March 8, 2019
In this issue:
-A Health Literacy Summit You Don't Want to Miss
-Community Workshops You Can Participate In
-Medication Label Project Making Big Strides
-WHL Team Updates
-Health Literacy Training Opportunities
A Health Literacy Summit You Don't Want to Miss
  • Keynote – Dr. Dean Schillinger, MD, University of California-San Francisco
  • Closing Speaker – Annie Griffiths, National Geographic Photographer
  • Over 90 expert national and international presenters
  • 25 breakout session choices
  • Poster presentations and reception

Join us April 1 - 3, 2019, for the Wisconsin Health Literacy Summit in Madison, WI.

You'll hear from respected experts in the field who take us beyond our everyday discussions and broaden our scope on health literacy. From community health to academia, literacy to communication, and many other professions, the summit theme focuses on "a sharper view through the lens of health literacy".
Thanks to the following for making this year's Summit possible!
Friend
Aspirus/Arise 
Carroll University
Children’s Community Health Plan 
Children's Hospital of Wisconsin
Hall, Render, Killian, Heath &
Lyman, P.C.
Health Literacy Media
HSHS Eastern Division Wisconsin
Institute for Healthcare
Advancement 
Madison Gas and Electric
Foundation 
National Network of Libraries of
Medicine
ProLiteracy Rogers Behavioral
Health
See Change Management
TASC
The Alliance 
UnitedHealth Group 
Wisconsin Medical Societ y
Additional Support
Beloit Health System
Delta Dental 
Stoughton Hospital
Community Workshops You Can Participate In
Health Online Finding Information You Can Trust
Workshops for Community Members & Librarians
You may have heard about our new program, Health Online: Finding Information You Can Trust . Wisconsin Health Literacy (WHL) is partnering with the National Network of Libraries of Medicine - Greater Midwest Region. This is an educational workshop we designed the end of last year rolling out to libraries in Wisconsin to help users navigate the web, find reliable health information online, and make the most of their online resources.

The program includes a 90-minute community-based workshop that libraries have been hosting and will continue to host throughout the year. Here, community members get iPads to follow along the workshop presentation and get hands-on experience doing health searches.

We have also developed a train-the-trainer series for librarians to take part in. This 2.5 hour training is guided by a WHL professional. The goal is to train librarians to help community members find reliable health information online.  

If either program sound interesting to you, contact Caitlyn Mowatt at caitlyn@wisconsinliteracy.org.
Let's Talk About Pain Medicines
Workshops Coming Soon!
Back by demand, the popular Let's Talk About Pain Medicines workshops will be starting soon for the 2019 year. WHL, with support from Security Health Plan, is implementing 50 workshops throughout the state of Wisconsin. This program focuses on relavant and important information given our national crisis - how to safely and effectively use opioid medicine.

If you're interested in learning more about this program, contact Caitlyn Mowatt at caitlyn@wisconsinliteracy.org or Kari LaScala at kari@wisconsinliteracy.org .
"The workshop was very beneficial for those who attended. We can tell it was a success, because public awareness seems much more evident. We continue to notice more community agencies prioritizing drug education (prescription, over-the-counter, or illicit), to help increase health literacy among our underserved populations." – Menominee Tribe, Adult Education Coordinator
Medication Label Project Making Big Strides
Project Recognized as a Pearl
Drs. Paul Smith and Kenneth Schellhase (project member and academic partner of this project, respectively) presented a session entitled, "United States Pharmacopeia Patient-Centered Label Standards and Medication Adherence" this past November at the North American Primary Care Research Group (NAPCRG) in Chicago, IL.
 
The abstract was selected as one of the committee’s top 3 (out of approximately 1300) submitted. Subsequently, the presentation was selected for a 2018 NAPCRG Pearl Award . The Pearls are chosen each year by the Community Clinician Advisory Group (CCAG) as the top research studies presented at the Annual Meeting that will impact clinical practice. Members of the CCAG will present the Pearls at local, regional, and national venues.   
Join the Growing List of Pharmacies Changing Labels
More Wisconsin pharmacies have joined Wisconsin Health Literacy (WHL) and the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) to redesign prescription labels so they are easier for patients to read and understand.
 
If you are interested in improving patient adherence, as well as in having more satisfied patients and in receiving fewer callbacks , then your pharmacy should join this project too! With support and guidance from WHL and using United States Pharmacopeia (USP) standards, you can also have labels that are patient-centered.

