Alena Wall of Center for Well-Being wins Nonprofit Leadership Award

Alena Wall

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

CENTER FOR WELL-BEING

101 BROOKWOOD AVE, SUITE A. SANTA ROSA 95404

707-575-6043

WWW.NORCALWELLBEING.ORG

AWARD CATEGORY: EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP

AGE: 39

RESIDENCE: SANTA ROSA

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: HEALTHCARE AND NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT

EDUCATION: BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN HEALTH SCIENCE FROM CSU, CHICO; M.A. HOLISTIC HEALTH EDUCATION FROM JOHN F KENNEDY UNIVERSITY. CERTIFIED HEALTH EDUCATION SPECIALIST (CHES) THROUGH NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR HEALTH EDUCATION CREDENTIALING.

STAFF: 40 TEAM MEMBERS (29 EMPLOYEES AND 11 CONTRACTED) AND 42 VOLUNTEER PROMOTORES DE SALUD

Describe your organization.

The Center for Well-Being is Sonoma County's premier health education and wellness center committed to defeating chronic disease in the North Bay. Core service areas are diabetes and heart disease. In addition to our cardiac rehabilitation facility, HeartWorks, the Center offers self-management classes to help curb the effects of chronic disease taught by Registered Dietitians, Nurses, and Certified Smoking Cessation Counselors, Physical Therapists, and Certified Diabetes Educators.

Promotores de Salud/ community health workers are trained to educate their own neighbors about diabetes, obesity, tobacco, and more. Each of our programs has been born from needs expressed by our own residents. We partner with our community to prevent chronic disease through school-based programs, advocacy and through supporting healthy work sites.

Center for Well-Being Mission: To promote the well-being of the whole person by empowering people with the knowledge, skills, and spirit to take responsibility for personal, family and community health.

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I grew up east of Forestville where dirt bikes and four-wheelers were pretty much how you connected to the next closest house with kids; off roading through vineyards and redwood forests. My husband John (Matt) Wall and I have two little boys ages 2 and 6. I love to travel and prior to having kids we lived in Ireland, traveled through Italy, Spain, Portugal, France, Andorra, Denmark, Guatemala, Costa Rica, Panama and drove across Mexico for our honey moon. These days free time is spent playing with the boys and gardening. My husband is a skilled home brewer so I get to be his “taster” and that's pretty fun too.

What is your role in the organization?

Executive Director

What achievement are you most proud of?

When I was hired as the Executive Director of the Center for Well-Being in 2007 the organization was in a really tough financial position and needed to be stabilized. My first week on the job revealed that the agency had drawn $40,000 on the line of credit to make payroll and had $5,000 in its checking account. Today our operating budget is over 1.5 million, we serve over 20,000 community members annually, have the most comprehensive cardiac rehab facility North of the Golden Gate (HeartWorks) and have added a community-based prevention arm to the Center utilizing Promotores de Salud.

What is your biggest challenge today?

Besides balancing raising two very small children with running a healthcare nonprofit. Matching our capacity with need. There is so much work to be done to transform community health. The Center has a big vision.

What is the next major project either under way or on the horizon?

We are launching a large scale community engagement initiative to prevent heart attacks through a partnership with United Way of the Wine Country which is in alignment with the Health Action heart disease prevention efforts under the ACH. We are expanding the work of our Promotores de Salud and patient navigators to engage hard to reach residents in healthy living. Our newest expansion of community-based work is focused on healthy retail in low income neighborhoods and educating the community on policies that better protect their health.

What product or service would/or is helping you do your job more effectively?

Electronic Health Records with in-house medical billing. The other major service that has benefited the Center was the brand evolution project completed by The Engine is Red.

How do you think your profession will change in the next five years?

Healthcare is incredibly dynamic with a focus on integrating wrap around services. I see the Center expanding our role within the care team to help patients prevent and manage chronic disease through support roles such as patient navigators and community health workers.

Most admired businessperson outside your organization: Mary Pittman, CEO of the Public Health Institute. I have never met her but have been following the growth of PHI for years.

QUICK TAKES

Current reading: Children's books every night! One of my favs is “The Day the Crayons Quit.”

Most want to meet: My grandfather (he died of a heart attack before I was born)

Stress relievers: Running; making my boys laugh, singing and dancing with them

Favorite hobbies: Gardening

Social media you most use: FB

Typical day at the office: I have a great team. They laugh a lot and are really committed to making a difference every day. The environment is really fast paced with onsite classes open to the community and patients referred by their doctors coming in to meet with our Registered Dietitians or getting oriented for our HeartWorks cardiac rehab center following open heart surgery. Every day for me is different from coalition work to analyzing financial reports or clinical quality metrics and working on strategic initiatives that will impact population health.

Best place to work outside of the office: Dining table or my patio with view of our flower gardens

Words that best describe you: Passionate, driven, friendly, silly, sensitive

Anything you want to add?

I love theme parties!

Alena Wall

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

CENTER FOR WELL-BEING

101 BROOKWOOD AVE, SUITE A. SANTA ROSA 95404

707-575-6043

WWW.NORCALWELLBEING.ORG

AWARD CATEGORY: EXECUTIVE LEADERSHIP

AGE: 39

RESIDENCE: SANTA ROSA

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: HEALTHCARE AND NONPROFIT MANAGEMENT

EDUCATION: BACHELOR OF SCIENCE IN HEALTH SCIENCE FROM CSU, CHICO; M.A. HOLISTIC HEALTH EDUCATION FROM JOHN F KENNEDY UNIVERSITY. CERTIFIED HEALTH EDUCATION SPECIALIST (CHES) THROUGH NATIONAL COMMISSION FOR HEALTH EDUCATION CREDENTIALING.

STAFF: 40 TEAM MEMBERS (29 EMPLOYEES AND 11 CONTRACTED) AND 42 VOLUNTEER PROMOTORES DE SALUD

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