Creating Healthy Communities
| Patient Education Insitute The Patient Education Institute assists healthcare professionals in providing and documenting patient education. We also help in evaluating health education programs. We do this by licensing our patient education software X-Plain, offering custom publishing services, and integrating our software with the solutions of our partners. X-Plain is the largest library of interactive multimedia software for health education. It includes more than 1050 multimedia titles. X-Plain tutorials simplify complex medical information and ask patients questions to verify their understanding. X-Plain is available in several instructional formats including videos and illustrated handouts. X-Plain can be delivered through a variety of media: microcomputers, smartphones, touch pads, and video players. We implement our products in physician offices, hospitals, and other settings where health education is critical. We sell many of our patient education solutions through our partners. We also translate our software and sell it internationally. http://www.patient-education.com/ |
| HHS launches website with resources to prevent tobacco use The Department of Health and Human Services yesterday launched BeTobaccoFree.gov, a website providing one-stop access to the latest tobacco-related information. The website includes federal and state laws and policies, health statistics and evidenced-based methods on how to quit. In related news, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention yesterday reported that 30 of Americ's 50 largest cities now have laws prohibiting smoking in all indoor areas of private workplaces, restaurants and bars. Only one city had this type of law in 2000. In addition, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration yesterday released a report that showed cigarette smoking rates among youths aged 12-17 fell significantly from 2002-2010 in 41 states. AHA News Now, November 16, 2012. http://betobaccofree.hhs.gov/ |
| Text4baby Text4baby is a free mobile health education service that provides pregnant women and mothers with an infant under one year of age with free, evidence-based, brief health messages. An educational program led by the National Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies coalition (HMHB), text4baby provides pregnant women and new moms with an infant under age one with information they need to take care of their health and give their babies the best possible start in life. Women who sign up for the service by texting BABY for English (or BEBE for Spanish) to 511411 receive three, free SMS text messages each week, timed to their due date or baby?s date of birth. http://www.text4baby.org/ |
| New Guide to National Library of Medicine (NLM) Mobile Resources NLM recently released a new mobile app that is intended to serve as the authoritative guide to NLM mobile resources. The app was created as an HTML 5 mobile Web site in support of the Library's ongoing efforts to make our information broadly available. Learn more about this new resource via the NLM Technical Bulletin article at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/techbull/ja12/ja12_nlm_mobile_app.html. To explore the app, visit http://www.nlm.nih.gov/mobile-app/ on your mobile device. The Library welcomes your feedback about this new app at http://apps2.nlm.nih.gov/mainweb/siebel/nlm/index.cfm or via the Contact Us link in the footer of the app. http://nnlm.gov/pnr/dragonfly/2012/07/25/new-guide-to-nlm-mobile-resources/ |
| NIH study finds leisure-time physical activity extends life expectancy as much as 4.5 years Leisure-time physical activity is associated with longer life expectancy, even at relatively low levels of activity and regardless of body weight, according to a study by a team of researchers led by the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health. The study, which found that people who engaged in leisure-time physical activity had life expectancy gains of as much as 4.5 years, appeared Nov. 6, 2012, in PLoS Medicine. http://www.nih.gov/news/health/nov2012/nci-06.htm |
| Bringing Health Information to the Community (BHIC) This blog from the National Network of Libraries of Medicine (NNLM), National Library of Medicine (NLM), National Institutes of Health (NIH) focuses on health information issues related to the community, especially underserved communities. http://nnlm.gov/bhic/ |
| New Book Exploring Entrepreneurial Approach To Building Sustainable Communities Investing in What Works for America's Communities, which is available at www.whatworksforamerica.org, features dozens of innovative ideas that can improve economic prosperity, from new policies, to technology, to integrated community efforts. "We realize there is no 'silver bullet' solution to poverty," said David Erickson, director of the Center for Community Development Investments at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco. "Our hope is that the ideas in this book will spur new ways of thinking and collaboration that will empower everyday people and lift up their neighborhoods. Just as the nature of poverty has changed, those of us working to address poverty need to continue evolve to help transform both people's lives and the places where they live." http://reconnectingamerica.org/news-center/reconnecting-america-news/2012/reconnecting-america-contributes-to-new-book-exploring-entrepreneurial-approach-to-building-sustainable-communities/ |
