Our Model
The Whole Person-Centered Optimal Health & Wellness Model
The Whole Person-Centered Optimal Health & Wellness model is designed to empower individuals to achieve and maintain optimal health and wellness throughout their entire lifespan, regardless of economic and environmental factors, to the extent possible. It is designed to be cross-cultural, combining alternative health practices, traditional medicine, lifestyle medicine, allopathic medicine, osteopathic medicine, chiropractic medicine, modern medicine, counseling, coaching, and mental, emotional and behavioral health practices — while emphasizing the "whole person" holistic approach.
Our Approach
I Am Well Foundation empowers America's health and wellness transformation by:
- Focusing on systemic change
- Empowering individuals with wellness education, tools and resources to identify, achieve and maintain their own unique optimal health and wellness
- Facilitating access to affordable, whole person centered, culturally inclusive, holistic and complementary intervention at the local level
Systemic Change
I Am Well Foundation works to improve health outcomes by addressing systemic challenges in the health care system. We address root-cause barriers by helping agencies, providers and practitioners incorporate the Whole Person Centered Optimal Health & Wellness Model into their practices and by working to increase access to care — encouraging providers to connect with communities authentically, meet communities where they are, and break down bias and prejudice in the system.
Individual Empowerment
Our Healthy You Dash programs aim to empower each person to identify, achieve and maintain their own unique optimal health and wellness through self-assessment and access to education, tools and resources.
Affordable, Holistic Intervention
We believe intervention should always start with the least invasive options first, and that clients and patients should have access to all available intervention modalities — modern medicine, traditional medicine, and holistic, preventative, therapeutic and complementary medicines alike. At the local level, we bring together providers, practitioners and agencies to serve communities in alignment with the model. Our signature program, I Am Well Darke County, is an intentional pilot project from which best practices can be used by providers, partners, chapters and affiliates throughout the United States.
The Model
Six Techniques for Whole Person Optimal Health & Wellbeing
Whole Person-Centered Optimal Health and Wellness is defined as a human being achieving their own unique greatest physical, cognitive, and emotional potential as independently and cooperatively as possible.
6
Distinct techniques woven into every plan
Comprehensive Education
Self-Assessment Tool (used throughout one’s lifespan)
Intervention Services (when needed)
Industry Standards and Best Practices for Practitioners
Holistic Service Delivery Methods
Whole Person, Human-Centered Socio-Political Policies
Comprehensive Education
In order to achieve optimal health and wellness, individuals must be empowered with knowledge about their own body, mind, emotional and spiritual selves throughout their lifespan — presented in seven manageable components:
Whole-Person Lens+
Four interconnected parts of a human being: the Body (a physical vessel for mobility and experiencing life), the Mind (processing information, making decisions, and acting on them), the Spirit (a non-physical sense of connection to other life, the planet, and the universe beyond), and the Emotional Self (feeling and processing emotions and connection with oneself and others).
Key Elements of Life+
Hope, Air, Water, Nutrition, Sleep, and Activity — the ability to feel and process hope; to freely breathe clean air; to receive and maintain hydration; the intake of necessary calories and nutrients; adequate rest for ongoing rejuvenation; and movement and interaction with stimulus.
Physical & Physiological Self+
How the key elements of life are made possible by the body’s fifteen primary systems: Brain, Circulatory, Digestive (including teeth), Endocrine, Energetic & Electromagnetic (including aura, chakras, etc.), Exocrine, Fascial, Immune & Lymphatic, Integumentary, Muscular, Nervous, Renal/Urinary, Reproductive & Sexual, Respiratory, and Skeletal.
Sense of Self, Personal Esteem, Dignity & Worth+
Education focused on empowering individuals to develop a clear understanding of personal values, beliefs, boundaries and strengths; to be secure in their individual rights; to achieve occupational fulfilment and a sense of purpose; to achieve self-affirmation and healthy self-talk; to express themselves fully and honestly; and to understand and listen to their own body, mind, spirit and emotional self.
