Elevate Health

In Pierce County, Washington, youths and families are engaging in a program designed to help them see, understand and respond to signs of mental distress and substance use disorders. Courtney Chandler, Health Promotion Coordinator for the Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department, explains how this collaborative approach is changing lives.

It’s true that babies don’t come with instruction manuals. But a program called Family Connects Pierce County is helping hundreds of parents in Washington’s South Puget Sound Region navigate the unique needs and challenges that newborns bring. In this episode, Dr. Aisha Nnoli, a local OB-GYN, and Family Connects Program Director Emily Poncik, discuss the importance of post-partum care.

One in four Americans currently falls into the categories of either aging or disabled, according to U.S. population statistics. Matt Santelli, Education and Outreach Specialist for the Aging and Disability Resource Center in Pierce County, Washington, explains that providing support services to such residents can be challenging, but also critically important.

When analyzed effectively, numbers often shed light on the health of communities and the effectiveness of programs. Dana Orr, a Project Evaluator for Comprehensive Life Resources in Tacoma, Wash., explains how statistics can be invaluable tools when making complex decisions about how, when and where to provide human services.

Emotional wellness, especially for teens and youth of color, is often directly influenced by media. Karter X. Karter of Our Sisters’ House in Tacoma, Wash., shares insights about newly designed programming aimed at helping young people cope with media-induced anxieties.

Limited inventory, high prices and rising mortgage rates are combining to push the cost of buying a home out of reach for many working families. But housing expert Sherrana Kildun explains in this episode how Tacoma/Pierce County Habitat for Humanity is working hard to change that equation, one home and one family at a time.

Danny Fisher-Bruns, a Puget Sound-area consultant, discusses the Tacoma Anchor Network, a coalition of major Pierce County institutions working together to address social, racial and economic inequities of common concern to all South Sound residents.

One in nine girls and one in 53 boys under the age of 18 experience sexual abuse or assault at the hands of an adult, according to the Rape, Abuse and Incest National Network. Author DeVandra Wheeler, a social worker and victims’ advocate based in Tacoma, Wash., says children and families must protect themselves before it’s too late.

LGBTQ+ youths in Pierce County often experience marginalization and discrimination, especially in health care settings. In this second episode a two-part series focused on social determinants of health in the LGBTQ+ community, Oasis Youth Center Executive Director Matthew Wilson describes how SDOH factors can have negative consequences, particularly those 21 and under.

According to recent polling, an estimated 10 percent of the U.S. population will soon identify as LGBTQ+ or something other than heterosexual, roughly double from just a decade ago. In the first of two episodes geared toward the LGBTQ+ community, Troy Christensen of Tacoma’s Rainbow Center discusses the significance and challenges associated with ensuring equitable access to health care for all in a changing society.

Data collection and monitoring are essential to understanding a community’s health needs and health trends. Tacoma-Pierce County Health Department Data Analyst Stephanie Wood, also a consultant to the county’s Opioid Task Force, explains how numbers significantly influence important health policy decisions.

This episode features a conversation with Stephanie Sacks, Clinical Director for Rebuilding Hope, the Sexual Assault Center for Pierce County, Washington, which offers support toward healing through advocacy and therapy for those affected by sexual assault.

In this episode, substance use counselor Shundra King discusses how the effectiveness of drug treatment for people of color can often hinge on the cultural competencies of therapists who serve them.

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March is National Social Workers Month. With that in mind, Elevate Health’s Clinical Director of Integration and Transformation Kim Bjorn, herself a licensed clinical social worker and therapist, helps explain the many roles and responsibilities of social workers in today’s society.

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The use of opioids, particularly among survivors and abusers in intimate partner violence (IPV) relationships, is prevalent. These situations create unique risks for recovery. 

For more than three decades, the Tahoma Urban Native Alliance (TUNA) has strived to sustain and support the dignity of urban Native Americans living in Pierce County, Washington. This Elevate Health Community Care Conversation features TUNA Executive Director Colette August and Assistant Director Sauncha Romey.

"Indigenous methodologies could save the world if people listened to us,” Romey says during the episode. “We could end world hunger. We could end global warming. We could eliminate the wealth gap."

Tune in to hear how TUNA promotes sustainable services and addresses the unique barriers to whole-person health faced by urban communities.

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“Dementia.” Just mentioning the word can induce anxiety and fear. In this episode, Wendy Morris, Dementia Services Program Manager for Lutheran Community Services Northwest in Tacoma, Washington, discusses strategies for spotting dementia, programs for those coping with it, and resources for caregivers. 

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Health does not mean just going to the doctor. In this inaugural episode of the 80/20 Project, Elevate Health Chief Operations Officer and licensed clinical social worker Jodi Castle explains that a multitude of factors combine to influence “whole-person” health in a community.

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It’s no secret. Health care in the U.S. is generally complex, confusing and expensive. Enter Accountable Communities of Health, aka “ACHs.” These community-based organizations, which operate in more than two dozen states, seek to transform health care delivery by: focusing on individuals, ensuring health equity, reducing costs, and improving health outcomes for entire communities. Jodi Castle, a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and COO of Elevate Health of Pierce County, Washington, offers a tutorial on ACHs and the contributions they make to the areas they serve.

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Podcast host and licensed clinical social worker Kim Bjorn explores the challenges kids and their families face in the current U.S. mental health system. Kim’s guest is Joe LeRoy, CEO of HopeSparks, a Tacoma, Washington-based social services organization that is helping to transform pediatric care.

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Many U.S. communities, including Tacoma and other cities in Western Washington, are facing an explosion in homelessness. But Gerrit Nyland, a social services supervisor tasked with ending homelessness in Pierce County, says what many don’t realize is that roughly one-third of the unsheltered in the South Puget Sound are children, while many others are “working poor” families whose lives have been disrupted by job loss, unexpected injury, illness, or just bad luck.

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Physical violence is often just the tip of the iceberg in abusive relationships. In this episode of Elevate Health Podcast, two domestic violence experts in Washington state’s South Puget Sound Region explain that for many survivors, finding a “way out” can take time, patience and planning.

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More than one out of every six children in the U.S. between the ages of 3 and 17 is diagnosed each year with one or more disabilities. Doreen VanderVort, a Washington state-based advocate for families with special needs kids, says finding resources and services for such children can be overwhelming, especially for those who don’t know how and where to look for help.

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Health practitioners across disciplines are beginning to recognize that service integration can be effective in saving time, money and stress for patients and the providers that serve them. Dr. Jeffrey Reynolds, a veteran community care dentist in Tacoma, Washington, explains the benefits and the challenges.

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Today’s children encounter stressors dramatically unlike those experienced by their parents and grandparents. In this podcast, Pierce County Washington-based pediatric social worker Ashley Mangum describes how “asking the question” can help avert crises.

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