| Reconnecting America - People. Places. Possibility. At Reconnecting America, we help transform promising ideas into thriving communities, where transportation choices make it easy to get from place to place, where businesses flourish, and where people from all walks of life can afford to live, work and visit. Reconnecting America is a national nonprofit that advises civic and community leaders on how to overcome community development challenges to create better communities for all. Reconnecting America develops research and innovative public policy, while also building on-the-ground partnerships and convening players needed to accelerate decision-making. The community where we live holds a special place in our hearts. Some of us still live in the same neighborhood where our family has had roots for generations. Some of us choose a community with an eye toward a new beginning. Where we live matters. http://reconnectingamerica.org/ |
| Open Public Comment Period on Healthy People 2020 Public comments are a cornerstone of Healthy People 2020. There will be opportunities for public input periodically throughout the decade to ensure that Healthy People 2020 reflects current public health priorities. You will be able to (a) comment on proposed new objectives to be added to the Educational and Community-Based Programs and Social Determinants of Health Topic Areas, and (b) propose new objectives to be included in 1 of the 42 existing Healthy People 2020 Topic Areas. To participate in the public comment period, visit the online public comment database beginning on October 15, 2012. Comments will be accepted through 5:00pm ET on November 2, 2012. http://healthypeople.gov/2020/about/publicComment.aspx |
| Community Health Worker Training Program This program focuses on health promotion and disease prevention strategies across disease and illness areas. The curriculum addresses the role and history of community health workers and provides skills-based training for the following areas: communication, interpersonal skills, informal counseling, service coordination, capacity-building, advocacy, organization, research, and chronic disease prevention. http://www.cdc.gov/prc/training/advocates/community-health.htm |
| Active Living by Design Resource Guide - Rural This Resource Guide was developed for Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation whose primary goal is to implement healthy eating and active living policy- and environmental-change initiatives that can support healthier communities for children and families across the United States. This Annotated Resource Guide provides a listing of relevant websites, guidance documents, tools, and case studies that may be helpful for community partnerships working in rural areas to facilitate healthy eating and active living. http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/sites/default/files/ALBD%20Rural%20Resource%20Guide%20August%202011-updated%20Aug%202011.pdf |
| Digital Citizenship: Exploring the Field of Tech for Engagement Knight Foundation launched its Tech for Engagement Initiative two years ago based on the belief that technology has the power to transform democracy. Knight Foundation sees the potential for reinventing citizens' relationships with their neighbors, leaders and governments, as a way to build the informed and engaged communities where we all want to live. A report written by Charles Tsai entitled "Digital Citizenship: Exploring the Field of Tech for Engagement" is meant to serve as a starting point for conversations among community leaders and developers who believe technology can help reinvent citizenship and promote community engagement for the common good. Participants at the Technology for Engagement Summit concluded that engagement technology should: (1) connect people; (2) build relationships; (3) increase participation in governance; (4) facilitate discovery; (5) reveal common needs and shared values; and, (6) enhance the ability to act. http://www.knightfoundation.org/media/uploads/media_pdfs/Digital-Citizenship-tech4engage-summit-report.pdf |
| Study: Patients See Benefits in Online Access to Doctor's Notes Patients who have online access to their physician's notes are more likely to understand their health issues, adhere to their medication regimens and feel a sense of control over their care, according to a study published in the Annals of Internal Medicine, the Wall Street Journal reports (Landro, Wall Street Journal, 10/1). The study -- which was funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation -- included 105 physicians and more than 13,500 patients at: (1) Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston; (2) Geisinger Health System in Danville, PA; and (3) Harborview Medical Center in Seattle. The study found that 90% of patients said they read their physician's notes online and 99% said they wanted continued access to such notes (Gold, "Capsules," Kaiser Health News, 10/2). Of the patients who did not read their physician's notes online, the most common reason cited was forgetting that the notes were available online. http://www.ihealthbeat.org/articles/2012/10/2/study-patients-see-benefits-in-online-access-to-doctors-notes.aspx |
| What Works for Health Tutorial What Works for Health provides communities with information to help select and implement evidence-informed policies, programs, and system changes that will improve the variety of factors we know affect health. To learn more about strategies that could work in your community, listen to the four minute tutorial and check out the 13 determinants of health listed on the website. http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/what-works-for-health |
| The Communication Toolkit The Communication Toolkit is designed to help organizations like yours (employers, health care purchasers, insurers, health plans, and others) communicate with employees or members about getting good quality health care, making better health care decisions, and being informed and engaged in their health and health care. The Toolkit contains materials that are designed to be given to employees or members along with guidance for organizations about how to effectively use the materials. The materials for employees or members consist of 16 documents, grouped into four topic areas: (1) Tips for Getting Good Quality Care (4 documents); (2) Finding Trustworthy Health Information on the Internet (3 documents); (3) Understanding the Basics of Health Care Quality (5 documents); and (4) Choosing Quality Health Care and Making Wise Use of Health Care Dollars (4 documents). How to use the materials contains step-by-step information and practical tips designed to help organizations understand how to best use and distribute the communication materials. http://www.helpyouremployeeshealth.com/ |
