News from Wheeler

Dru Breslav, LCSW, senior director of community-based family services, and Elisabeth Cannata, Ph.D., vice president, community-based family services and practice innovation, are among the authors of a chapter in a new book by the Child Welfare League of America, entitled "Child Neglect, Inequity, & Poverty. Volume II: Practice Innovations, Concrete Resources, and Justice."

Dozens of attendees honored an anniversary in Bristol for two decades of a highly successful model of home-based behavioral health treatment. Wheeler was intimately involved in the development of the Multisystemic Therapy – Building Stronger Families model in 2004-2005 and continues to be a leading provider around the state.

For more than 16 years, Wheeler’s Mobile Crisis Intervention Services (MCIS) program has served children and youth in the Greater Hartford region, right in their homes, schools, and communities. This approach helps to divert unnecessary visits to the emergency room or inpatient hospital stays.

From operating his own family medical practice in New Hampshire, to leading improvements in the quality of care for more than 15 million Americans as national medical director of Cigna HealthCare, Richard (Dick) Salmon, MD, PhD, has seen firsthand the complexity, challenges, and potential of America’s health care system. He now brings his decades of knowledge to Wheeler Health, joining our volunteer board of trustees in January.

Here are links to recent news stories highlighting federal-level funding developments and short- and longer-term impact on community health centers in Connecticut.

Garrett entered his senior year of high school with the goal of attending college. However, the track-and-field athlete needed assistance in getting over some hurdles to reach his goals. He was referred to LifeSet, which is called Transitional Supports for Emerging Adults (TSEA) in Connecticut.

With a new $250,000, multiyear grant, The Cigna Group Foundation is expanding access to health care in Hartford through a partnership with Wheeler Health.

Every day, across the state, dozens of Wheeler clinicians step out of their cars, ring a doorbell, and change lives in the most intimate setting, a family’s home.

A short video with Sharon Pendleton-Ponzani, director, Wheeler Foster Care Programs, highlights the need for loving foster homes in Connecticut and what individuals and families can do to help.

Maybe it’s a field trip to a food industry conference. Or time spent in the onsite automotive garage. Or a regular shift at the school store. Whatever the setting, students at Wheeler’s Northwest Village School (NVS) have plenty of opportunities to acquire skills and experience that prepare them for the world of work through comprehensive prevocational programs.

Wheeler recently honored four donors for outstanding support of its mission at the organization’s 14th Annual Hands & Hearts event, held virtually, on December 12.

John and Brian Pica-Sneeden started their foster care journey nearly 30 years ago. Since then, they have adopted six of their foster children – one as recently as last month!

Valerie Fusco, a pediatric LPN for Wheeler's Susan Walkama Family Health & Wellness Center in Hartford, received the organization's second annual Ethics & Integrity Award. Valerie was nominated by her peers as part of the 2024 Health Care Compliance Association’s Corporate Compliance & Ethics week, November 3 through 9.

"Now, it's just a whole different perspective."

Sharon Pendleton-Ponzani, director, Wheeler’s Foster Care program, was a guest on Connoisseur Media’s “For the People Radio” show on November 17, where she highlighted Wheeler’s foster care programs and discussed the significance of National Adoption Month.