Transform Wisconsin (Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention Resources)

The Wisconsin Medical Society Foundation is a proud partner of Transform Wisconsin, which supports communities as they pursue evidence-based strategies to prevent chronic disease and make healthy choices easier. Transform Wisconsin is funded by a five-year Community Transformation Grant from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. With the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and more than a dozen other organizations across the state, the initiative seeks to build community capacity to prevent obesity, reduce tobacco use and improve screening for high blood pressure and cholesterol.

The Wisconsin Clearinghouse for Prevention Resources at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is guiding the initiative, and the Foundation is represented on the Transform Wisconsin Leadership Team. The Foundation encourages community leaders to visit the Transform Wisconsin website and consider applying for a grant to support county or local efforts in one or all of these focus areas:

• Tobacco-free living
• Healthy food systems
• Active communities

Grant applications for the first round are due June 15, 2012. Even if your community does not apply, you can view and vote on applications from other communities. As projects are funded and efforts begin, the website will be a great resource for sharing ideas and successes. Visit often for updates and future grant opportunities. Join us, and be part of the movement to transform Wisconsin!

Reach Out and Read

Reach Out and Read Wisconsin is a Coalition of the national nonprofit organization Reach Out and Read that prepares America’s youngest children to succeed in school by partnering with doctors to prescribe books and encourage families to read together. Reach Out and Read Wisconsin is administered by Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin and supported by a partnership between the American Family Children’s Hospital and Children’s Hospital of Wisconsin.

The Foundation provided start-up funds for a Reach Out and Read program last year in Platteville under the guidance of Society member Wendy Molaska, MD. Physicians and other health professionals can incorporate Reach Out and Read’s evidence-based model into regular pediatric checkups by sharing with parents the importance of reading aloud and providing developmentally appropriate books to children. The statewide initiative will encourage program expansion.

Read more about the Foundation's partnership with Reach Out and Read in Medigram. Additional information about Dr. Molaska’s program in Platteville is available in the Foundation’s Fall 2010 newsletter. For details about the statewide Reach Out and Read program, visit the Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin website. The news release announcing the Doyles’ Partnership Promoting Health Kids and Early Learning in Wisconsin also is available online.