UW-Health: Healthy Hospital and Clinics Forum set for Sep. 30

Contact: (608) 265-8199 or (608) 516-9154
ekumlien@uwhealth.org

The second annual Wisconsin Healthy Hospital and Clinics forum will be held Friday, September 30 at the Sheraton Hotel from 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. The program, “What Health Looks Like: Policy, Practice and Community Connections,” aims to continue a statewide dialogue with health systems to implement changes to create healthier environments.

UW Health and American Family Children’s Hospital along with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services, The Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Control Program and healthTIDE have sponsored the program that will include more than 130 representatives from statewide health care, public health organizations and academic systems. Registration is open until the day of the event.

“Last year’s event was a huge success. We had 22 new hospitals commit to a year-long Community of Practice which identified a 2-3 person team to plan 1-2 policy changes within their systems to improve their hospital food and beverage environment.” said Nan Peterson, child advocacy director at American Family Children’s Hospital and forum co-organizer. “Our goal is to engage and support Wisconsin hospitals and clinics in fostering healthy environments through policy, system and environmental changes.”

The forum has expanded this year to have four tracks: farm to hospital, healthy food and beverage, maternity care practices and sustainability with cross-cutting themes of policy, practice, employee and patient satisfaction and community connections.

“The Wisconsin Healthy Hospital and Clinics Forum shares local best practices and lessons learned for improving the health of our hospitals, using the CDC Healthy Hospital environment scan as a benchmarking tool,” said Michelle Moreau, of the Wisconsin Comprehensive Cancer Control Program.

Almost two years ago, in October 2014, UW Health eliminated sugar-sweetened beverages and replaced them with healthier options. Three years ago, American Family Children’s Hospital removed sugar- sweetened beverages. University Hospital was the first Madison-area hospital to make the change.

For more information visit https://wicancer.org/healthyhospitals/.