Environment, Input & Surroundings+
The importance of shelter, feeling of safety, the ability to obtain resources and participate in commerce, access to accurate information, healthy routines, positive energy, new experiences, nature, mobility and transportation, a sense of justice, comfort, and the pursuit of happiness.
Relationship, Love & Belonging+
Human beings are innately oriented toward cooperating with others from the moment of birth. Education here covers effective and assertive communication, cultural awareness, spiritual connection, giving and receiving love and affection, affirming self and others, sexual fulfillment, shared goals, identity development, and forming intellectual, spiritual, physical or emotional bonds.
Thriving: Optimal Health & Wellness+
These components are interrelated — a damaged sense of self can affect decision-making and even circulatory health, and vice versa. Optimal health is achieved when the body moves freely and without chronic illness, the mind processes clearly and decides in everyone’s best interest, the spirit maintains a state of peace and connection, and the emotional self can feel and process connection with oneself and others.
Every component of this education includes:
- A brief description of the component (e.g. nutrition, or the skeletal system)
- Indicators of thriving — how an individual would know things are working as they should
- Indicators of warning or decline — when a person might need to pay greater attention to an area of body, mind, spirit or emotion
- How to conduct a self-evaluation and provide self-care
- When to seek intervention services, and what those services might be
- Referrals to additional information and tools
Self-Assessment Tool
A self-assessment tool empowers individuals to learn about and listen to their bodies, minds, emotional and spiritual selves — guided by six principles:
Two parts
An Optimal Health & Wellness Self-Assessment Questionnaire, and an Individualized Health Chart Tracker.
The questionnaire
Corresponds to the seven components of the whole-person lens above.
The health chart tracker
Six sections: Family and Relational Health History, Optimal Health & Wellness Tracker, Monthly Review, Quarterly Review, Annual Review, and a Plan for Maintaining and/or Restoring Optimal Health.
Frequency
Introduced during childhood and routinized as commonly as brushing teeth — completed alone or with support, as needed.
Optimal health as the default
Color-coded results: Optimal Health & Wellness is "green," issues needing self-care are "yellow," and issues needing outside intervention are "red."
Not used for diagnosis
The tool is not for diagnosis or emergency care assessment — intense pain, broken bones, blocked airways or arteries, and similar emergencies need immediate professional care.
Intervention Services
A comprehensive sample of complementary, non-emergency, non-surgical intervention services empowers individuals to use the most effective, least intrusive means to build or restore optimal health and wellness — used individually or together as integrated care. Any service presented includes links or referrals to additional education and resources.
Chiropractic & Bodywork
Supplements & Naturals
Cultural & Spiritual Healing
Movement & Activity
Breath & Regulation
Energy & Acupuncture
Hypnotherapy & Regression
Counseling & Therapy
Coaching
Social Work & Navigation
Home & Facility Care
Community
Industry Standards & Best Practices
Key best practices and policy guidelines for practitioners — including support staffing such as housekeeping, nutritionists, and receptionists — across four categories:
Shifts & Employee Hours
Practitioners limited to eight-hour work days, with full, uninterrupted breaks, restroom time and mealtimes. Staffing based on patient needs and acuity rather than scarcity, with breakrooms offering quiet spaces and tools for rejuvenation.
Pay & Benefits
Pay commensurate with education, experience and living wages — no field practitioner should be "working poor." Fringe benefits include mental health/self-care days, generous PTO, tuition assistance, and parental leave.
Education
Continuing education as a norm — formal education, professional mentoring, leadership development, and ongoing certifications — supported by the organization wherever possible.
Workplace Culture
A healthy mindset and personal boundaries for clients and team members alike; debriefing time after trauma; dedicated charting time; and management that mitigates power dynamics and promotes multidisciplinary teamwork over micromanagement.
Holistic Service Delivery
Two pillars of success in holistic service delivery: accessibility and prevention.