| Celebrate Safe Communities Celebrate Safe Communities (CSC) is crime prevention done the right way - local people working with local law enforcement to address local issues. CSC spotlights communities' crime prevention efforts, enhances public awareness of vital crime prevention and safety messages, and recruits year-round support for ongoing prevention activities that help people keep neighborhoods safe from crime and prepared for any emergency. For the second year in a row, NCPC and its Celebrate Safe Communities co-sponsor, the Bureau of Justice Assistance at the U.S. Department of Justice, have chosen themes for CSC events held during Crime Prevention Month - one theme for each week of activities. http://www.ncpc.org/programs/celebrate-safe-communities |
| Guiding Sustainable Community Change - An Introduction to the Practice of Coaching Communities, like people, need to grow out of their problems. To do so, community members learn to see issues and concerns from a broader perspective and as an opportunity to learn from one another and expand their options. Thus, the work of a community coach is to help people get out of their ruts, to stop sharing their rut stories and replace them with river stories. Leadership development coaching for communities means offering an empathetic ear, finding the coachable moments, and engaging in joint learning through leadership development activities. Coaches are not the answer people; they support capacity building by helping community members learn from one another and from their own experiences. Coaching has been provided in over 250 communities in at least 37 states, Brazil and the U.K. Communities in Australia are using community coaching as well. The following set of publications describe the approaches and values in Community Leadership Development Coaching: (1) New Field Guide to Community Coaching; (2) Engaging in Sustainable Community Change; (3) Investing in Sustainable Community Change; and, (4) Facilitating Successful Sustainable Change Initiatives. http://www.kenhubbell.com/community_change// |
| Lights On Afterschool In America today, 1 in 4 youth - 15 million children - are alone and unsupervised after school. Celebrate Lights On Afterschool on Oct. 18, 2012! Each October, 1 million Americans and thousands of communities nationwide celebrate Lights On Afterschool to shine a light on the afterschool programs that keep kids safe, inspire them to learn and help working families. Lights On Afterschool celebrations can be put together by anyone and don't need to take a lot of time, money or resources to be great; a creative, low-key event with a well thought out guest list can have just as much impact as a large rally on the steps of the state capitol. What matters is taking a moment to recognize the important, positive benefits of afterschool programs and sharing that with your community - with or without the confetti! A celebration can be simple: invite parents and community members to an open house, have kids make light bulb art, or talk to your neighbors and community leaders about the importance of afterschool in your community. http://www.afterschoolalliance.org/loa.cfm |
| Public Television Takes Role in Curbing Dropout Rates By Elizabeth Jensen, The New York Times, September 23, 2012. More than 100 public television stations reaching two-thirds of the nation's viewers turned over their air on Saturday to an unusual seven-hour telethon broadcast live from WNET-TV's Lincoln Center studio in New York. A parade of media stars, including NBC's Brian Williams, CNBC's Maria Bartiromo, CBS's Rebecca Jarvis and public media's Maria Hinojosa and Ray Suarez, exhorted viewers to "call the number on your screen," but they were not seeking membership pledges. Instead, they asked viewers to sign up to be "American Graduate Day Champions," and connect with community organizations working on the nation's high school dropout crisis. The telethon was part of the fast-growing American Graduate initiative, seeded in the last year with about $5 million in grants to public television stations by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/24/business/media/public-broadcasting-takes-role-in-improving-graduation-rates.html |
| Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study The Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) Study is one of the largest investigations ever conducted to assess associations between childhood maltreatment and later-life health and well-being. The study is a collaboration between the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and Kaiser Permanente's Health Appraisal Clinic in San Diego. More than 17,000 Health Maintenance Organization (HMO) members undergoing a comprehensive physical examination chose to provide detailed information about their childhood experience of abuse, neglect, and family dysfunction. To date, more than 50 scientific articles have been published and more than 100 conference and workshop presentations have been made. The ACE Study findings suggest that certain experiences are major risk factors for the leading causes of illness and death as well as poor quality of life in the United States. Progress in preventing and recovering from the nation's worst health and social problems is likely to benefit from understanding that many of these problems arise as a consequence of adverse childhood experiences. http://www.cdc.gov/ace/ |
