The RUSH Center for Community Well-Being at Sankofa Wellness Village

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Everyone deserves to experience the best possible health where they live, work, play, and age. The RUSH Center for Community Well-Being will dismantle barriers to health care by providing services — many at no cost for residents — to individuals and families.

Services offered will include:

Comprehensive support from the RUSH Health and Social Care Response Team powered by community health workers and social workers conducting health and social needs screenings to connect residents to the resources they need.

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Accessible mental health services and training through experienced clinicians and fellows who will facilitate individual and group therapy sessions. Residents will also have the opportunity to become trained in Mental First Aid.

Two health care providers and a patient seated around a table

Health promotion and disease prevention programming conducted by RUSH experts in community workshops around health and wellness topics such as preventive health care and chronic disease management.

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Career pathways and workforce development programs that will serve youth and adults interested in medical, mental health, technological or scientific fields. The center will also foster emerging social work clinicians of color through the Legacy Mental Health Fellowship that aims to diversify the mental health field, provide training opportunities with effective and culturally attuned mental health resources.

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Need help now? Call (888) 352-RUSH (7874)

Traci Simmons

“Community at the center. That’s how we collectively create change, build on existing assets, and advance health equity.”
 

 

Traci Simmons, DrPH(c), MPH, CPH, CHES
Director, Community Health and Engagement at RUSH

The Wellness Village Center in West Garfield Park

 

The Sankofa Wellness Village is a community-driven initiative that will connect West Garfield Park residents of all ages to health, wellness, recreational, and financial opportunities.

 

Scheduled to open in 2025, this walkable “village” will connect the Madison-Pulaski corridor with other new public and private investments. These investments will bring in a new sense of hope for many residents of Chicago’s West Side who have experienced decades of structural racism and economic neglect.

 

Learn more about the Sankofa Wellness Village

Build with Us

Expected to serve more than 17,000 residents, RUSH is proud to play a role in establishing the Sankofa Wellness Village in the West Garfield Park neighborhood. Your investment in the RUSH Center for Community Well-Being will help our experts respond to the needs of West Side residents and improve access to health care directly where people live, work, play and age. 
 

To make a gift or learn more about supporting the RUSH Center for Community Well-Being at the Sankofa Wellness Center, contact Senior Director of Development Michelle Boardman at (312) 942-6884 or michelle_a_boardman@rush.edu.
 

Make your gift

David Ansell

“What makes healthy communities? Somewhere to work, somewhere to live, someone to love, and spaces that provide safety and care.”
 

 

David A. Ansell, MD, MPH
Senior Vice President for Community Health Equity at RUSH

Sankofa Wellness Center Partners

Equal Hope logo

Erie Family Health Centers logo

West Side United logo

YMCA logo

 

Contact Ofu Takor, for marketing or PR inquiries at Ofu_Takor@rush.edu.

Making Health and Wellness More Accessible

 

The RUSH Center for Community Well-Being is a part of our commitment to health equity and helping people live longer and healthier lives. Learn more about the strategy that guides the work we do by reviewing our five-year Health Equity Strategic Plan.

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