Children's Wisconsin - Fox Valley Hospital - Neenah, 2025 Community Benefits
Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin’s Seal-A-Smile program brings oral health care to schools
Tooth decay is one of the most common chronic diseases experienced by kids. In Wisconsin, 3 in 5 students in third grade have had a cavity. Tooth pain and cavities cause discomfort, making eating and focusing in class hard, impacting a child’s nutrition and education. Good oral health is key to a child’s overall care.
Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin, part of Children’s Wisconsin, implements the Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile (SAS) program in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and Delta Dental of Wisconsin. Wisconsin SAS provides school-based, preventive oral health care at no cost to families in more than 1,000 schools statewide. While government funding supports much of the clinical services, Children’s Wisconsin invests funds to keep this work going. Wisconsin SAS is a nationally recognized, gold-standard program bringing high quality, preventive dental care to students with a completed parent or guardian consent form. Wisconsin SAS supports children in getting oral health care while reducing common barriers to care like time off school, parent or guardian time off work and issues with transportation. Wisconsin SAS provides funding to local programs to implement school-based oral health services. A licensed dental professional comes to each school with mobile dental tools. They examine the child’s mouth and teeth, and provide education on brushing, flossing and healthy eating. If needed, children will get fluoride varnish and sealants applied. Fluoride is a paint-on coating to prevent cavities and strengthen teeth. Dental sealants are thin, plastic coatings placed on the back teeth to help fill deep grooves that are hard to brush. Dental sealants can prevent 8 out of 10 cavities in back teeth where most cavities happen.
During the 2024-25 school year, in Brown County, 25.2% of children served by Wisconsin SAS received a sealant and 99.5% of children received fluoride treatment. In Winnebago County, 34.5% of children served by Wisconsin SAS received a sealant and 99.7% of children received fluoride treatment. One of the Wisconsin SAS partners is the Brown County Oral Health Partnership, which promotes school-based services to help children receive preventive dental care they would not have received otherwise. One of the children served was a preschooler who had never been to a dentist before. The child has limited speech abilities, yet they were indicating pain in their lower teeth. Several teeth had deep decay with the innermost core of the tooth, blood vessels and nerves exposed. There were limited tooth structures with only roots remaining in some cases. As part of Wisconsin SAS services, their teeth were cleaned, fluoride was applied, and a dentist was consulted to evaluate their further care needs. Through the Brown County Oral Health Partnership, the child was later scheduled for hospital care where more than 10 teeth were extracted and several crowns were placed under general sedation. The child was seen again by Wisconsin SAS staff and is without pain, attending school regularly and has a second chance at a healthy smile.
Wisconsin SAS helps improve the oral health of Wisconsin students.
Children’s Health Alliance of Wisconsin, part of Children’s Wisconsin, implements the Wisconsin Seal-A-Smile (SAS) program in collaboration with the Wisconsin Department of Health Services and Delta Dental of Wisconsin. Wisconsin SAS provides school-based, preventive oral health care at no cost to families in more than 1,000 schools statewide. While government funding supports much of the clinical services, Children’s Wisconsin invests funds to keep this work going. Wisconsin SAS is a nationally recognized, gold-standard program bringing high quality, preventive dental care to students with a completed parent or guardian consent form. Wisconsin SAS supports children in getting oral health care while reducing common barriers to care like time off school, parent or guardian time off work and issues with transportation. Wisconsin SAS provides funding to local programs to implement school-based oral health services. A licensed dental professional comes to each school with mobile dental tools. They examine the child’s mouth and teeth, and provide education on brushing, flossing and healthy eating. If needed, children will get fluoride varnish and sealants applied. Fluoride is a paint-on coating to prevent cavities and strengthen teeth. Dental sealants are thin, plastic coatings placed on the back teeth to help fill deep grooves that are hard to brush. Dental sealants can prevent 8 out of 10 cavities in back teeth where most cavities happen.
During the 2024-25 school year, in Brown County, 25.2% of children served by Wisconsin SAS received a sealant and 99.5% of children received fluoride treatment. In Winnebago County, 34.5% of children served by Wisconsin SAS received a sealant and 99.7% of children received fluoride treatment. One of the Wisconsin SAS partners is the Brown County Oral Health Partnership, which promotes school-based services to help children receive preventive dental care they would not have received otherwise. One of the children served was a preschooler who had never been to a dentist before. The child has limited speech abilities, yet they were indicating pain in their lower teeth. Several teeth had deep decay with the innermost core of the tooth, blood vessels and nerves exposed. There were limited tooth structures with only roots remaining in some cases. As part of Wisconsin SAS services, their teeth were cleaned, fluoride was applied, and a dentist was consulted to evaluate their further care needs. Through the Brown County Oral Health Partnership, the child was later scheduled for hospital care where more than 10 teeth were extracted and several crowns were placed under general sedation. The child was seen again by Wisconsin SAS staff and is without pain, attending school regularly and has a second chance at a healthy smile.
