Building a Compassionate Community
Connect people with local resources & the healing power of belonging by creating a Compassionate Community
Compassionate communities
What do we do?
Integrative Re-Sources, in partnership with Deva Nation equips Valued Workplaces (socially driven organizations), Compassionate Practitioners (professional helpers, healers, educators), & community members with the education, tools, & support to prioritize mental wellbeing & quality of life
Check out the Upcoming Events page to either Find a Workshop, Host a Workshop or Become a Member to learn how you can lead with compassion
What is a Compassionate Community?
A Compassionate Community establishes a Mental Wellbeing Preparedness Plan, shares data across multi-sectors through an online resource directory- Compassion Now, engages in expressive community activities- Compassion Together, & measures Community Impact through a Town Charter to reduce deaths of despair. People living in a Compassionate Community know they belong & are equipped to be there for others during times of need
Why is the Compassionate Community model needed?
If you are one of the 7 out of 10 Americans trying to manage multiple chronic diseases (diabetes, heart disease, depression, anxiety, etc.) you spend on average of 10 hours a year with your medical care team. This means the other 8,750 hours remaining in a year is spent self-managing dis-ease at work, at home, in your community. The people you spend the most time with in your life have a greater impact on your health than your primary care provider
As patients, one of the dominant narratives is that we defer the management of our chronic diseases to our medical providers. Although this approach is beneficial for acute or congenital care, it is not working for the management of chronic diseases caused by stress, nor should it. We need to build accountability for our health WITH HELP from our community
Therefore, a team-based approach is imperative. We must become educated on the local tools, resources, & community supports available for us to aid in our own self-management of dis-ease. Essentially, we need the community to work together effectively to help us all self-manage our health & wellbeing
The solution to our most problematic health care issues is found in the wisdom of community members. When we trust, we belong. When we belong, we heal. When we instill a culture of belonging & social connectedness, our health improves
Who can belong to a Compassionate Community?
YOU can belong to a Compassionate Community with your workplace, your home, your neighborhood by applying the basic principles of compassion & social bridging
YOU can belong to a Compassionate Community by helping to take responsibility for the care of others by listening without judgement, recognizing that humans do not want or need to be fixed. Rather, we all just want a place to feel we belong. It begins by hearing & sharing our stories of loss, love, connection. There are the primary elements that build trust & instill belonging
Help a friend heal by Sharing your story, today
Learn more by attending the Compassionate Communities Workshop Series & check out Deva Nation's Talking Cafe's & Events
Where are Compassionate Communities?
A Compassionate Community can be located at a workplace, a geographical location or a social group. Compassionate Communities are found globally and originated by Dr. Allan Kellehear, Australia (photo above, man on right), & spearheaded by Dr. Julian Abel, United Kingdom (photo above, man on left), representatives of the Public Health Palliative Care International Association
Integrative Re-Sources founder & Compassionate Experiences Organizer, Kami Norland, in partnership with Mary Ann Boe, Deva Nation, (photo above, middle) have become the United States representatives of the Compassionate Communities model. Nicollet & Blue Earth Counties in Minnesota became the pilot site for Compassionate Communities-USA. Is your community ready to lead with compassion? Learn the principles, tools, & activities that can help you build a Compassionate Community in your area today by registering for the Compassionate Communities Workshop Series
Start leading a compassionate Community
Integrative Re-Sources & partners are experienced community developers & have highlighted a sampling of activities to help you start leading a Compassionate Community
Convene
Organize community leaders, such as public health, clinics, education, economic development, clergy, marginalized population representatives to evaluate if a Compassionate Community is right for your geographical area by contacting hello@resiliencysource.org to schedule a free online mini-workshop
Unite through Values
Unite by creating a Shared Values document to be used as the foundation for your Mental Wellbeing Preparedness Plan
Put Compassion to Action
Knowing what resources are available locally, sharing applicable data, & being able to social bridge your friends & neighbors during times of need is an important element for creating belonging
CompassionNOW, is a centralized, interactive online community resource directory designed to increase accessibility, efficiency, & impact of existing community programs
Be heard, Belong
Give voice to the experiences of loss, grief, grit & resilience in your area to educate on mental wellbeing & build belonging through our CompassionateTOGETHER tools & workshops
Measure Impact
If people do not feel safe, trusted, or that they belong in the area where they live, they are less likely to: volunteer, engage in community supportive services, participate in political activities, are more likely to demonstrate apathy & entitlement & experience diseases of despair. This impacts economic development & retention of local employers
Measure the strength of trust, social connection, & capacity for collective action in your area through our CompassionateIMPACT tools & workshops
Learn how compassion matters in the community
The true story of the town that beat loneliness
Frome in Somerset, UK has seen a dramatic fall in emergency hospital admissions since it began a collective project to combat isolation. While emergency admissions to hospitals across Somerset have increased by 29%, incurring a 21% increase in costs, Frome has seen admissions fall by 17%, with a 21% reduction in costs.
Society has developed in such a way to facilitate a drastic malnourishment of community, connection and compassion. This book sets out the case for the effective restoration of the active power of compassion as a widely available, fundamental force for good in all aspects of human life. In the process, it draws attention to research which demonstrates that an innate capacity and need for compassionate behavior is closely woven into the fabric of our bodies.
But this is also a book with stories to tell - the stories of how, by harnessing the power of compassion in the lives of real men and women, the small English town of Frome has opened up a new approach to the practice of medicine which has improved individual health and welfare while at the same time enhancing the vitality of the whole community. The effects of this approach have proved so beneficial that it has attracted international attention and is now transforming perspectives on issues of healthcare and social welfare across the world.
Order Dr. Julian Abel's book today