Allies, Inc. leadership was honored to attend TUFH 2025, a joint conference between The Network: Towards Unity for Health, Woods System of Care, and the Mollie Woods Hare Global Center of Excellence held at Woods Services in Langhorne, Pennsylvania. A significant part of the TUFH 2025 conference was an IDD/Autism Summit.
“Members of Allies leadership are deeply grateful to have been able to attend the 2025 TUFH conference,” Michael Haggerty, MS, President of Allies, said. “The experience was enlightening and inspiring.”
The annual conference brought together healthcare leaders from around the world for dialogues focusing on mutual learning and strategies towards improving community health services around the world with a particular focus on underserved populations and the need to enhance the delivery of integrated healthcare to complex populations including those with Intellectual and developmental disabilities.
“What really stood out the most to me was seeing such a strong and intentional focus on integrated healthcare,” Dawn King, VP of Integrated Health Services at Allies, said. “I have been to many conferences like this, but I have never seen integrated healthcare highlighted in such a powerful way.”
The four-day meeting in Langhorne illustrated the ubiquity of the challenges present in providing community healthcare solutions with a focus on integrated healthcare.
“It was eye-opening to realize that many of the issues I thought were unique to our state, or even our country, are challenges people are facing all over the world,” King said. “I was also impressed by how everyone continues to push forward with passion, innovation, and resilience.”
For changemakers and stakeholders who live in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where Allies is based and the meeting was held, respectively, the meeting offered a chance to connect with leaders from around the globe.
“The conference provided a valuable opportunity to learn how other countries are advancing their behavioral health systems and expanding support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD),” Christine Williams-Walker, PhD, Director of Behavioral Health Services at Allies, said. “One of the most impactful elements of the conference was the opportunity to connect with professionals and agencies beyond my usual network.”
A common sentiment from Allies leadership that attended the TUFH 2025 conference is that attending encouraged professional and personal growth.
“It pushed me to think critically about how we can strengthen and innovate the services provided within our Behavioral Department,” Williams-Walker said. “I left feeling inspired, motivated, and more committed than ever to ensuring that the individuals we serve are empowered to live to their fullest potential.”
“One area that was particularly insightful is the ways that technology may contribute to the advancement of our service-delivery model” said David Fall, Director of Information Technology at Allies. “The conference included technological applications that might dramatically change the way individuals with developmental disabilities might be able to be supported in the future, such as using adaptable homes with smart technology applications”, Fall said.
“There is always more to learn and understand about the way we support those with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” Haggerty said. “After attending this year’s gathering, I know the Allies team is looking at the future with hearts full of inspiration and with our eyes on a variety of strategies that will further support our mission.”
