Medical home happenings

The medical home initiative has a lot to celebrate this quarter! From project accomplishments to organizational milestones, we have had a busy quarter with a lot to be proud of.

Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin celebrates 30 years
After a year of preparation, Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin (the Alliance) held our #ForKidsHealth Summit in early October. This two-day summit brought together over 200 partners from local public health, community agencies and health systems to mark three decades of advocacy and action for children’s health.

The medical home initiative hosted a breakout session during the summit, Connecting Systems from Early Identification to Care Coordination. Within this session, panelists highlighted their programs’ efforts in aligning systems to improve care for children and youth with special health care needs. We are so grateful to our panelists for their willingness to share their work with attendees:

• Mary Ehlenbach, MD – University Of Wisconsin School Of Medicine and Public Health | UW Health Kids
• Ellen Ellingsworth, MS, RD, CD, CLC – Columbia County Department Of Health And Human Services
• Amy Wilson – First 5 Fox Valley

Welcoming Anna to the team
In September, the medical home initiative welcomed Anna VerKuilen, MPH to the team! Anna previously completed her Master of Public Health from the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill and worked at Epic Systems as a Population Health program manager, bringing a unique perspective to our team.

We couldn’t be more excited to have Anna onboard and look forward to having partners connect with her in the coming months!

Act Early Ambassador selection
Another exciting accomplishment of the medical home initiative has me acting a little bit coy. I recently learn that I was selected as the 2024-26 Act Early Ambassador to Wisconsin.  My first term began halfway through a 2-year cycle, and I found myself trying to navigate what that role could truly become. Being selected for the coming two years has me excited about the possibilities.

It is critical that families are aware of developmental milestones and are equipped with the resources to help their children progress. I look forward to working with organizations that serve children ages newborn to 5, to promote Learn the Signs. Act Early. resources and integrate them throughout the state.

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