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The Vitalyst Spark podcast explores what it means to create a healthy community in Arizona.
Episodes
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
Wednesday Nov 15, 2023
On this episode, we host Sabrina Talyor of the Phoenix Police Department and Jesus Rivera of Surprise Fire-Medical. Over the past decade, there has been a lot of talk and programs aimed at increasing mental health training among emergency response personnel to better serve people experiencing crises. It’s the topic of focus in the Arizona First Responder Systems and Mental Health Integration Spark Report. With Sabrina and Jesus we explore what is making Arizona one of the leading states when it comes to integrating mental health practices.
Links:
Arizona’s Family Segment Interview Jesus Rivera and Sabrina Taylor
Arizona First Responder Systems and Mental Health Integration Spark Report
Arizona Treat & Refer Core Education Model Workbook
Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Methods for Using Data to Inform Practice
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
Tuesday Oct 24, 2023
On this episode, we are talking about systems change with Jacklyn Pederson of Feeding Matters. The organization has a long history of partnership with Vitalyst, and it showcases how willpower can bring together partners committed to changing a flawed system. Through their 2016 Innovation Grant, Feeding Matters convened partners to create a medically recognized name for pediatric feeding struggles and establish replicable and scalable norms for identification, early intervention, and reimbursement. The result: Pediatric Feeding Disorder, an internationally recognized diagnosis practitioners can work from. Jacklyn shares how partners worked before the creation of a diagnosis and how the work continues.
Links
Feeding Matters https://www.feedingmatters.org/
The History of PFD The History of PFD - Feeding Matters
Resources for Families Family Support - Feeding Matters
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
Thursday Oct 05, 2023
On this episode of the Vitalyst Spark Podcast, we will be talking to Tara Jackson, President of Arizona Town Hall. The current topic Town Hall is convening Arizonans to discuss is one that is key to all of us, Equity for All Arizonans. Equity is critical if we want to maximize the potential of our communities, and that takes understanding what equity is and its true benefits. Tara will tell us more about the Town Hall process and how the Town Hall team is taking this topic to communities across the state.
Links
Equity for All Arizonans Background Report
Friday Sep 15, 2023
Friday Sep 15, 2023
On this episode, we are talking to Anna Bettis, Arizona Healthy Cities Program Director at The Nature Conservancy. We are talking about the Conservancy’s 2017 Innovation grant, predecessor to Vitalyst’s Systems Change Grants. The grant was provided so the Nature Conservancy and partners could work with communities and create Heat Action Planning Guides, which identified strategies to reduce heat and improve the ability of residents to deal with heat. Anna will tell us what this project has evolved into, what it takes to create systems change, and how systems change is a moving target. We hope you enjoy the conversation.
Show notes / Links
- EPA webinar: https://www.epa.gov/heatislands/equity-action-heat-planning-greater-phoenix
- Changing the Story of Heat in Metro Phoenix Together: https://storymaps.arcgis.com/stories/b9c35f205ea14015a23b446ff75eeeb4
- Urban Heat Leadership Academy Youtube channel:
Tuesday Aug 22, 2023
Tuesday Aug 22, 2023
On this episode of the Vitalyst Spark Podcast, we are joined by Chris Casillas of Regenerating Sonora. He talks to us about his family’s ties to the Copper Corridor, his TAPAZ Sponsored Project Regenerating Sonora, and what is happening in Superior, Arizona, which will host the 12th Annual Prickly Pear Festival on Saturday, August 26th, 2023.
Links:
Friday Jul 28, 2023
Friday Jul 28, 2023
On this episode of the podcast, we are joined by Floribella Redondo, pioneer in the community health worker community in Arizona, and president of the Arizona Community Health Workers Association (AzCHOW). We talk about the difference between community health representatives, community health workers, and promotoras, and the beginnings of the work in Arizona. We also dive into what it took to pass legislation, the patience systems change takes.