Wisconsin SAS helps improve the oral health of Wisconsin students.
Children’s Wisconsin supports families in the Northeast with resources for youth with special health care needs
Wisconsin has five Children’s Resource Centers for families and professionals of children and youth with special health care needs. Children’s Resource Center-Northeast (CRC-NE) is based out of the Children’s Wisconsin Fox Valley Hospital in Neenah and serves 17 counties in the area. The majority of those served live in Outagamie, Brown, Winnebago, Sheboygan, Manitowoc and Waupaca counties. CRC-NE offers child- and family-focused information and referral connections to community resources for children and youth with special health care needs.
CRC-NE support is free and confidential. CRC-NE staff have firsthand experience as parents of children with special health care needs and/or years of professional experience in related fields. Staff receive ongoing training focused on helping children, young adults and their families find answers to questions about state and local resources, peer support, health benefits navigation, education resources, and more. The CRC-NE provides education for parents and caregivers on a variety of topics, including developing a medical home to strengthen communication and coordination with a child’s health care providers and planning for moving from the pediatric to the adult health care system. Children with special health care needs often receive specialty health care, and while their care needs may not change as they turn 18, a move from pediatric to adult health care does occur. The CRC-NE can help parents and caregivers find care and services in the community and help them understand benefits the youth may be eligible for to support their health and well-being. Families may be seeking diagnosis-specific information, connections to disability organizations or resources on how to support their child’s education. When a child or young adult has special health care needs, talking with other parents and caregivers helps families navigate the multitude of systems and partners involved in their care. CRC-NE staff help connect parents with other parents and caregivers who may have similar experiences to help offer support, insight and guidance through the Parent to Parent of Wisconsin program, supported by Children’s Wisconsin. Children’s Wisconsin’s trained staff are available to help answer questions from parents and caregivers, and assist them with navigating an often-overwhelming amount of information about a new diagnosis, available supports and resources, and coping skills. Last year, the most common topics families were seeking support on included: mental and behavioral health resources, Children’s Long-Term Services, and health care coverage access and benefits.
CRC-NE is part of a larger network of supportive resources, including Children’s Resource Center partners, Family Voices of Wisconsin, Connecting Families, Well Badger: Wisconsin Resource Center and ABC for Health. Last year, CRC-NE staff were working with a family to identify in-home supports for their child with autism, including occupational, speech and Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapies. Children’s Wisconsin staff were able to connect the family to a list of providers in their health insurance network of in-home treatment for children and youth with autism and the family sought services.
CRC-NE serves as a valuable community resource guiding families and professionals in supporting children and youth with special health care needs.
CRC-NE support is free and confidential. CRC-NE staff have firsthand experience as parents of children with special health care needs and/or years of professional experience in related fields. Staff receive ongoing training focused on helping children, young adults and their families find answers to questions about state and local resources, peer support, health benefits navigation, education resources, and more. The CRC-NE provides education for parents and caregivers on a variety of topics, including developing a medical home to strengthen communication and coordination with a child’s health care providers and planning for moving from the pediatric to the adult health care system. Children with special health care needs often receive specialty health care, and while their care needs may not change as they turn 18, a move from pediatric to adult health care does occur. The CRC-NE can help parents and caregivers find care and services in the community and help them understand benefits the youth may be eligible for to support their health and well-being. Families may be seeking diagnosis-specific information, connections to disability organizations or resources on how to support their child’s education. When a child or young adult has special health care needs, talking with other parents and caregivers helps families navigate the multitude of systems and partners involved in their care. CRC-NE staff help connect parents with other parents and caregivers who may have similar experiences to help offer support, insight and guidance through the Parent to Parent of Wisconsin program, supported by Children’s Wisconsin. Children’s Wisconsin’s trained staff are available to help answer questions from parents and caregivers, and assist them with navigating an often-overwhelming amount of information about a new diagnosis, available supports and resources, and coping skills. Last year, the most common topics families were seeking support on included: mental and behavioral health resources, Children’s Long-Term Services, and health care coverage access and benefits.
CRC-NE is part of a larger network of supportive resources, including Children’s Resource Center partners, Family Voices of Wisconsin, Connecting Families, Well Badger: Wisconsin Resource Center and ABC for Health. Last year, CRC-NE staff were working with a family to identify in-home supports for their child with autism, including occupational, speech and Applied Behavioral Analysis (ABA) therapies. Children’s Wisconsin staff were able to connect the family to a list of providers in their health insurance network of in-home treatment for children and youth with autism and the family sought services.
