Through a variety of classes and partnerships, we work to make our communities healthier.
Elmbrook Memorial’s Jumpstart to a Healthy Lifestyle is a holistic approach to well being and strengthening the mind-body-spirit connection. The program targets those with chronic pain and illness, and scholarships are offered through the Foundation.
Induced therapeutic hypothermia is a life-saving procedure that has been shown to halt brain injury when applied to patients resuscitated from cardiac arrest. Thanks to a $10,000 grant from the Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare – All Saints Foundation, Racine area emergency medical services providers now have the powered coolers and other equipment necessary to perform the therapy while en route to the hospital. This is the first time this therapy has been available outside of the Emergency Department to patients in Southeast Wisconsin.
Save a Life Foundation: St. Joseph is the first and only organization in Wisconsin to partner with the Save a Life Foundation to bring onsite first aid training to the community at large. Based on evidence that basic life-supporting first aid skills have a significant impact on saving lives and reducing disabling injuries, the program provides training in basic first aid and lifesaving techniques for kids as young as four years old to adult seniors.
Senior exercise classes: Instructors from Elmbrook Memorial and Franciscan Woods provide free classes for adults, ages 65-94, at the Senior Center at Brookfield City Hall. About 70 seniors participate twice a week.
Cancer prevention and detection: In partnership with the American Cancer Society, Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare supports cancer prevention and detection education for the Sankofa Project that focuses on educating the African-American community.
Women of the World Conference: We sponsored the health and wellness conference and provided 200 kidney disease screenings for African-American women who attended.
Baby Safe Sleep at St. Joseph and St. Francis: This program provides new mothers with t-shirts and sleepers for their newborns that say “This Side Up,” information on safe sleep and the dangers of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), a “New Beginnings” booklet, and Pack-n-Play portable cribs. The donations to hundreds of low-income families reinforce safe sleep practices and promote safe sleeping conditions at home.
Barbershop Men’s Health Initiative is an innovative partnership between Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare and barbers in the African-American community to increase awareness of important health issues in Milwaukee’s central city. Since 2005, barbers have been having one-on-one conversations with their patrons about their health and giving them resources to help them access care and eliminate disparities.
Racine Area Public Access Defibrillator Program (PAD) helps to prevent sudden cardiac arrest, one of the leading causes of death in America claiming more than 250,000 lives each year. All Saints has provided defibrillators in more than 100 businesses, organizations, schools, and churches. If the heart is shocked quickly with a defibrillator, a normal heart rhythm can be restored, but for every one minute in defibrillation delay, the chance of survival is reduced by 10%.