| Growing State Economies - Twelve Actions; National Governors Association Chair's Initiative Of all the tough issues states face today, economic growth is not only one of the most important, but also one of the most perplexing to address. This Growing State Economies: Twelve Actions report aims to provide governors and other state policymakers better policy direction and strategies to foster business growth. It emphasizes understanding the pathway through which a new small business becomes a fast-growing firm and the policies that support that transformation. Startup firms that develop organically are critical to strengthening a state's economy. Firms in their first year of existence add an average of 3 million new jobs every year in the United States. More important, because many new ventures will inevitably fail, companies that survive those startup years usually create more net jobs than all the small startups do. And the most important firms that survive, the so-called gazelles, are fast-growing firms that power overall job growth and often evolve into large global corporations. Policymakers with responsibility for growing economies can create a locally meaningful strategy by following twelve basic steps to help the private sector grow and thrive, creating new job opportunities for their citizens. http://www.nga.org/files/live/sites/NGA/files/pdf/11HEINEMAN12ACTIONS.PDF |
| Healthy Children are Foundational to Healthy Communities Why do some children succeed while others fail? The story we usually tell about childhood and success is the one about intelligence: success comes to those who score highest on tests, from preschool admissions to SATs. But in How Children Succeed, Paul Tough argues that the qualities that matter most have more to do with character: skills like perseverance, curiosity, conscientiousness, optimism, and self-control. How Children Succeed introduces us to a new generation of researchers and educators who, for the first time, are using the tools of science to peel back the mysteries of character. Through their stories-and the stories of the children they are trying to help-Tough traces the links between childhood stress and life success. He uncovers the surprising ways in which parents do-and do not-prepare their children for adulthood. And he provides us with new insights into how to help children growing up in poverty. Early adversity, scientists have come to understand, not only affects the conditions of children's lives, it can also alter the physical development of their brains. But innovative thinkers around the country are now using this knowledge to help children overcome the constraints of poverty. With the right support, as Tough's extraordinary reporting makes clear, children who grow up in the most painful circumstances can go on to achieve amazing things. This provocative and profoundly hopeful book has the potential to change how we raise our children, how we run our schools, and how we construct our social safety net. It will not only inspire and engage readers, it will also change our understanding of childhood itself. http://www.hmhbooks.com/howchildrensucceed/ |
| If there were a health Olympics, the U.S. wouldn't even medal BY STEPHEN BEZRUCHKA, Special to The Seattle Times, August 8, 2012 ALL eyes are on London as it hosts the 2012 Olympic Games. Nations from across the globe have united to cheer the prowess of incredibly healthy individuals who compete to make their countries proud. In past Olympics, the United States has won more medals than any other country. But if the health of each country's entire population -- not just its elite athletes -- were an Olympic event, the U.S. would have been eliminated in the trials. Let's measure the health of a country by its life expectancy. If a population lives longer it must be healthier. In the Life Expectancy Olympics, the United Nations Human Development Report ranks the United States at 34th. A survey of U.S. medical students found that one-third believed the U.S. to have the best health worldwide. Why is this shameful standing in a major indicator of health not better known? We stand nearly five life-expectancy years behind the world's longest-lived country, Japan. If the U.S. were to eradicate cardiovascular disease, the condition that will kill nearly half of Americans, we would gain about three-and-a-half years of average expected life -- and still not be the longest-lived country. We aren't close to winning any medal in this event. Other mortality measures, such as infant or maternal deaths, tell a similar story. Among developed countries, we are laggards. Even our healthiest subgroups don't compare favorably to the average life expectancy of the 10 healthiest countries. King County's health is falling behind the world's best. Having a long and healthy life eludes most people living in the richest, most powerful country in history. We get the gold medal in spending on medical care, nearly half the world's total, but these expenditures are not buying health. More at: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/avantgo/2018868510.html |
| Statement from HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius on Community Health Center Week There are 8,500 health center sites across the country, treating more than 20 million people each year. They are the cornerstones of stronger communities. They also boost local economies, adding more than 25,000 jobs in the last three years. This year, as we celebrate Community Health Center Week and its theme of "Powering Healthier Communities," we keep in mind that for 45 years, community health centers have served individuals and families whether they have private insurance, insurance through a public program like CHIP or Medicaid, or no insurance at all. http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2012pres/08/20120806a.html |
