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Woods Services Leadership Debuts Book, Webinar Series on Organizational Change

February 3, 2023

“Thriving Through Transformation: A Practical Guide to Creating Organizational Change in the Social Sector” seeks to inspire current and emerging professionals in organization management

 

Few organizations have undergone the kind of radical transformation that helped Woods Services, a nonprofit organization that serves the complex needs of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, comprehensively re-envision its structure, services, and future. Now the organization is sharing its lessons learned and providing a roadmap to help other organizations in the newly released book, “Thriving Through Transformation: A Practical Guide to Creating Organizational Change in the Social Sector.”

 

In the 228-page book, Tine Hansen-Turton, MGA, JD, FCCP, FAAN, president and CEO of Woods Services, and Peter Shubiak, MS, former chief operating officer, break down the essential elements of Woods’ transformation. They use employee stories, research findings, and business best practices to explore themes that include creating a clear and consistent organizational vision; developing strategic directions and planning; managing change; engaging employees; cultivating a culture of innovation and care; embracing equity, diversity and inclusion; planning for mission-driven growth; improving infrastructure and enterprise shared services; and developing strategic positioning, policy, and thought leadership.

The Cover of Woods Services Book "Thriving Through Transformation"

“We didn’t set out to write a book, but as we saw how our work changed the lives of our clients, employees, and community members, we wanted to share what with learned with other mission-driven organizations,” said Hansen-Turton.

 

Coinciding with the book’s release is the launch of a free, monthly webinar series, Thriving Through Transformation. Moderated by Hansen-Turton, the symposia will include 90-minute virtual panel discussions with national and regional visionaries who will discuss cutting-edge innovation in the health and human services sector and beyond.

“All organizations must embrace change to best serve their clients, but it can be difficult to know where to start,” said Hansen-Turton. “We hope our success story will inspire others to start the journey and serve as a roadmap to plan their own transformative journeys.”

 

In the first webinar of the series, “Vision, Strategy, and Cultivating a Culture of Innovation,” which took place Jan. 12, four health and human services experts discussed how they developed their own visions for organizational change, and then established both a strategy and a culture of innovation to weave those visions through every level of their organizations. Panelists included Josh Rubin, Principal, HMA; Rita Gardner, President and CEO, Melmark; Dawn Holden Woods, President, Generative Consulting Partners; and Dawn Diamond, Executive Vice President of Operations, Woods Services. This webinar is available as a recording.

 

Upcoming webinars will address employee engagement (Feb. 16), integrated and complex care for special populations (March 15), and Strategies for Avoiding the Cliff at 21: Models for Education, Behavioral and Family Supports (April 12). All webinars run from 3:30 to 5 p.m. and will be available as recordings.

 

“Thriving Through Transformation” is available for free electronically by clicking here or on www.socialinnovationsjournal.org. Hard copies are also available on Amazon. Hansen-Turton has written several other books, including “Making Strategy Count in the Health and Human Services Sector,” “Practical Tools for Not-for-Profit Leaders,” “The Social Innovator’s Playbook 2.0,” and more. All are available on Amazon.

Woods Services Awarded $100,000 Grant to Expand Access to Primary Care for People with Intellectual Disabilities

April 8, 2021

Woods, a New Jersey- and Pennsylvania-based life cycle care management organization, received one of the first Inclusive Health Communities Grants from the N.J. Department of Human Services’ Division of Disability Services

 

LANGHORNE, P.A. (April 5, 2021) –Woods Services, a Pennsylvania and New Jersey-based nonprofit organization, was recently awarded a $100,000 capacity building grant to increase access to primary care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and mental health challenges who experience significant disparities in access to care and health outcomes. With the funding, Woods will establish an integrated and inclusive primary care practice within or adjacent to Salem Medical Center, a hospital destination of choice for those living in or around Salem County, N.J. The initiative is funded by an Inclusive Healthy Communities Grant from the Division of Disability Services, New Jersey Department of Human Services, and administered by Rutgers University Bloustein School of Public Policy and Planning. Woods is one of the first recipients of an Inclusive Health Communities Grant, a program that launched in January. This national initiative of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention focuses on policy, systems and environmental change to create inclusive healthy communities.

 

Woods’ project, titled “Expanding Access to Primary Care for People with Intellectual Disabilities,” will be implemented over the next nearly 18 months. Other program partners include Woods’ affiliates Allies, Inc., located in Hamilton Township, N.J., and Legacy Treatment Services in Mount Holly, N.J., that along with three other human services nonprofits, comprise Woods’ life-cycle management and advocacy organization serving 22,000 people with disabilities in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.

