Our Mission
Transforming Louisiana’s Approach to Childhood Adversity and Trauma
Transform Louisiana’s approach to 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.
Our Vision
Healthy, Thriving Communities Across Louisiana
The vision of the Whole Health Louisiana initiative is for our state’s children, families, and community members to be healthy and thriving, unlimited by who they are or where they live. The movement to address and prevent childhood adversity has long been underway in our state. However, the focus has primarily been on specific sectors or stages of development with limited coordination across multiple coalitions and working groups.
Children, families, and community members across Louisiana are healthy and thriving, regardless of who they are or where they live.
Desired Outcomes
- Improved health and life outcomes for the people of Louisiana, across race, ability, income, identity, and parish
- Increased recognition and understanding of childhood adversity and its effects by all Louisianans
- Increased robustness and support of the child- and family-serving workforce
- Reduced causes and drivers of childhood adversity
- Reduced occurrences of childhood adversity
- Increased awareness and adoption of trauma-informed and healing-centered approaches to care
- Increased healing from childhood adversity and its effects
Understanding Childhood Trauma and Adversity
Childhood adversity is a broad term that refers to events in early life that pose a serious threat to a child’s physical or mental well-being. Trauma is how the body experiences an event or series of events that interrupt or inhibit a person’s sense of safety, agency, dignity, and/or belonging. It overwhelms the person’s ability to cope.
Building Resilience
Resilience is the capacity to resume positive functioning following adversity and the ability to adapt successfully to stress, trauma, or chronic adversity.
Trauma-Informed and Healing-Centered Approaches
A primary step in reducing exposure to and healing from traumatic experiences requires the systems that Louisianans interact with become trauma-informed and healing-centered.
Join The Whole Health Louisiana Coalition
Collaboration is at the core of Whole Health Louisiana, connecting those invested in the health and well-being of Louisiana’s children and families in a unified network of support. Together, we are stronger, and our unity is the driving force behind change. We invite you to join the Whole Health Louisiana Coalition. Email WHL@la.gov to begin the process.