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Imperial Council Collaborates to Benefit its Community
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| Bobbie Wunsch (center), Community Systems Consultant, has a laugh with Horacio Rodilles (left), chair of Imperial Valley Healthcare Advisory Council and with Dr. Charles Humphrey (right), former Medical Director of the IPA. |
Imperial Valley Healthcare Advisory Council (IVHAC), the collaborative which was formed as part of the DRIS Initiative process, is serving to bring other collateral benefits to Imperial County residents. Imperial was able to effectively put together an injury prevention project in a tight time frame, largely due to the existence of IVHAC. As a result, Imperial received a CMSP Wellness and Prevention program grant. Lynn la Caze, the Imperial Local Coordinator and Director of IVHRA (Imperial Valley Health Resource Authority) stated: “We knew exactly who needed to be contacted to make things happen and everyone shared information openly to achieve the goal. I think it's a great example of a successful project that would likely not have happened without IVHAC.”
The Council has taken a very proactive role in working with the Healthy Families Program. A Certified Application Assistors Training was conducted at the Council’s behest in Imperial at the IVHRA offices. The Council members, as employers and social service providers, in their dedication to outreach, are disseminating bilingual Healthy Families Program information to their workers and clients. IVHAC submitted a Healthy Cities and Communities application. After a site visit from the Center for Civic Partnerships, they are looking forward to the Council receiving further assistance in its health education and prevention efforts. The Council voted to endorse and support the Imperial Valley Health Departments community health assessment survey by donating its $10,000 milestone grant from the James Irvine Foundation DRIS Initiative to help fund the project.
© CIRHM