Whole Health Louisiana

The Whole Health Louisiana (WHL) State Plan is Louisiana’s first statewide plan to systematically address the widespread issue of childhood adversity and trauma through the integration of trauma-informed and healing-centered approaches in our state’s systems of care and support for children and families. Addressing this issue is critical to the well-being and fulfillment of our state’s children, families, and communities.

WHL’s mission is to transform Louisiana’s cross-system collaboration and community-specific care, so that together we can effectively prevent, recognize, and treat childhood adversity and its effects, allowing the people of Louisiana to access their full potential.

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"The Louisiana Department of Health is extremely proud to have partnered on this effort to develop a comprehensive approach to preventing and addressing trauma across child-serving systems. We remain committed to working with our partners from across the state to support the implementation of the Whole Health Louisiana State Plan. Building on the community input we have gathered, we will continue to integrate the healing-centered and trauma-informed objectives outlined in this plan within our agency, and provide support to other state agencies, organizations and communities that are working to do the same."

Tonya Joiner, JD
Assistant Secretary - Office of Public Health
Louisiana Department of Health

Whole Health Louisiana Plan Development Overview:

Hundreds of voices from across Louisiana are included in the State Plan. Insights from both the community-based, statewide discovery process and the November 2022 convening served as the foundation for developing plan priorities and structure. The third phase of the plan development process, coordinated by the Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) through the Bureau of Family Health, was guided by a Steering Committee, supported by cross-sector working groups, and informed by advisory bodies and community conversations held throughout the state.

The result of this process is the WHL State Plan which includes an overview of trauma-informed and adversity-related concepts, four priority areas with recommendations and objectives to achieve the goal of each priority and an implementation approach that has buy-in across youth and family serving systems. This unified, trauma-informed, State Plan will invest in the full potential of our young people, those who care for them and the workforce that serves them to improve health and safety outcomes for all Louisianans.

The development of the WHL Plan included three phases:

• An 11-month-long, state-wide discovery process to learn about the current state of childhood adversity in Louisiana, how it is being addressed, and what barriers exist to implementing change (September 2021 - August 2022);
• A convening of state leaders, experts, and advocates to review the findings from the discovery process and launch the development of a State Plan (November 2022); and
• A year-long collaborative process to draft the WHL State Plan that included Community Conversations across all nine public health regions of the state organized and facilitated by the Power Coalition of Equity and Justice (January 2023 - November 2023).

Priority Areas of the WHL State Plan:

• Collaboration: Connect and align government agencies, community-based organizations, educational institutions, and healthcare providers to create a seamless network of support for children and families.
• Awareness: Inform the public, policymakers, and workforce about the impacts and drivers of childhood trauma to reduce stigma and encourage the adoption of evidence-based, early intervention and preventative measures.
• Prevention + Healing: Expand preventive programs, access to services, and community-based initiatives that promote resilience and well-being.
• Workforce: Implement strategies for training and support to ensure that frontline workers can effectively care for themselves and those they serve.

Implementing the WHL State Plan:

LDH will serve as the plan’s public sector anchor, dedicating $1 million dollars annually for the first five years of plan implementation to support its success. The plan will be led by a public-private partnership between LDH and the WHL Statewide Lead, the WHL Coalition, and in collaboration with various partners, including community members, government agencies, non-profits, and community organizations. A dedicated Steering Committee, as well as the broader WHL Coalition, will provide guidance and oversight to ensure the successful implementation of the plan.

Whole Health Louisiana Partner Spotlight

Collaborating to Build Trauma-Informed Schools