health, dental or vision coverage, but the plan details may change.

The switch from Healthy Families to CalOptima will take effect with individual plans as follows:

CalOptima Healthy Families to CalOptima HMO, changed as of 01/01/2013.
HealthNet Healthy Families to CalOptima HMO, changed as of 04/01/2013.
Blue Cross Healthy Families to CalOptima HMO, changed as of 08/01/2013.

If you have questions regarding this change, please contact Healthy Families toll-free at (866) 848-9166, Monday through Friday from 8am to 8pm, or Saturday from 8am to 5pm.

SOCPA offices will be closed for routine care on December 24th, 25th, 31st and January 1st, but will provide after hours care in with limited hours in our Ladera Ranch office  on December 24th and 31st (Sick Visits Only–9am-1pm).  For more information regarding after hours/holiday care, please click here.

The providers and staff of Southern Orange County Pediatric Associates wish you peace and joy this holiday season and throughout the new year!

Southern Orange County Pediatric Associates is proud to announce that we have been voted an Orange County Register Top Workplace for the 4th year in a row! Ranking 2nd in the Small Business category, this honor is especially meaningful to us as it is based solely upon employee feedback. In addition to our ranking in the Small Business category, SOCPA is also the sole recipient of a special award for Work/Life Flexibility.

We wish to thank our hard-working and dedicated staff and truly appreciate what each SOCPA team member contributes to the practice’s commitment to provide “Great Care for Great Kids”!

by John Mersch, M.D.
December 2012
Physicians have traditionally considered three vital signs when assessing a broad overview of their patient’s health status. These three elements are temperature, heart and respiratory rate and blood pressure. However, with the epidemic of overweight and obese Americans (30% of children 2-18 years of age), many doctors are proposing that a fourth vital sign—physical activity—be included as an equally important measurement of well being. Standardizing physical activity (PA) is straightforward.

Physical Activity = # minutes/day in moderately intense physical activity x
# days/week such activity is done

For example, John is on the swim team that practices 60 minutes per session and has three sessions per week. PA = 60 min/session x 3 sessions/week = 180 min/week. National guidelines for adults recommend 150 minutes and 180 minutes per week for children.

Several important points should be noted. Fitness is more easily achieved than weight loss. The good news is that studies have repeatedly documented the linear relationship between physical activity and health status. It is better to be fat and fit than skinny and un-fit. In fact, a low level of fitness is a bigger risk factor for mortality (death) than mild to moderate obesity. In addition, the benefits of physical activity are the same regardless of a person’s weight. It is better to have daily activity of shorter duration than longer sessions limited only to the weekend. It is better to do something (anything!) on a daily basis than limit yourself to the “weekend warrior” pattern. Studies indicate that the daily activity duration may be broken into easily managed segments—e.g. parking your car a 10 minute walking distance from work will “use” 20 minutes of an adult’s 30 recommended minutes per day.

Many physicians are starting to write fitness prescriptions to their patients using the acronym “FITT”: “F” = frequency (5 or more days a week); “I” = intensity (mild difficulty carrying on a conversation or signing a song); “T” = type (use large muscle groups doing something enjoyable); “T” = time (30 minutes per day).
Many people have a litany of explanations at their disposal that act as barriers to physical activity. “Too many demands—work/kids/spouse”; “too tired”; “too boring”; “not enough time” all are at the ready. What is necessary is a mental shift in personal priorities and make exercise a habit not an option. While the weekly duration is 150/180 minutes (adults/children), this is a goal–not a starting point. Better to have 3 sessions of 10 minutes than nothing. After achieving the weekly duration goal it’s time to periodically increase the intensity of physical activity and consider setting a competitive goal—e.g. a local fun run. One of the best ways to encourage success in a physical activity program is to make it fun. Find an exercise partner. Treat yourself to a nice workout outfit and use shoes specific for your activity. Consider the “Every Body Walk!” app (available via the iTunes or Android App Stores.) This easy to use app can track and save your walking routes to share and compare with friends on Facebook.

For millennia people have sought ways to live happily longer. Studies have consistently demonstrated that there are four contributors to overall health status. These include: (1) genetics (20%), (2) environment (20%), (3) access to medical care (10%) and healthy behaviors (50%). Isn’t it amazing that if taking a pill daily would provide the benefits of daily physical activity, doctors would be considered negligent if they did not insist their patients take it. Health care systems (governmental and private) would make sure that every individual would have access to this drug. Physical activity is that pill—and there’s an unlimited supply available as soon as you go out your front door.

Acknowledgement: Robert Sallis, MD, FACSM, FAAFP

Conference Chairman—2012 Ironman Sports Medicine Conference

The contents of this web site are provided as an informational tool. This is not intended to replace medical advice or care administered by a healthcare professional. Common sense should always be used when referencing this site. If, at any time, you feel your child is experiencing a medical emergency, call 911 immediately.

Dr. Mersch has been with SOCPA since 1982.  He is currently providing care in our Ladera Ranch office.  Click here to learn more about Dr. Mersch.