WellCommons

The great work of the KU Work Group with the Health Department as the catalyst has reminded many of us how important the health of our community is. Individually, we spend a lot of time worrying about our own health, but we don’t always think about the health and well being of the larger community.

Reviewing the results of the Assessment was not surprising to me. In fact, it was a lot like when, after getting Wii Fit over the holidays my “trainer” told me I was overweight. Many of us know what makes us individually unhealthy. What the assessment tells us is that we also know what makes us as community unhealthy as well.

For anyone who has connected in one way or another to the Kansas Leadership Center, you will also know that what makes us healthy is not about a pill, a bandaid, or the best health product. It is about the choices that we make every day. Do I walk to my next meeting or drive the block? Do I take a second serving of pasta or salad? These choices, for me, have made the difference between being overweight or normal, according to my Wii Trainer.

One issue that arose in the assessment was that while many organizations in the community refer to each other, we do not collaborate as effectively as we could. Similar to my weight loss plan, we as a community have to change our individual habits to be able to strengthen the health of the community. For human service agencies that means we need to look beyond what our organization does to make sure we are working in concert, not just alongside each other. From simple efforts, like making sure other organizations are informed about program changes (like hours), to the big efforts of coordinating AmeriCorps members, food pantries, or emergency assistance.

This kind of collaboration and engagement cannot wait. Just like my heart weakens with every day that I don’t exercise, our human service system weakens as we continue to operate in isolation. Douglas County residents are committed to many different issues and organizations. If you read carefully the assessment (available at ldchealth.org) you will find that these issues will require many different people from many different organizations to make progress. I want us to make progress. Do you?

The United Way of Douglas County has re-released the Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority’s Emergency Resources Map. This map is available to aid area families in their search for resources and services. The map which lists the physical location of 75 government entities and social service agencies is imposed on the City bus route. In addition, there are 18 other organizations listed by phone number. The backside of the map gives a description of services available at each organization/agency.

This project is the result of a multi-agency collaboration which was originally spearheaded by the Douglas County Sheriff’s Office and Headquarters. The map work was completed by the City of Lawrence GIS Department while compilation and organization of the resources and printing was undertaken by the Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority. Ongoing maintenance will be done by United Way of Douglas County. Funding for the printing was provided by the City of Lawrence, Douglas County Sheriff’s Office, and the Douglas County Community Foundation.

The map is currently available at United Way of Douglas County, Lawrence-Douglas County Housing Authority, Lawrence Public Library, City of Lawrence Community Development. If organizations are interested in having the map available at their facility, please contact United Way at 843-6626 or uwdirector@unitedwaydgco.org.

This will be a great tool for families needing resources. This will be especially true for families hit by the economic downturn who have never had to turn to these sorts of services before.

What needs to happen in our community for people to have steady jobs and financial stability? Would you be willing to post your ideas about what strategies in our community help to achieve this? Post here to help brainstorm!

The Arc works to create job opportunities. by edvorske

What needs to happen in our community for people of all ages to have access to healthcare in broad terms, including physical, mental? Would you be willing to post your ideas about what strategies in our community help to achieve this? Post here to help brainstorm!

Access to dental care is important to keep people healthy. by edvorske

What needs to happen in our community for children and teens to be successful in school. Would you be willing to post your ideas about what strategies in our community help to achieve this? Post here to help brainstorm!

Afterschool programs support school success! by edvorske

The United Way of Douglas County Board of Directors adopted three community goals to guide United Way efforts. The adopted goals are:

• Children and teens are successful in school.
• People of all ages have access to health care (mental, physical).
• People have steady jobs and financial stability.

The identification of community outcomes within these goals is another step in a two-year transition process. Throughout the late winter and spring of 2011, United Way will be working with community partners and issue experts to identify strategies to address outcomes. No one organization or strategy will achieve these outcomes, but by mobilizing community resources and building partnerships, which is United Way’s mission, we think we can make progress on Douglas County’s most pressing community issues.

I hope people will join us in moving the needle on some of these big challenges and opportunities.