Keep Healthy Hygiene Top of Mind for Patient Families
According to the American Dental Association, children with dental pain are more likely to miss school and have difficulty concentrating in class, contributing to millions of lost school hours each year.
Encourage your families to prioritize oral health! Explore and share Partners For Kids dental health resources with families to help reinforce healthy habits.
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Register for the Next Partners For Kids’ Primary Care Webinar
Join Jessica Alexander, PA, from Dayton Children’s Hospital for the next Partners For Kids' quarterly webinar about constipation on Tuesday, November 3, from noon to 1 p.m. CME credit is available.
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Register for the Chronic Absenteeism Webinar
Sara Bode, MD, FAAP, and Chris Peltier MD, FAAP, will present a webinar about "Chronic Absenteeism and the Role of the Primary Care Provider" on Wednesday, October 21, from 12:15 p.m. to 1 p.m.
CME credit is available.
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New Medical Director for Healthy Children and Women & Infant Population Streams
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The West Region welcomes its new medical director for the Healthy Children and Women & Infant Population Streams, Peri Fouss, MD. Dr. Fouss’s experience spans primary care, pediatric hospital medicine, physician leadership and quality improvement. She previously served as a primary care pediatrician and medical director of Pediatrics and Immunizations at the Seymour Johnson Air Force Base in North Carolina. She also recently completed her Pediatric Hospital Medicine fellowship at Dayton Children’s. Her ongoing Master of Public Health studies, along with her interests in quality improvement, health equity and prevention, make her especially well suited to lead these population streams.
Welcome, Dr. Fouss!
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Prepare for Flu Season
As we head into flu season, thank you for the vital role you play in protecting children from influenza and other vaccine-preventable illnesses. Your recommendations and conversations with families remain one of the most effective ways to encourage flu vaccination and keep children healthy throughout the year.
As families begin planning for their annual flu vaccine, we will continue reinforcing the importance of receiving their flu shot through their pediatrician or primary care provider whenever possible. For families who need additional options, flu vaccines are also available through Dayton Children's pharmacies at the main and south campuses (ages 5-21) and at Kids Express locations for children 6 months to 21 years of age.
Together, we can help reduce the impact of flu season in our communities
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FREE Mental Health Resource Guides for Your Practice
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When a parent notices changes in their child or has concerns about ADHD, anxiety or depression, we know they turn to you first!
That's why The Kids Mental Health Foundation, founded by Nationwide Children’s, has launched free Primary Care Guides focused on ADHD, anxiety, and depression. Created for providers, by pediatric psychology experts, these practical resources help support early identification, meaningful conversations and connections to care when children and families need them most. On our webpage find training videos to accompany the tool.
Download a copy or order up to 50 copies of each of our guides on Anxiety, ADHD and Depression. Guides will be mailed to your office.
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Missed the Last Diabetes Webinar? Recording Now Available
If you missed the third Partners For Kids’ Quarterly Webinar, "Type II Diabetes,” you can now listen to the recording and view the slides.
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Partners For Kids Featured on Pediacast
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Leaders from Partners for Kids spoke on the Dr. Mike Pediacast about how Ohio Medicaid coordinates, funds and improves pediatric care. By listening to the podcast, you can earn CME/CE credit.
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Behavioral Health Help for Back-to-School Time
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The start of a new school year can bring changes in anxiety, attention, behavior, sleep and school performance. This is a great time to check in with patients and families about how the transition back to school is going. When behavioral health concerns arise and you're unsure about assessment, treatment or medication management, BH-TIPS can provide clinician-to-clinician case consultation and support to help guide next steps.
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Resources from September's Behavioral Health Training
During the “Common Psychopharmacological Management of Mood and Anxiety Disorders” webinar, attendees identified the core principles of polypharmacy, and recognized mechanisms of action and side effects of medications. The presentation outlined resources for medications used to treat pediatric patients diagnosed with mood and anxiety disorders. Participants then demonstrated effective communication strategies to enhance interdisciplinary collaboration and patient care outcomes.