CRC-NE serves as a valuable community resource guiding families and professionals in supporting children and youth with special health care needs.
Children’s Wisconsin’s Triple P Positive Parenting Program supports wide array of community health needs
Triple P Positive Parenting Program (Triple P) is a successful, evidence-based program which provides early and comprehensive support for families to grow strong relationships, manage stress, build new, healthy habits and support whole child health.
Since 2016, Children’s Wisconsin has been offering parents and caregivers support they need to achieve positive child and family outcomes. Triple P is offered free of charge to families for children birth to 16-years-old through workshops, short-term coaching and a self-guided, online program. For those who are struggling with common parenting problems or interested in learning new skills, Children’s Wisconsin offers workshops which provide families a common space to learn tips to help support their kids. Caregivers learn about preventing behavioral problems, forming healthy sleep habits, addressing mealtime struggles, tantrums and toileting, connecting with your teen and building stronger relationships. Workshops are offered virtually on a variety of topics including how to support kids through big feelings, building their confidence and self-esteem and addressing challenging behaviors.
Triple P online is an evidence-based, self-guided program that parents and caregivers can do on their own, at their own pace to help promote positive behavior and build stronger relationships. Families can watch videos and engage with interactive content with offerings focused on babies, school-age children, teens, and a module focused on managing anxiety and promoting emotional resilience. Parents and caregivers can access tools to build skills their families need – whether it’s supporting their child’s development, implementing routines or strengthening parent and child bonds. Triple P helps families manage their concerns and struggles in real time and can potentially alleviate the need for further interventions or support them until they receive the higher level of care they need. Triple P helps support several identified community health needs including promoting infant health, enhancing child safety, and addressing mental and behavioral health concerns.
Providing statewide access to online, evidence-based parenting resources supports family stability and achieves positive child and family outcomes. In 2024, Children’s Wisconsin supported more than 400 families in the tri-county Northeast region and more than 6,400 families statewide. With support from government and philanthropic partners, and in collaboration with community organizations, Triple P promotes cost savings by intervening early to address social, emotional and behavioral issues before they escalate and require higher levels of support to address. Triple P has demonstrated reduced involvement with the child welfare and criminal justice systems as well as improved mental and behavioral health and educational performance.
A family who has used Triple P shared, “I think it’s fantastic to have a free program accessible to parents who want to raise children who are holistically healthy. I think it’s a really good idea…to have a website, but also coaching when so many people are struggling with their kids’ mental health and resources are scarce.”
nvesting in families and providing them the resources they need through Triple P ensures they can grow, thrive and achieve their goals and dreams.
Since 2016, Children’s Wisconsin has been offering parents and caregivers support they need to achieve positive child and family outcomes. Triple P is offered free of charge to families for children birth to 16-years-old through workshops, short-term coaching and a self-guided, online program. For those who are struggling with common parenting problems or interested in learning new skills, Children’s Wisconsin offers workshops which provide families a common space to learn tips to help support their kids. Caregivers learn about preventing behavioral problems, forming healthy sleep habits, addressing mealtime struggles, tantrums and toileting, connecting with your teen and building stronger relationships. Workshops are offered virtually on a variety of topics including how to support kids through big feelings, building their confidence and self-esteem and addressing challenging behaviors.
Triple P online is an evidence-based, self-guided program that parents and caregivers can do on their own, at their own pace to help promote positive behavior and build stronger relationships. Families can watch videos and engage with interactive content with offerings focused on babies, school-age children, teens, and a module focused on managing anxiety and promoting emotional resilience. Parents and caregivers can access tools to build skills their families need – whether it’s supporting their child’s development, implementing routines or strengthening parent and child bonds. Triple P helps families manage their concerns and struggles in real time and can potentially alleviate the need for further interventions or support them until they receive the higher level of care they need. Triple P helps support several identified community health needs including promoting infant health, enhancing child safety, and addressing mental and behavioral health concerns.
Providing statewide access to online, evidence-based parenting resources supports family stability and achieves positive child and family outcomes. In 2024, Children’s Wisconsin supported more than 400 families in the tri-county Northeast region and more than 6,400 families statewide. With support from government and philanthropic partners, and in collaboration with community organizations, Triple P promotes cost savings by intervening early to address social, emotional and behavioral issues before they escalate and require higher levels of support to address. Triple P has demonstrated reduced involvement with the child welfare and criminal justice systems as well as improved mental and behavioral health and educational performance.
A family who has used Triple P shared, “I think it’s fantastic to have a free program accessible to parents who want to raise children who are holistically healthy. I think it’s a really good idea…to have a website, but also coaching when so many people are struggling with their kids’ mental health and resources are scarce.”
nvesting in families and providing them the resources they need through Triple P ensures they can grow, thrive and achieve their goals and dreams.
