Valued Voice

The Caring for Wisconsin’s Caregivers Well-Being First Champion Challenge for Credentialing Kickoff, a collaborative partnership between the Wisconsin Hospital Association (WHA), the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment (AHW) and the Dr. Lorna Breen Foundation (LBF), brought together statewide leaders and national experts to launch Phase 1 of this workforce well-being initiative. The session focused on reducing stigma and promoting credentialing practices that support Wisconsin’s health care workforce.

The webinar opened with an introduction to the Caring for Wisconsin’s Caregivers initiative, followed by presentations from Stefanie (Stef) Simmons, MD, FACEP, Chief Medical Officer at the LBF, and Corey Feist, JD, MBA, CEO and Co-Founder of the LBF. They provided philosophical grounding for the Challenge, sharing the story and mission of the Foundation and highlighting the national movement toward stigma-free, supportive environments for health care professionals.

Leaders from the Wisconsin Department of Safety and Professional Services (DSPS) and the Wisconsin Medical Examining Board (MEB), including Jennifer Garrett, JD, Gregory Schmeling, MD and Renee Parton, shared Wisconsin’s progress on the Well-Being First Champion Challenge for Licensing. They outlined the background and shared recent updates to licensing questions and described efforts to ensure licensure processes actively support clinician well-being.

Alicia Pilarski, DO, Professor of Emergency Medicine and Chief Well-Being Officer at Froedtert & the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW), provided a system level view of implementing the Well-Being First Champion Challenge for Credentialing. She shared her personal insights and highlighted the importance of aligning credentialing processes with best practices, lessons learned from real world implementation and how organizational culture and communication play a primary role in reducing stigma and fostering a supportive environment for caregivers.

Dr. Simmons closed the session with an overview of national and Wisconsin-specific resources, along with guidance for organizations preparing to participate in the Challenge.

To listen for yourself and explore these resources firsthand, please:

• Access the recording and slide deck.
• Visit the C4C website: WHA - Caring for Wisconsin’s Caregivers: Health Workforce Well-Being
• Get started on the credentialing challenge in your organization: Create your account and explore practical tools and resources today!
  • Drop into Office Hours for personalized technical support from Dr. Stef Simmons and the LBF credentialing team.

Well-Being First Champion Challenge Office Hours (Teams Meeting link)

• Join the meeting
• January 29 | 10–11 a.m.
• February 12 | 12–1 p.m.
• March 12 | 9–10 a.m. 
• April 9 | 3–4 p.m.
• May 12 | 4–5 p.m. 
• June 11 | 8–9 a.m. 
• July 15 | 12–1 p.m.