Check out these presentation resources:
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Register for the November Behavioral Health Training
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Don't miss the next behavioral health training on Friday, November 13 from 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. on “Supervising Trauma Informed Care: From Assessment to Intervention.” Be sure to check out the full Partners For Kids Behavioral Health Community Education Series 2026 Course calendar for more opportunities.
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Pharmacy and Prescribing Updates: |
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Pediatric-focused Unified Preferred Drug List Quarterly Update
The Ohio Department of Medicaid’s (ODM) Unified Preferred Drug ListL is developed by ODM and implemented by the single Pharmacy Benefit Manager, Gainwell Technologies. PFK has condensed the UPDL into commonly prescribed drug classes for pediatric primary care and behavioral health providers.
You can review specific October 1 changes in our Pharmacy Coverage Updates document.
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Over-The-Counter Medication Series #2: All About National Drug Codes
What are national drug codes? Why are so many of the covered OTC medications repeated multiple times?
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) requires all drugs that are created and sold be assigned a unique NDC for identification. The same medication will often have many different NDCs, while still being the same functional drug.
NDCs are what pharmacies use to identify medications. They are also used by Gainwell and Ohio Medicaid to determine payment for a drug. So, when you send a prescription to a pharmacy for “Acetaminophen 160mg/5mL liquid,” the pharmacy isn’t sending that drug’s name to Gainwell for reimbursement; they’re sending a string of numbers to the NDC.
The NDC indicates whether a medication is covered or not, and every NDC contained in the PFK OTC tool should be covered!
When sending a prescription to a pharmacy, you can even consider adding a “note to pharmacy” instructing them to use a covered NDC. The only concern we run into is that not every pharmacy carries every NDC of a certain medication.
Stay tuned to future newsletters for more coverage tips!
Remember, you can always email PFKPharmacy@NationwideChildrens.org for help and information.
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Respiratory Syncytial Virus (RSV) Prevention Toolkit Now Updated
As the RSV season approaches, the Partners For Kids’ RSV Prevention Toolkit can help prepare your practice for vaccine administration. The toolkit includes information on supply, purchasing, administration billing codes and patient education materials.
Nationwide Children's Hospital has already begun administering RSV prevention in preparation for the season, which typically lasts through March in Ohio.
One change to note is the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) expanded the high-risk criteria for administration of RSV immunization in infants and children 8 through 19 months of age entering their second RSV season.
Both nirsevimab (Beyfortus) and clesrovimab (Enflonsia) are available to order for Vaccines for Children (VFC) programs through the ImpactSIIS Vaccine Ordering Management System (VOMS). For the 2026-2027 RSV Season, there are no major changes regarding billing anticipated.
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Important Dates
- Tuesday, October 20, 6 to 8 p.m.: Children’s Practicing Physicians (CPP) Annual Coding Seminar
- Tuesday, November 3, noon to 1 p.m.: Primary Care Quarterly Webinar: “Constipation”
- Thursday, November 4, 5:30 to 8 p.m.: Primary Care Education Series, “Challenges for Primary Care Providers during the Newborn Period.”
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Friday, November 13, 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.: Behavioral Health Course Offering: “Supervising Trauma Informed Care: From Assessment to Intervention”
- Friday, November 20, 11 a.m. to noon: Behavioral Health Course Offering, “Strategies for Caregivers to Teach Co-Regulation to Children and Adolescents”
- Thursday, November 26: Partners For Kids’ offices are CLOSED
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Wednesday, December 2, noon to 1 p.m.: Behavioral Health Series for Primary Care: “Refugee and Immigrant Mental Health”
- Friday, December 11, 9 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.: Behavioral Health Course Offering: TBD
- Friday, December 25: Partners For Kids’ offices are CLOSED
- Friday, January 1, 2027: Partners For Kids’ offices are CLOSED
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