Stephanie Harrison

Stephanie Harrison

Executive Director
Wisconsin Primary Health Care Organization

“We’ve been working with Dr. Rich Brown on this project for over 5 years now, and the health centers that have implemented the program have found it to be beneficial on a number of levels: improved provider satisfaction, better efficiency, and the real holy grail: better patient engagement. In a nutshell, the program teaches lay health educators to provide brief interventions with patients using motivational interviewing (which, in my opinion, is the most successful patient engagement strategy I’ve seen). The services are fully reimbursable, and by leveraging trained health educators, the providers have a little less to deal with directly in already compressed office visits.”


Jason Wurth

Dr. Jason Wurth

Family Physician
Bellin Health Ashwaubenon clinic

“Patient education has been an essential part of the care I provide. I’ve helped a number of patients that are battling behavioral issues – but I know there are many more that could be helped. Now we have a system to ensure that everyone gets the care they need. At Bellin, we have an ambitious goal: that the people in our region will be the healthiest in the nation. Behavioral screening and intervention is going to bring us closer to attaining that goal.”


Becki Detaege

Becki Detaege

Team Leader in Clinical Support Services
Bellin Medical Group Administration

“This is simply the right thing to do for our patients. In our community – and communities across the state – unhealthy behaviors and behavioral conditions cause or contribute to a huge number of health problems. Risky and problem drinking are especially prevalent. This BSI program helps us improve patient health and reduce healthcare costs. WIPHL has helped us build in the resources so that our patients can get the help they want to improve their health and reduce their risks without placing the burden on our current providers.”


Kathy Oriel

Kathy Oriel

Family Physician
Northeast Family Medical Center, Madison

“I know of five patients who are sober at this time and making valuable contributions to society who would not likely be in that position if it were not for Christina, our health educator.”

 


Christine Casselman

Health Educator
Aurora Sinai Family Care Center, Milwaukee

“Often, at-risk drinkers come in not knowing they are at risk. After the brief intervention – just a short conversation – they are ready to make a change. Quite often the same day! We also find and help people with serious alcohol problems, but it’s often those with less severe problems who make big changes. And these are the patients who yield most of the cost savings.”


Ted Kay

Ted Kay

CEO
Family Health/La Clinica community health clinic, Wautoma


“A kid coming in for a high school sports exam needs to get an eye exam. If you don’t do that, and he gets hit in the head with a baseball going 60 mph, depending on the circumstances you very well could be held liable. Screening adults for alcohol issues, while perhaps even less clear cut in terms of liability, is just as essential to the health and risk assessment of that individual.”


Steve Ohly

Steve Ohly

Manager, Aurora Walker’s Point Community Clinic

“Patients often want to be asked about their drinking and other issues. Sometimes people just need a partner to help them begin to change. It’s often the only way people with substance abuse issues can move from a 'stuck place.' We’re a caring community and people respond to that kind of community.”