 

Woods will conduct a needs assessment of health care access and experience among people with disabilities, their families and provider organizations to further inform project planning. In addition, an inclusive primary care practice will be established over the 18-month timeline, serving community members with and without disabilities in Salem County and surrounding areas. Outcomes will be documented and shared. The health care model proposed will be replicable throughout New Jersey where there are documented shortages of primary care providers and gaps in services.

 

The grant builds on the successful patient-centered medical home model employed by the Medical Center at Woods located at the Langhorne campus. Woods utilizes quality care coordination as well as the deployment of nurse practitioners as primary care providers. Woods’ model places an emphasis on prevention and management of chronic conditions thereby reducing unnecessary and costly emergency room (ER) visits and hospitalizations.

 

Children and adults with IDD and mental health challenges experience multiple barriers to healthcare access, including finding providers who are willing to take the time often needed for longer patient visits and are trained to overcome communication, behavioral or other challenges. Additionally, children and adults with IDD and behavioral challenges tend to have more complex medical issues than those without. When their intellectual disability is linked to a variety of genetic disorders, the medical challenges may significantly exceed those of persons without such genetic conditions.

 

The proposed primary care settings are adapted to mobility, communication and sensory needs, delivered by providers who are well-versed in the care of people with disabilities and complex needs, and who are able to accommodate and overcome barriers to care resulting from those complex challenges. The project will focus primarily on Salem County and adjacent counties which have gaps in access to care, and where project partners have a strong presence serving individuals with IDD and mental health challenges and their families.

 

“As a life-cycle care management organization, we are grateful for this grant that will enable people with intellectual and developmental disabilities and challenges to receive first-rate healthcare in a setting that meets their needs, provided by people with expertise in treating their complex conditions,” said Tine Hansen-Turton, president and CEO, Woods Services. “For many people with IDD and mental health challenges, who often have complicated medical needs, the ability to reduce environmental disruptions while providing them with exceptional healthcare is truly a game changer.”

 

“We were truly excited to support Woods in their grant-seeking efforts to bring integrated and primary care services for people with intellectual disabilities,” said Dr. Tammy Torres, CEO, Salem Medical Center. “Bringing these behavioral health services to our community is part of our strategic vision building on the opening of our adult Psychiatric Unit by bringing in complementary and integrated mental health programming.”

 

This initiative was funded (or funded in part) by an Inclusive Healthy Communities Grant from the Division of Disability Services, New Jersey Department of Human Services.

 

About Woods Services

Woods Services is a nonprofit, life cycle care management and advocacy organization that, along with five affiliate organizations located in Pennsylvania and New Jersey – Allies, Inc., Archway Programs, Legacy Treatment Services, Tabor Services, and Woods Community at Brian’s House – provides innovative, comprehensive, and integrated health, education, housing, workforce, behavioral health, and case management services to more than 20,000 children and adults in the intellectual and developmental disability, behavioral, child welfare, and brain trauma public health sectors who have complex and intensive medical and behavioral healthcare needs. Founded in 1913 by Philadelphia schoolteacher Mollie Woods with two simple goals – to advance quality of life and standard of care for individuals with disabilities – Woods Services continues its mission today by helping children and adults with disabilities or challenges to achieve their highest potential.  Among the ways Woods does this is through its population health management strategy, which includes the integration of primary and specialty medical care with behavioral health in Pennsylvania and New Jersey.  For more information, visit woods.org.

 

About Salem Medical Center

With a mission of delivering high quality, compassionate healthcare to Greater Salem County, SMC returned to not-for-profit status in 2019. Salem Medical Center is licensed for 126 beds, inclusive of medical-surgical, intensive care and behavioral health. SMC provides critical access to the community through its Emergency Department (nearly 20,000 patients annually), Surgery (outpatient/inpatient, about 2,500 cases annually) and Inpatient Acute Care (about 2,500 admissions annually). SMC has more than 200 physicians on staff. Salem Medical Center is dedicated to growing new services and recruiting physicians relevant to our community—making SMC a destination of choice for Salem County and surrounding areas.

Powering Ideas: The Ivan Project

May 18, 2018

One of Ivan Loesch’s favorite things to do on a nice day is to ride from his residence at Beechwood NeuroRehab into Langhorne Borough. He will often stop to chat with friends along the way as he pops into the Tiger Mart, Luk-Oil gas station, and Dollar General. Thanks to Ivan’s research and ingenuity and help from Woods’ Maintenance Department, those trips into town are now being made in an electric wheelchair that is run on solar-powered batteries.

 

“I first got the idea from Super Storm Sandy, which was a major influence for this project. We were without power for about a week and I knew from my research that solar power does not go down during weather anomalies,” said Ivan.

