WPHF Joining National Effort to Build Healthier Communities

Hoping to build on and broaden the success of the Think~Act~Be Healthy Communities initiative, the Winter Park Health Foundation (WPHF) has been invited to participate in training for the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) ACHIEVE (Action Communities for Health, Innovation and Environmental Change) initiative.  Debbie Watson, Diana Silvey and Lisa Portelli will be joining others from across the country at the ACHIEVE Coaches Meeting March 2-4 in Washington D.C..

The national initiative is designed to engage communities throughout the country in developing partnerships and programs that result in healthier communities and less chronic disease.

Those selected to participate in the CDC program—including WPHF—receive free technical assistance and training, and get access to a CHANGE (Community Health Assessment and Group Evaluation) assessment tool. The tool can be used to size up policy, systems and environmental change strategies already in place in a community and help local community leaders prioritize needs and allocate available resources.

Participants in the March session with be coached on how best to convene a team of local leaders representing all areas of the community and how to lead a community assessment. WPHF staff members plan to gather expertise and new ideas based on best practices in place in other communities that have been involved in ACHIEVE since 2008. The goal is to apply the training locally in hopes of building coalitions for healthier communities in Winter Park, Maitland and Eatonville.  

For more information go to www.achievecommunities.org