Links
Arizona Community Health Workers Association (azchow.org)
Monday Jun 26, 2023
Monday Jun 26, 2023
During this episode of the Vitalyst Spark Podcast, we will be exploring systems change and talking to 2023 Systems Change Grant recipient Coconino Coalition for Children and Youth to talk to us about their Self-Healing Community System and Policy Change in Coconino County initiative. We will be joined by members of the Coalition, including Virginia Watahomigie, Executive Director; Becky Daggett, Mayor of Flagstaff; and Andrea Meronuck, Clinical Director with Northland Family Help Center.
Links
Coconino Coalition for Children & Youth https://coconinokids.org/
Northland Family Help Center https://northlandfamily.org/
City of Flagstaff Mayor’s Office https://www.flagstaff.az.gov/1406/Mayor-Council
Self-Healing Communities with Kevin Campbell https://coconinokids.org/self-healing-communities-with-kevin-campbell/
Comprehensive Analysis of Historical Trauma https://coconinokids.org/comprehensive-analysis-of-historical-trauma/
Igniting Self-Healing Communities Informant Interviews (Spark Grant) https://coconinokids.org/shc-partners/
Friday Jun 09, 2023
Friday Jun 09, 2023
On this episode of the Vitalyst Spark Podcast, we are joined by Kenneth Steel and Shelby Thompson from Pinnacle Prevention. We are talking about food systems in Arizona and the work of the Arizona Food Systems Network.
Shownotes / Links
Arizona Food Systems Network www.azfsn.org
Pinnacle Prevention https://www.pinnacleprevention.org/
Farm Bill Overview https://www.usda.gov/farmbill
Anti-Hunger & Food Systems Advocacy Call Registration https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZ0kc-6grT4sHdSXHCu2ghuuKaYeu9ZifU5_#/registration
Tuesday May 23, 2023
Tuesday May 23, 2023
Today’s topic: the end of Medicaid’s continuous enrollment requirement, also known as “The Unwinding.” What is this “unwinding”? Since the beginning phases of the pandemic, the federal government has prohibited states from disenrolling Medicaid members, regardless of their eligibility status. The goal was to protect the health insurance coverage of individuals and families who were most at-risk during the pandemic. Fast forward three years, and with the fading of the pandemic, the federal government has allowed states to restart their normal process for determining Medicaid eligibility beginning April 1st. What does this mean for Arizona? It means a large number of people who are currently covered by Medicaid – roughly 650,000 Arizonans – may no longer qualify and may be at risk of losing their coverage. Fortunately, Arizona’s Medicaid program, the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System (commonly referred to as AHCCCS) and local partners have long been preparing for this unwinding and are working hard to ensure that Arizonans take action to maintain their Medicaid coverage or find quality coverage elsewhere. Today we’re talking to two colleagues who work to improve health insurance coverage across Arizona: Claudia Maldonado, with the Arizona Alliance for Community Health Centers, and Matt Jewett, with Children’s Action Alliance. In partnership with organizations across the state, they are helping to lead the charge to protect Arizonans’ coverage during the unwinding.
Show Notes:
- Medicaid/AHCCCS members need to update their information on www.healthearizonaplus.gov.
- To speak with an assister about your health insurance options, visit www.coveraz.org or call 2-1-1.
- To find helpful materials related to the unwinding, visit www.coveraz.org/unwinding.
Thursday Apr 06, 2023
Thursday Apr 06, 2023
On this episode of the Vitalyst Spark Podcast, we are talking about impact investments, and we are joined by Kerwin Brown, of UPI Loan Fund, and Dave Castillo, of Native Community Capital, two of Vitalyst’s recent impact investments. Also joining the podcast is Suzanne Pfister, Vitalyst’s President and CEO, to talk about what impact investing means to Vitalyst and philanthropy. We discuss the roots of both organizations and why it’s important for organizations to make socially conscious, impactful investments that create opportunities for underserved communities.
Show Notes Links
Local First Arizona Rural Micro-Loan Fund