 

Ivan has always been an idea man so once he got the notion in his head to make his wheelchair solar-powered, there was no stopping him. He devoted himself to researching and learning everything he could about solar energy before diving into what is now known as “The Ivan Project”.

 

After reading numerous articles and guides on solar power, Ivan reached out to Tyler Doan, Mechanical Lead in the Woods’ Maintenance Department, for assistance. Tyler then enlisted the help of other department members, including electrician Frank Britsch and HVAC technician Tony Daniels. Despite the research, preparation and technical expertise of those working on the project, solar energy wasn’t exactly in Frank and Tony’s wheelhouse.

 

“We hooked everything up and everything was working and we come back the next day and the battery is drained and his wheelchair is not charged,” said Tony, who has worked at Woods for three years. “We thought the manual was really going to tell us everything we needed but it didn’t.”

 

Though the project required some additional research and ended up taking longer than expected, the group did not give up and the system is now up and running. Ivan has a routine that he follows each day in order to ensure that his arsenal of batteries stay charged so he is able to make his trips into Langhorne Borough and joyride around the Beechwood NeuroRehab grounds. Ivan is very thankful to Frank and Tony for their willingness to participate in his project and bring his vision to life, but he says he’s just getting started with his solar power plans.

 

“I would like to expand my solar apparatus. It would be great to power a tower at Woods. I know it’s a big undertaking but I think it could be feasible,” said Ivan, who will turn 40 in June and celebrate 20 years at Beechwood in July. “I want to do the tower because I think it could be symbolic, like a monument or a legacy.”

 

Beechwood NeuroRehab Executive Director, Dr. Drew Nagele, served as the mediator for “The Ivan Project” and set all of the necessary wheels into motion after hearing about the idea from Ivan himself.

 

“Ivan’s determination to explore and experiment with alternative energies has now paid off,” said Nagele. “I’m extremely proud of Ivan’s accomplishment of creating a solar-powered wheelchair.

 

As for Frank and Tony, though “The Ivan Project” was frustrating at times, the pair was happy to help Ivan’s dream become a reality.

 

“I happened to be in Beechwood Manor when he was talking to Drew (Nagele) and I heard him telling people that he loved it and that he would like to do more stuff with (solar energy),” said Frank. “Anytime you see our individuals and you know they are happy because of something you did, it’s rewarding.”

 

 

So how does it work?

 

The solar panels are on a 45-degree angle in the back of (Ivan’s residence) facing Southwest, where we can get the most sunlight. There are two wires on the back that absorb and transfer the energy into the basement. Once in the basement it goes to a control panel, from the control panel it goes to a battery. The battery absorbs the electricity from the solar panel. From the battery it goes to an inverter. The inverter changes the power from direct current (DC) to alternating current (AC), which is then fed into a receptacle that is connected to a wire that goes through the basement up a half-wall that is connected to the other end of an outlet, which is where Ivan plugs his battery in for his wheelchair.

 

Video version of Powering Ideas: The Ivan Project

 

Social Innovations Journal Launch Event

August 28, 2017

CREATING A SOCIAL INNOVATION’S MOVEMENT
WITHIN HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
THE BUCKS COUNTY, PENNSYLVANIA STORY

 

PLEASE NOTE: This event is sold out.

The Social Innovations Journal in partnership with Bucks County Human Services, Woods Services, Magellan Healthcare,  and Independence Blue Cross Foundation is pleased to host this SYMPOSIUM on Tuesday, Sept. 26 that will examine successful and innovative models and partnerships within the Bucks County, PA Region as an example of how health and human services organizations are innovating across the country. This edition specifically explores new innovative models of care for:

 

  • Aging Populations
  • Mental and Behavioral Health
  • Children and Youth
  • Drug and Alcohol
  • Physical and Developmental Disabilities

 

“Health and human serving system leaders are discarding the old ways of doing business in favor of new approaches that are innovative, efficient, effective, and responsive to the needs and demands of a dynamic and rapidly changing society. We are shifting from a reactive and crisis-oriented services delivery model to one that focuses “upstream” and better enables all of us to live to our full potential and to more effectively identify and address root causes when we do encounter roadblocks along the way.” (American Public Health and Human Services Association, November 2016)

 

Health and human services agencies along with their nonprofit and community partners in counties around the country have started to approach traditional long standing societal challenges differently. They are capitalizing on public/private partnerships; breakthrough technologies; brokering unique cross-sector partnerships; blending funding sources, and applying family-centered and community-based approaches to find innovative solutions with the expectation that these will lead to efficiencies and better client outcomes. Ultimately, regional health and human services agencies, collectively, are shaping a new ecosystem across sectors and systems that will align services, integrate data systems, leverage technologies and create system transformation.

