IMPACT | John Hyatt, President & CEO | 414-256-4808 | www.impactinc.org
On September 13th, over 260 advocates joined families of victims and survivors in recovery to support IMPACT's free and confidential services. Higher Ground...the Opiate Epidemic was held at the Wisconsin Club and raised $45,000 for IMPACT's Critical Condition Fund.

"This epidemic is hitting our community hard. It can be difficult to determine where to go for appropriate assistance, for which services someone qualifies, and how to make the right connections," explained John Hyatt, IMPACT President & CEO. "Because we do not provide treatment services, and are not affiliated with any health care provider, our determinations are based solely on the needs of the individual. Our only objective is to save lives."
Click to watch the video which premiered at the event

In Southeastern Wisconsin, the first step to regain stability is dialing 2-1-1. In 2016, 60 percent of the callers seeking assistance for a substance abuse issue identified as an opiate user. IMPACT's alcohol and drug abuse professionals are able to identify the problem, assess the severity, assemble a plan of action, and connect clients with resources.

Please visit www.impactinc.org to learn more about IMPACT's free services.

Clockwise from top right: John Hyatt with Liza Arroyo (left) and Patricia Gutierrez (right) of IMPACT; Guests at the Community Advocates table; IMPACT Board Chair Kim Dougherty with her husband; Gail Valenti (far left) of IMPACT with New York Times best-selling author Jacqueline Mitchard (second from left), Emcee Tom Pipines (second from right) and event guests; Speaker and advocate Linda Lenz (third from right) with event guests.
Evaluating Policy, Systems and Environmental Change Initiatives

Policy, Systems and Environmental (PSE) Change is a collaborative approach to improving community health that brings together stakeholders from many sectors and looks "upstream" to address root causes.
IMPACT Planning and Evaluation builds organizational capacity to collect, understand, and use data. Staff Lisa Larson and Erin Malcolm recently served as co-presenters of a workshop series on evaluating Policy, Systems and Environmental Change initiatives. The series was hosted by the Healthier Wisconsin Partnership Program's (HWPP) Capacity Building Component, and was co-presented by the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment's (AHW) Senior Evaluator, Laura Pinsoneault.
Evaluating PSE Change requires a shift in mindset and an ability to incorporate complexity into the way in which the evaluation is designed and carried out. The workshop series emphasized the importance of evaluating the collaboration itself, including how to measure the unique outcomes of PSE Change; the need for continuous quality improvement; and strategies for sharing evaluation data.
Participants of the PSE Change workshop are engaged in health improvement efforts throughout Wisconsin. The evaluation series presented a great opportunity for collaboration and IMPACT looks forward to expanding our role in building community capacity for PSE Change as the field evolves.

IMPACT changes lives, for good. Building on our nearly 60-year history, we provide the essential first step toward regaining personal stability, and collaborate to advance health and human services throughout Southeastern Wisconsin.
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