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ThedaCare’s community health efforts

Award recognizes local wellness initiatives

ThedaCare’s recent accomplishment of being named a finalist for the Foster G. McGaw Award speaks volumes to the actions they are taking to improve the communities in which they are located.

The Foster G. McGaw Award is a national award and is one of health care’s most prestigious honors for excellence in community service. ThedaCare has been a leader in our community wellness with their CHAT Initiative (Community Health Action Team).

The Waupaca Area CHAT team was created in 2012, when ThedaCare reached out to a number of individuals who represent a variety of Waupaca based organizations to gather information on possible wellness issues within the community.

By including community members within a variety of job sectors, CHAT has been able to commit resources to address a number of issues over a four-year time period.

Some of these topics include mental health awareness, obesity, prescription drug abuse, heroin use and the dangers of alcohol abuse.

A large part of CHAT’s goal is to educate community stakeholders on the effect these problems have in our communities.

Day long education sessions called “Plunges” have been organized on many of these topics.

During these sessions, community members have heard from a number of professionals on the negative effects that drug and alcohol abuse, obesity and a lack of mental health awareness can have on our communities.

Participants are not only educated on the negative effects but also on the sources of these problems.

After the Plunge is completed, participants enter into planning sessions to take steps toward improving the specific issue.

A great example of this was the Drug Take Back Day, which was held in numerous locations throughout Waupaca County.

This was an initiative that resulted in 1,100 pounds of unused prescription medication being collected and disposed of properly in a single day.

Through CHAT, ThedaCare was able to prioritize funds for an advertising campaign which helped make this initiative a huge success.
ThedaCare has made a great effort to improve the wellness and quality of life in our community.

The Foster G. McGaw Award recognizes exemplary community service, and ThedaCare deserves to be one of the four finalists.

With being named a 2015 finalist, ThedaCare has been awarded $10,000 to be used to support their community health initiatives. Congratulations and thank you for recognizing the importance of this work within the Waupaca area.

Aaron Jenson
Waupaca

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