| Health Homes for Medicaid Beneficiaries with Chronic Conditions This brief profiles four states that were the first to receive federal approval to take up a state option under the Affordable Care Act to implement health homes for Medicaid beneficiaries with chronic conditions. Almost half of the 9 million people who qualify for Medicaid on the basis of disability suffer from mental illness and 45 percent have three or more diagnosed chronic conditions. Health homes provide an important tool for states trying to manage and coordinate care more comprehensively for high-need, high-cost beneficiaries. Many states have demonstrated interest in the health homes option and some have received federal approval for their programs. The states profiled in the brief are Missouri, Rhode Island, New York and Oregon. http://www.kff.org/medicaid/8340.cfm |
| Guide to Community Preventive Services The Guide to Community Preventive Services is a free resource to help you choose programs and policies to improve health and prevent disease in your community. Systematic reviews are used to answer these questions: (1) Which program and policy interventions have been proven effective?; (2) Are there effective interventions that are right for my community?; (3) What might effective interventions cost?;and, (4) What is the likely return on investment? http://www.thecommunityguide.org/index.html?source=govdelivery |
| The Intersection of Health Philanthropy and Housing - Health philanthropy and community development have historically worked on separate tracks. That's changing. It's a common truth but one worth repeating: one's health and life expectancy can be predicted by a zip code. In many cases there exist 10-year life expectancy gaps between people living just a few miles apart. And while many factors help shape this disparity, they often have little to do with medical care, but rather with an individual's social, economic, and physical environment, genetics, or behavior. A lack of proper medical care accounts for just 10 percent of premature deaths. http://www.shelterforce.org/article/2768/the_intersection_of_health_philanthropy_and_housing |
| Health Literacy: Accurate, Accessible and Actionable Health Information for All This site provides information and tools to improve health literacy and public health. These resources are for all organizations that interact and communicate with people about health, including public health departments, healthcare providers and facilities, health plans, government agencies, non-profit/community and advocacy organizations, childcare and schools, the media, and health-related industries. http://www.cdc.gov/healthliteracy/ |
| Area Resource File (ARF) The Area Resource File (ARF) is designed to be used by planners, policymakers, researchers, and others interested in the nation's health care delivery system and factors that may impact health status and health care in the U.S. The ARF contains county-level data in eight broad areas (Health Care Professions, Health Facilities, Population Characteristics, Economics, Health Professions Training, Hospital Utilization, Hospital Expenditures, and Environment). The ARF data are obtained from more than 50 sources. http://datawarehouse.hrsa.gov/ARF.aspx |
| Partnership for a Healthier America The Partnership for a Healthier America (PHA) is devoted to working with the private sector to ensure the health of our nation's youth by solving the childhood obesity crisis. PHA brings together public, private and nonprofit leaders to broker meaningful commitments and develop strategies to end childhood obesity. Most importantly, PHA ensures that commitments made are commitments kept by working with unbiased, third parties to monitor and publicly report on the progress our partners are making to show everyone what can be achieved when we all work together. Founded in 2010 in conjunction with ? but independent from ? Let's Move!, PHA is a nonpartisan, nonprofit that is led by some of the nation's most respected health and childhood obesity advocates. http://www.ahealthieramerica.org/#!/home |
| Healthy Communities for a Healthy Future The National League of Cities (NLC) launched this website as part of a new project to help local elected officials reduce childhood obesity. Through this project, NLC is leading efforts to support local officials who sign up to participate in Let's Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties (LMCTC), a key component of First Lady Michelle Obama's comprehensive Let's Move! initiative. http://www.healthycommunitieshealthyfuture.org/ |
| First Lady Michelle Obama and Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announce next chapter of Let's Move! Cities Towns and Counties Philadelphia, PA-- Secretary of Health and Human Services Kathleen Sebelius joined First Lady Michelle Obama and local officials from across the country to announce the next chapter in the Let's Move! Cities, Towns, and Counties program, which encourages local elected officials to focus on improving the health of their communities. Secretary Sebelius announced five goals for local officials to achieve within the next year to address obesity and help communities be healthier. These goals align with Let's Move!'s five basic pillars. http://www.hhs.gov/news/press/2012pres/07/20120718a.html |
| Healthy Living 4-H Healthy living has been at the core of 4-H and remains a foundation of our pledge. Although 4-H believes that healthy living habits of young people begin in the context of their families and communities, we strive to equip youth with healthy living knowledge and skills that will prepare them physically, emotionally and socially to meet the challenges of the 21st century. To meet the needs of today's youth, 4-H Healthy Living programs seek to address national issues including nutrition and physical fitness, substance abuse, safety, and social and emotional wellness. The 4-H Healthy Living mission engages youth and families through access and opportunities to achieve optimal physical, social, emotional well-being. http://www.4-h.org/youth-development-programs/kids-health/ |
