THE VALUED VOICE

On Nov. 30, Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA) Foundation Executive Director Leigh Ann Larson presented the 2020 Global Vision Community Partnership Award to Aurora Medical Center-Grafton for its Cultivate Mental Wellness Program. Aurora Medical Center-Grafton is one of two recipients of the 2020 award, which includes a $2,500 grant and commemorative plaque.
 
Cultivate Mental Wellness uses a public health framework to promote mental health and to eliminate stigma surrounding mental illness, while also supporting growing communities’ resiliency. Under this framework, communities build a culture where individuals seek answers, get diagnosed and have access to the care they need. Each Cultivate Community works to accomplish objectives through a four-phase process—Kindness, Empathy, Support and Resiliency. There are several strategies a Cultivate Community implements to move through each phase, including building awareness and understanding of mental health and building and equipping the community with sustainable resources. Cultivate Communities promote mental health training and educational opportunities, policy change, ongoing data collection, expansion of funding for mental health, and increased access to mental health services and resources. Current pilot communities in Wisconsin participating in the program include Port Washington/Saukville and West Bend.
 
The purpose of the Global Vision Community Partnership Award is to recognize and reward community partnership projects that work with a WHA member hospital(s) to meet an identified community health need in an innovative or creative manner.