Mind, Body, Community – The Holistic Approach at MHCD

The health of our communities is priority one for these organizations: Mental Health Center of Denver, Comfort Dental and North Suburban Medical Center. Learn how they tackle this massive undertaking here: 

WINNER

MENTAL HEALTH CENTER OF DENVER

Last year, Mental Health Center of Denver helped more than 50,000 children, families and adults through treatment and outreach programs. It provides comprehensive and accessible mental health and substance abuse treatment, housing, education and employment services for adults and is the leading resource of treatment for infants, children, teens and families. Currently there are 43 clinical programs and a caseload of 11,684 individuals.

The new Dahlia Campus for Health and Well-Being offers classes and activities to promote good nutrition, exercise, harmonious parenting, personal finance and more. The 45,000-square-foot indoor classroom, play community and counseling space is enhanced by outdoor play areas, therapeutic gardens and an urban farm/aquaponics greenhouse.

"Dahlia Campus for Health and Well-Being challenges us to stop looking at 'single-risk factors' and insists that a person's well-being comes from a healthy mind, body and community," says Lydia Prado, vice president of child & family services.

For employees, the Mental Health Center of Denver has a wellness culture that includes Pathways to Leadership training, StrengthsFinder assessment tool and Way to Go! paper certificates that any employee can award to recognize a colleague's outstanding contributions. 

The Mental Health Center of Denver has a 70 percent recovery rate and attributes some of that success to its outcome measurement tools that track mental health recovery.

FINALISTS 

COMFORT DENTAL

Dentists own and operate the more than 150 offices of Comfort Dental, a Lakewood-based franchise company. In addition to basic dentistry, Comfort Dental also offers Smile Centers, Comfort Dental Braces, Comfort Kids and Endodontics. Many franchises have adopted RAMVAC, a dry dental air pump system that uses about 50 percent less water than traditional wet pump systems, saving 7 million gallons last year.

Every Christmas Eve, Comfort Dental hosts Care Day, in which the offices provide free dental care. Over 33 years of the event, Comfort Dental has served more than 100,000 people with more than $35 million in donated dental services.

NORTH SUBURBAN MEDICAL CENTER

To keep up with the growing population north of Denver, North Suburban Medical Center recently renovated the Birth Center, building spacious private suites to make the new mother and family comfortable. North Suburban also sercured funding and completed the planning phase of new construction that will nearly double the capacity of the Intensive Care Unit.

North Suburban Medical Center also tries to reach people outside its walls. In 2016, the center participated in 42 community events that included an education component, reaching more than 20,000 people.