Accessibility
Accessible services rely on five strategies:
Traveling to Community Hubs
Bringing education and services directly to workplaces, schools, churches, community centers, day cares, military bases, and cultural events.
One-Stop-Shop Facilities
Coordinated appointments where a complete set of intervention modalities is available, minimizing travel and scheduling conflicts.
Mobile Services
Delivered directly to homes or places clients congregate — pharmacies, grocery stores — for people with limited mobility.
Online Services
Virtual appointments, online education, and internet-based services for those with access to the internet.
Health Events & Fairs
Community-based one-stop events in accessible locations like parks and city auditoriums.
Prevention
Prevention relies on proactive education rather than reactive approaches.
Education
Continuous exposure to healthy lifestyles, options and foods — the healthy choice should be the easy choice.
Language
Setting client expectations to be well as a baseline, not a goal — prevention language is always encouraging, never blaming or punitive.
Cultural Competency
Recognizing that some poor health choices are culturally and biologically ingrained, that clients are not to blame for biomarkers, and that adverse experiences, affordability, and workplace conditions all shape health choices.
Whole Person, Human-Centered Socio-Political Policies
The model recognizes socio-political issues and policies that must also be addressed to promote optimal health and wellness, and supports organizations that focus on:
Healthcare System Payment Model Reforms+
Universal or single-payer health care, removing middle financiers, ensuring unlimited access to physical, mental, emotional, dental and vision care regardless of employment, income, or geography.
Eradicating Racism & Discrimination, Promoting Equity & Cultural Inclusion+
Equity and inclusion for all people — racial, LGBTQ+, transgender, age, ability, national origin, language, religion, and ethnicity, specifically including indigenous peoples. I Am Well denounces white supremacy and other forms of cultural or biological supremacy.
Reproductive & Family Rights+
Consenting adults have the right to form families of their own choosing. I Am Well Foundation remains neutral and nonjudgmental on reproductive health and family rights, and supports full information and follow-up care.
Economic System Reforms+
Recognizing the current economic system’s impact on health, and supporting efforts including universal basic income.
Workplace Conditions+
Six-to-eight-hour work days, uninterrupted breaks, and pay commensurate with education, experience and living wages — no full-time worker should be "working poor."
Environmental Stewardship+
Access to sunlight, clean air, water and natural settings is critical to optimal health, and the model supports protecting the environment, climate and natural resources.
Health Literacy & Service Navigation+
Teaching people to vet reliable information, and supporting care translators, advocates and patient navigators — independent from care facilities wherever possible — who guide people through inpatient, outpatient and follow-up care.
Public Health+
Distinguishing personal from public health — the entire community as the patient — and supporting equity, self-preparedness, and systemic, sustainable improvements to a community’s overall public health.
Credits
The Whole Person Centered Optimal Health Care Model was created by the "Task Force," a multi-disciplinary team of health and mental health professionals from across the healing and body/mind spectrum, who set out to introduce a whole-person centered health care service delivery model that could be used by the entire spectrum of providers.
The Task Force began meeting weekly in 2020 and throughout most of 2021. Together, they created the Whole Person Centered Optimal Health & Wellness Model, and launched I Am Well Foundation’s first pilot project, I Am Well America, to demonstrate the model’s effectiveness to potential stakeholders. Today, I Am Well Foundation is a national 501(c)(3) nonprofit based on the vision and initial guidance of the Task Force, and remains dedicated to continuing their work and passion for whole person centered optimal health and wellness for all.
The Task Force
- Duane Bowers, LPC
- Jordan Francis, Health Commissioner
- Mary Pat Curran, Intentional Flow
- Ryan Acker, All People Thriving
- Sheila Voisard, Sweet Hagatha’s Essential Oils
- Shelly Acker, Imagine Living Well
Advisors & Contributors
- Charlotte Sherman
- Deb Stull Kohn
- Rosalind London, Essential Wellness with Roz
- Ty Baker Baumann