In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton brings us through our third and final discussion of back to school. This episode looks at going back to school amidst the pandemic through the eyes of pediatrician Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph. Dr. Pearl Ben-Joseph shares the safest practices for returning to school, preventative measures against getting COVID-19, as well as the affects of increased social technology use on children during this time and in the future.

Elana Pearl Ben-Joseph, MD, is a pediatrician and medical editor at the Center for Health Delivery Innovation | KidsHealth.org in the Nemours Children’s Health System. Dr. Pearl Ben-Joseph has extensive experience creating easy-to-understand patient education materials about health-related topics. She also has a Master of Public Health degree, and has been working hard over the pandemic to help people understand the science and public health impact of COVID-19. Finally, as a visiting scholar at the Wellesley Centers for Women in Wellesley College, she has been studying the effects of social media on children and adolescents, and how parental involvement can affect the experience of youth as they navigate the world of media and electronics.

Click Here to read our "Safe Return to the Classroom" blog.

Click Here for the mentioned Family Media Use Plan.

Click Here for the KidsHealth site. 
 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton brings us through another back to school discussion, this week with middle school teacher Annitra Smith-Lincoln. Learn about what going back to the classroom was like last year for middle schoolers, and what it will look like this year as we continue to battle COVID-19. 

Annitra Smith-Lincoln has taught for a total of 18 years, grades 3-12. She is currently an 8th grade U.S. History teacher in Fort Bragg, NC. 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton brings us through a discussion of going back to the classroom with elementary school teacher Kara Rosenfeld. Kara and Kyle talk about the challenges facing children and parents returning to the classroom amidst the pandemic, the benefits of schooling in person, and more.

Kara Rosenfeld is currently in her 22nd year of teaching and is currently teaching first grade at Devers Elementary School in Fort Bragg, NC.

Listen in to this first episode in our back to school series!

Click here to watch the 25th Anniversary Between AFSPA and the FEA documentary. 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton brings us through a discussion of Foreign Service Benefit Plan (FSBP) incentives with AFSPA's CEO, Paula Jakub. Paula and Kyle talk about all the incentives offered to FSBP members, with an emphasis on the Simple Steps to Living Well Together program and other wellness programs. 

Paula Jakub is Chief Executive Officer and Executive Vice President of AFSPA. She is also the Executive Director of the Senior Living Foundation (SLF) of the American Foreign Service, where she provides proactive management to the vital organization solely devoted to helping elderly Foreign Service retirees and widows. Paula has a 37-year extensive background in the insurance field, having received her underwriting certification from American College. Ms. Jakub is a Registered Health Underwriter, as designated by the National Association of Health Underwriters. 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton discusses the launch of Prudential's Critical Illness Insurance for AFSPA's FSBP members. Nina Matias, of Prudential, joins Kyle for the conversation on critical illness insurance. 

Nina Matias has more than 20 years of experience with Prudential’s Group Insurance Division. As an Account Executive for Prudential’s Group Association and Affinity Services, she is responsible for the relationship management and implementation of national and state-specific association accounts for various Life Insurance, Disability Insurance, and Ancillary Products, such as Critical Illness.

Nina is a subject matter expert in Group Insurance benefits, consulting on benefit plans, working to ensure customer and member satisfaction, and focusing on both the overall relationships with Prudential and the importance of Insurance for Members and employees alike.

In this episode of AFSPA Talks we celebrate pride month as COO Kyle Longton brings you through a discussion of LGBTQ+ youth with Alyssa Clayden of the Truman Group. Listen in as Kyle and Alyssa cover everything from the coming out process for children, to parents' reactions to their children's identities, to gender dysphoria, and more. 

Alyssa Clayden is a licensed independent social worker who has provided international mental health services for more than two decades in a wide variety of settings. Having lived, worked and raised a family across five continents, Alyssa is passionate about providing high-quality individualized mental health services to expatriates. She believes that every person brings expertise, strengths and skills to their lives and relationships, and she views collaboration and space for humor as key components of any successful mental health work.

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton brings us through a discussion of dental care and benefits with guests Dr. Wayne Silverman and Mark Haraway of Dominion National. 

Dr. Wayne Silverman has more than 30 years of consulting, teaching and private practice experience. He helps design and review Dominion’s plans, policies and administrative procedures.

Mark Haraway has been in the dental benefits industry for more than 26 years. He has had direct oversight of sales, service and provider relations as well as extensive roles in marketing and product development across a range of delivery systems (DHMO, PPO, traditional) and financing arrangements. 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton takes us through a discussion of behavioral health and the AbleTo program with Aetna's Dr. William Gillis. 

Dr. Gillis has over 22 years of experience as a California licensed clinical psychologist, initially in his early years providing direct clinical service and running large clinics.  He then transitioned to leadership roles with Magellan and Aetna.  

Kyle and Dr. Gillis have a conversation about increased need for behavioral health needs and care, telemedicine, the AbleTo program, and more. 

DISCLAIMER: The correct website for AbleTo is https://www.ableto.com/enroll/. 

In this episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton discusses Better Speech and Hearing Month with TruHearing audiologist Patty Greene. 

Patty Greene is an audiologist with more than 30 years of experience in the hearing care industry. As TruHearing’s Director of Provider Engagement, Patty is responsible for building stronger relationships with the providers in the TruHearing network. She helps TruHearing providers successfully utilize TruHearing programs and services through provider communications and education. 

Throughout the episode, Kyle and Patty talk hearing loss, being an audiologist, and AFSPA's partnership with TruHearing. 

In our first ever episode of AFSPA Talks, COO Kyle Longton goes through a discussion on mental health with Dr. Julia Hoffman from Teladoc®. This episode does contain sensitive content and may not be appropriate for all listeners. 

Dr. Julia Hoffman (PsyD) is VP of Mental Health Strategy at Teladoc® Health, a company empowering people everywhere to live their healthiest lives. Dr. Hoffman has led the creation, evaluation, and broad international dissemination of numerous technology-based behavioral health tools. She founded and scaled mobile development for behavioral health at both DoD and VA and has been honored for these efforts by former President Barack Obama, the US House of Representatives, the FCC, the American Telemedicine Association, and the American Psychological Association.

In this episode, Kyle leads Dr. Hoffman through a discussion of how people are coping with COVID, parenting in this time of uncertainty, and dealing with trauma and PTSD.  Then, the two dive in to the intersection of technology and mental health, specifically with the app myStrength™.