State Innovation Model

Seven cross-agency teams kick off SUD systems change transformation work with 100-day challenge

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Since November 2018, dozens of representatives from Washtenaw-area organizations that are deeply involved in the prevention and treatment of substance use disorders (SUD) have been participating in an SUD system transformation process hosted by the Washtenaw Health Initiative. The goal? To improve the county’s SUD prevention and treatment system by identifying system barriers and weaknesses … Read more

Voice of the WHI: Peter Jacobson, Professor Emeritus of Health Law and Policy

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On June 19, 2019, we sat down with Peter Jacobson, a founding member of the Washtenaw Health Initiative Steering Committee. Jacobson, who recently retired from the WHI and Washtenaw County Health Department governing bodies to move closer to family in Washington, DC, shares his commitment to public health, his history with the WHI, and his … Read more

Voice of the WHI: Ellen Rabinowitz, County Health Officer and Executive Director of the Washtenaw Health Plan

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On August 30, Ellen Rabinowitz will retire from the Washtenaw County Health Department and the Washtenaw Health Plan. She is looking forward to a year-long break and after that expects to re-engage with the community in new ways. Liz Conlin, WHI Communications Committee chair, sat down with Ellen to discuss her history with the WHI … Read more

Three ways to fund community health workers: Lapedis explains in New England Journal of Medicine

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In “Realizing the value of community health workers–new opportunities for sustainable financing,” a New England Journal of Medicine Perspectives piece, SIM Project Manager Jeremy Lapedis and colleagues from Poverty Solutions and the Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation describe new mechanisms for financing community health workers far into the future. “CHW-led interventions have been shown … Read more

April/May Newsletter: Community leaders discuss WHI’s community-wide care coordination, Voices of the WHI with Ruth Kraut, and more

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Community leaders came together on April 3 to discuss the Washtenaw Health Initiative’s community-wide care coordination intervention (aka the SIM) for frequent emergency department users. Directors from the SIM’s 11 founding partners (hublets) and partner entities were invited to attend, and roughly two-dozen came out to participate in the conversation. At tables of eight, patterned … Read more

Hublet directors discuss the future of the SIM

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Community leaders came together on April 3 to discuss the WHI’s community-wide care coordination intervention for frequent Emergency Department (ED) users (aka, the SIM). Directors from the SIM’s 11 founding partners (hublets) and partner entities were invited to attend, and roughly two-dozen came out to participate in the conversation. At tables of eight, patterned after … Read more

AAACF’s Jillian Rosen describes new Vital Seniors aging services innovation network and the role WHI will play in continuous learning and systems change

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By Jillian Rosen, Vice President for Community Investment, Ann Arbor Area Community Foundation Life for everyone in 2040 will be shaped to a large degree by how we respond now to the needs of the aging.  The Vital Seniors Initiative was first launched as “Vital Seniors:  A Community Innovation Competition” in 2018 as an effort … Read more