Helping to get out the good message for the Bread of Healing Clinic is WTMJ Radio Weekend Host Mark Siegrist. He interviewed our own Rick Cesar on the morning of Saturday, March 16, as part of Wisconsin's Weekend Morning News magazine. The station kindly shared a portion of that broadcast in the following audio file. The clinic thanks both Mark and Rick for their time and effort in helping people understand all that our clinic provides to the uninsured and underserved in our community.
Medical Society Milwaukee Hosts an Evening to Remember at the Wisconsin Club
Bread of Healing Clinic leadership came together on March 9, 2019 to celebrate Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler’s recognition at the Medical Society of Milwaukee’s Annual Awards Dinner. Dr. Horner-Ibler received the Dr. Erastus B. Wolcott Distinguished Service Award, specifically for her care for the underserved. We are happy to see Dr. Horner-Ibler receive this honor and, while she accepts it on behalf of the clinic, she would tell you that her work and the people she serves are far more important than any award. This is why we love her!
Please click on the images below to view a brief photo gallery from the evening.
Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler Recognized with a Distinguished Service Award
The Medical Society of Milwaukee is recognizing our own Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler with their Dr. Erastus B. Wolcott Distinguished Service Award for her care for the underserved. If you wish to join this wonderful event, please visit www.Medical19.givesmart.com to register. This event sells out annually!
Bread of Healing Clinic Partners with MyHealthDirect to Schedule Appointments
As a free clinic, Bread of Healing has spent years figuring out how to “make do” for resources. One challenge has been scheduling patient appointments. While great technology has been available for years, it has been cost prohibitive for us to use.
MyHealthDirect learned of our predicament and, in honor of the service we provide, offered their scheduling module at a price we can afford: no cost. We are deeply appreciative for their generosity.
Additionally, MyHealthDirect created the following video to provide an overview of the Bread of Healing Clinic, along with describing how our partnership works. Enjoy!
Bread of Healing Clinic Featured by Shepherd Express
We are honored to have the Shepherd Express highlight both our origin story and our integrative healthcare approach that combines medical, social and behavioral factors into a treatment approach that brings hope and health to our patients. Please click here to read the article.
Bread of Healing Clinic Co-Founders: Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler and Rick Cesar
PHOTO CREDIT: ERIN BLOODGOOD
UWM - Helen Bader School of Social Work Recognizes Bread of Healing Clinic
It was a good spring when it comes to recognition for the Bread of Healing Clinic.
The Bread of Healing Clinic was recognized by the UWM- Helen Bader School of Social Work with its Outstanding Social Work Field Agency of the Year award.
This is one of five community awards that recognize local agencies that host student learners so they can have meaningful field experiences. Bread of Healing Clinic has been taking student social workers for 16 years and this is a first award for the field work experience we offer. Beth Thorson, our Director of Social Work Services, received the award on behalf of the clinic at the Awards Dinner on May 18, 2018. Many of our field work students, former and current, were our guests at this event!
Please click here to read more about the UWM School of Social Welfare 2018 awards.
Bread of Healing Clinic Accepted into National Collaborative to Study Social Health
The Bread of Healing Clinic recently applied for and was accepted into The Collaborative for the Advancement of Social Health Integration (CASHI). CASHI brings together 20 hospital systems, academic medical centers, a few federally qualified health centers across the nation… and one free clinic!
This is a new effort by Health Leads, the provider of our social work database at the clinic that helps us organize and mange our patients’ unmet social needs (housing, food, etc.).
For 18 months, a core team from Bread of Healing will participate in a learning program to improve patients’ social support. Bread of Healing has received a $10,000 stipend to participate in a variety of face-tp-face meetings, on site visits, and virtual learning sessions. We are excited about the possibilities of developing programs to better identify and better resource patients’ social needs.
And the UW-Madison Medical Education Award Goes to... Our Very Own Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler!
Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler
The UW-Madison Sigurd Sivertson Medical Education Award recognizes the most deserving person this year (no bias here): Dr. Barbara Horner-Ibler.
Dr. Horner-Ibler, or Dr. Barb to her patients, has dedicated her life's work to those who cannot easily access our healthcare system. Part of her mission involves teaching our future doctors, nurses, and social workers how to deliver exceptional care while learning about the strengths of - and challenges facing - our Milwaukee neighborhoods. We routinely hear that the Bread of Healing Clinic stands out among all of the rotations and practical education experiences for these residents and students.
Dr. Barb focuses on serving others and does not seek recognition for her contributions. In fact, she would prefer this news post was not created. At the same time, it is important for our patients, volunteers, and supporters to know that we truly have remarkable staff who are unwavering in their commitment to the Bread of Healing Clinic mission.
Click here to read more about this year's UW-Madison Sigurd Sivertson Medical Education Award.
Wisconsin in the National Headlines for Welfare Reform - And Not in a Good Way
The Washington Post recently highlighted issues facing the poor in Wisconsin and our Bread of Healing Clinic staff and volunteers can verify the details of the story, hundreds of times over, with our own patients.
Neighbors of ours live at the edges and living there increases the risk that they will fall over that edge. One car repair, one ER visit for a broken arm, one school field trip… any one of these can be too much for the family budget. Then suddenly the rent cannot be paid, or food cannot be purchased, or the light bill is looming, with the spiral only getting worse from there.
It's tough seeing our state portrayed like this as Wisconsin’s “reforms” make front-page national news. The newest upcoming rendition of “reforms” will aggravate this problem.
How can we overlook our neighbors in such need? There is no “welfare queen” and in fact, there never was. We must continue to shed light on the reality faced by real people, along with solutions that will raise people up rather than push them further down.
The Catholic Community Foundation Supports the Bread of Healing Clinic
Recognizing the great good that the Bread of Healing Clinic provides within the Milwaukee community, The Catholic Community Foundation awarded a $10,000 grant to help further the Clinic's mission. Grant objectives include:
- Continue using care coordination teams that includes a physician, Community MedShare staff, nursing, and social work to ensure that uninsured adults are receiving access to primary and specialty care services, medications, mental health services, social services, facilitated access (if eligible) to Medicaid and Marketplace policies, and access to community resources.
- Continue to serve a minimum of 400 new uninsured adults at BOHC (1,200 total annually).
- Provide medications (value of $2.5 million) to a minimum of 1,200 uninsured adults with chronic health conditions at BOHC and to 20 free and community clinics serving more than 10,000 patients. This includes increasing our medications budget specifically for insulin and other higher cost medications.
- Train 4-5 pharmaceutical interns from the Medical College of Wisconsin, Concordia and Drake Universities.
- Work with local and national corporations and organizations such as Americares and Direct Relief to obtain free or low-cost medications for the uninsured. By leveraging a collective influence with pharmaceutical wholesalers and medication manufactures BOHC has improved the availability of medications for uninsured adults.
- Continue to use a volunteer, cost effective model for Community MedShare that includes a Part-time paid Medication Manager and Pharmacy Technician; Pharmacy students; and more than 50 volunteers.
The Bread of Healing Clinic is honored to receive support from The Catholic Community Foundation and is proud to report that these objectives have been met and exceeded, ensuring that The Catholic Community Foundation funds are being used an productive manner.