The following pharmacies already have joined this project to redesign their prescription labels:
  • altScripts Specialty Pharmacy
  • Aurora Pharmacy
  • Ballweg Family Pharmacy
  • Evergreen Pharmacy
  • Fitchburg Family Pharmacy
  • Forward Pharmacy
  • Froedtert Pharmacy
  • GHC-SCW Pharmacy
  • Gundersen Health System Pharmacy
  • Hayat Pharmacy
  • Hometown Pharmacy
  • House of Wellness Pharmacy
  • Sheboygan Health Mart Pharmacy
  • The Medicine Shoppe
  • UW Health Pharmacy Services

If you would like to share project information with your staff or with other pharmacies, please download the PDF Pharmacy Project flyer .

Interested pharmacies should contact Kari LaScala, Associate Director, at  kari@wisconsinliteracy.org , or (608) 257-1655, ext. 5.

 Funding is provided by the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin endowment of the Medical College of Wisconsin .
WHL Team Updates
Farewell, Steve Sparks
Wisconsin Health Literacy says farewell to Steve Sparks. Steve began work over 5 years ago as the Health Literacy Director and his impact has been nothing short of incredible. The growth that Wisconsin Health Literacy has experienced under his leadership has put us on the national map of excellence in the field and boosted the overall name recognition of Wisconsin Literacy, Inc. (Wisconsin Health Literacy is a division of Wisconsin Literacy, Inc.)
 
Steve approached a large body of work with enthusiasm, good humor and resourcefulness, which matter a lot in the non-profit world. He will be missed by many who had the privilege to work with him.
 
We especially thank him for his leadership and vision with this project and wish him well on his future adventures! 
Welcome New Health Literacy Director, Stan Hudson
Wisconsin Health Literacy welcomes the new Health Literacy Director, Stan Hudson, MA, who has been the Associate Director of the Center for Health Policy, University of Missouri since 2009. Prior to that he held positions as a Program Associate, Project Director, and Senior Health Policy Analyst all at the UM Center for Health Policy. He also worked for the University’s School of Medicine, Department of Health Management and Informatics as a Research Assistant and before that a Legislative Assistant in the MO State Capitol. 
 
Stan is well known nationally in the Health Literacy field for his work toward creating health literacy standards in schools of medicine and for professional certificates for those working in the field. He was recently selected by the National Academies of Science, Engineering and Medicine to deliver a paper for a Health Literacy Roundtable Workshop on Making the Business Case for Health Literacy. He also taught Social Justice in Health courses at UM and has done training in Racial Justice at the university and in school districts. He is a Certified Diversity FaciliTrainer (CDFT).
 
We look forward to working with Stan on this project and are excited to have his leadership as we continue to grow the Wisconsin Health Literacy division.
Kari LaScala Take New Role as Associate Director of WHL
A final new development at Wisconsin Health Literacy (WHL) is that Kari LaScala, Project Manager for our Medication Label Project, will transition to Associate Director of Wisconsin Health Literacy.
 
Kari has been responsible for much of the health literacy workshops WHL implements in the community and is also working on training more health care providers. She will continue to manage this project. 
Health Literacy Training Opportunities for Your Team
Wisconsin Health Literacy is a statewide nonprofit organization raising awareness of the importance of health literacy and fostering better communication between those who give and those who receive health care services.

Wisconsin Health Literacy provides:

Education and training: On-site, interactive presentations and training programs on health literacy and oral and written communication; biennial Health Literacy Summit

Consultation: Assistance in how to start or maintain a health literacy program

Plain Language Review: Editing, writing and consumer-testing of brochures or other documents to ensure they are understandable and actionable for all literacy levels

Organizational Assessment: Review of a health care or health insurance organization’s health literacy environment, policies and practices, with recommendations on how to improve health literacy

Website Usability Evaluation: Review and consumer-testing of website for ease of use by the broader population, including those with limited literacy

Awareness Building: Customized presentations and public information on who is affected by limited health literacy, and how it can impact health outcomes

Advocacy: Support for local, state and national initiatives relating to health literacy
Health Literacy Projects: Community-based interventions to improve health, health care and health insurance services.

Interestested in health equity? Check out Wisconsin Health Literacy's new diversity and inclusion trainings!









Click on the flyer to download a PDF
For information or a proposal for services, contact Stan Hudson at stan@wisconsinliteracy.org or (608) 257-1655, ext. 2.
Wisconsin Health Literacy | 608-257-1655 | www.wisconsinhealthliteracy.org