 

PLEASE JOIN US!  As we have limited space capacity (100 participants) we ask that you only register if you are confident that you will attend.

 

Sincerely,
Nicholas Torres
CEO/Co-Publisher

 

Tine Hansen Turton
President & CEO of Woods Services
Co-Publisher

 

Jonathan Rubin
Human Services Director
Bucks County

 

Agenda

8:30 AM

Registration/Networking Light Refreshments

9:00 AM
WELCOME
Nicholas Torres, SIJ Publisher
Tine Hansen-Turton, CEO, Woods Services and SIJ Publisher
Charles Martin, Chairman, Bucks County Board of Commissioners
Jon Rubin, Human Services Director Bucks County

 

9:15 AM

KEYNOTE SPEAKER

Tracy Wareing Evans, President and CEO, the American Public Human Services Association
Current state of Human Services/Human Services Value Curve and the Value of and future for Public-Private partnerships

9:45 AM

CONSUMER VOICE AND PERSPECTIVE

Lessons learned from the consumer perspective:  Bonnie Healey

 

10:00 AM

PARTNERSHIP INNOVATION STORIES

Bucks County:  Connect. Assess. Refer. Engage. Support. (BCARES) program:  Margie Rivera, Associate Director, Bucks County Drug and Alcohol Commission and Eric Stark, Executive Director, Bucks County Health Improvement Partnership

Using the Sequential Intercept Model to build collaboration and support community engagement: Christina Finello, Deputy Director, Bucks County Human Services

Foundations Summer Internship Program: Ron Bernstein, Executive Director, Foundations Community Partnership

 

10:15 AM

CRITICAL THINKING ROUNDTABLES

 

11:00 AM

PANEL REACTION

Moderated by Tine Hansen-Turton, CEO Woods Services

Panelists

Tracy Wareing Evans, President and CEO, American Public Human Services Association
Audrey Tucker, CEO Family Service Association of Bucks County
Dr. Mark Hoffman, Ed.D., Executive Director Bucks County Intermediate Unit
Jon Rubin, Director of Human Services, Bucks County
Heather Major, Independece Blue Cross Foundation

 

11:45 AM

CLOSING REMARKS/NEXT STEPS

Tine Hansen-Turton & Jon Rubin

Woods Makes Mark in Latest Edition of Social Innovations Journal

March 24, 2017

Yesterday, Woods Services was in the spotlight at the Social Innovations Journal (SIJ) launch of issue 32: Social Impact and Innovative Models to Support Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities and Their Families Throughout the Lifespan. Keynote speakers included Woods’ own Dr. Scott Spreat who presented a brief history of the field as well as studies concerning the employment of people with disabilities both in workshops and in the community that showed a significant drop in employment of people with I/DD when workshops are closed.

 

 

Woods CEO, Tine Hansen-Turton, who is the co-founder of the Social Innovations Journal, moderated a panel discussion with topics covering aging in place for people with I/DD; technology improvements that facilitate quality of life enhancements for people with I/DD who have physical, cognitive, emotional and communication challenges; different kinds of supportive living arrangements for people with I/DD; and the harmful impact of the American Health Care Act (AHCA) on Medicaid and Medicare that many of our staff and the individuals we serve rely on.

 

Numerous staff from Woods and our affiliates submitted articles for this issue of the SIJ that speak to the innovative programs and supports we offer. Please take the time to read their articles and thank them for the great work that they do! You can read their articles at http://www.socialinnovationsjournal.org/editions/current-edition.

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Health, Wellness & Therapeutics

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Copyright © 2023 Woods | Routes 413 & 213 | P.O. Box 36 | Langhorne, PA 19047-0036 | Ph: 215.750.4000 | E: communications@woods.org

  • .
  • About Woods
    • Our History
    • The Woods System of Care
    • Meet the Woods Services Leadership
    • Meet the Woods Services Board of Trustees
    • The Woods Clinical Approach
    • News & Events
  • Services
    • Short Term Residential Treatment
    • Health, Wellness, & Therapy
    • Vocational & Adult Day
      • Holland Enrichment Center
      • The Woods Enterprises
      • Yellow Daffodil
      • Common Grounds Café
      • Woods Wear
  • Education
    • An Overview of Education
  • Research Institute
  • Work With Woods
    • Employee Testimonials
    • Benefits of Working at Woods
    • Staff Development
    • Teach with Woods
  • Support Woods
    • Make a Gift to Woods
    • Join the Heart of Woods
    • Give through your Donor Advised Fund
    • Give through EITC
    • Leave a Legacy
    • Honor a Friend or Loved One
  • Admissions
    • Tour Woods
    • Email Admissions
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Admissions Team