| Healthy Living National Mentoring Program The 4-H National Mentoring Program provides funding to land-grant universities for replicating three evidence-based Extension 4-H programs serving at-risk populations. The three goals of the program are: (1) increasing youth social competency; (2) improving family relationships; and (3) increasing academic success. http://www.4-h.org/youth-development-programs/kids-health/programming-resources/preventative-health-safety/national-mentoring-program/ |
| Healthy Living Health Rocks! Health Rocks! is a curricula for a healthy living program targeted at young people ages 8 to 14. The program aims to: Reduce youth smoking and tobacco use. Help youth build life skills that lead to healthy lifestyle choices with special emphasis on youth smoking and tobacco use prevention. Help youth understand influences and health consequences of tobacco, drug, and alcohol use to make healthy choices. Engage youth and adults in partnership to develop and implement community strategies that promote healthy lifestyle choices. Build positive, enduring relationships with youth involved as full partners through widely varying "communities of interest" to address youth risk behaviors. Health Rocks! also provides health information regarding norms and consequences of youth tobacco, alcohol, and drug usage. The curriculum is designed for teen/adult facilitation, with teaching tips and key health messages embedded in the hand-on activities. http://www.4-h.org/youth-development-programs/kids-health/programming-resources/preventative-health-safety/health-rocks/ |
| National Healthy Worksite Program (NHWP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) The National Healthy Worksite Program is designed to assist employers in implementing science and practice-based prevention and wellness strategies that will lead to specific, measureable health outcomes to reduce chronic disease rates. For most employers, chronic diseases?such as heart disease, stroke, cancer, obesity, arthritis and diabetes?are among the most prevalent, costly, and preventable of all health problems. The National Healthy Worksite Program seeks to promote good health through prevention, reduce chronic illness and disability, and improve productivity outcomes that contribute to employers' competitiveness. http://www.cdc.gov/NationalHealthyWorksite/ |
| eXtension Creating Healthy Communities (CHC), Community of Practice (CoP) The primary purpose of the Creating Healthy Communities CoP is to provide resource support to professionals and community leaders working to improve community health. To help them make positive impacts on their communities, our efforts are focused on providing resources supportive of the following goals: a. Improving the Health of Vulnerable Populations b. Developing Community Engagement and Leadership Skills c. Fostering Informed Health Policy Decisions d. Advancing Healthy Community Environments http://blogs.extension.org/creatinghealthycommunities/ |
| Healthy Communities Program (HCP), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) CDC's Healthy Communities Program works with communities through local, state and territory, and national partnerships to improve community leaders and stakeholders' skills and commitments for establishing, advancing, and maintaining effective population-based strategies that reduce the burden of chronic disease and achieve health equity. Communities create momentum that assists people in making healthy choices where they live, learn, work, and play through sustainable changes that address the major risk factors?tobacco, physical inactivity, and unhealthy eating. Currently, 331 communities and 52 state and territorial health departments have been funded. http://www.cdc.gov/healthycommunitiesprogram/ |
| Pioneering Healthier Communities (PHC), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Through collaboration with YMCA of the USA since 2005, 128 PHC communities have been funded to convene high-level representatives from the local government, public health, and private sectors to focus on changing the environment in a way that reduces community barriers for healthy living. During the next 2 years, many more communities will be added. PHC involvement spans multiple sectors, settings, and disciplines, including representation from government agencies, health care organizations, transportation agencies, food service systems, faith-based entities, parks and recreation departments, foundations, and health-related nonprofit organizations. To support its successful work in communities, CDC and YMCA of the USA bring in advisors from various public and private organizations to share their expertise at annual meetings and conferences. These expert advisors provide information on evidence-based tools and resources, as well as technical assistance on implementing successful community action plans. http://www.cdc.gov/healthycommunitiesprogram/communities/phc/index.htm |
| Community Transformation Grants (CTG), Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) The Community Transformation Grants (CTG) program will support community-level efforts to reduce chronic diseases such as heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes. By promoting healthy lifestyles, especially among population groups experiencing the greatest burden of chronic disease, these grants will help improve health, reduce health disparities, and control health care spending. Approximately $103 million in prevention funding has been awarded to 61 states and communities serving approximately 120 million Americans. These awards are distributed among state and local government agencies, tribes and territories, and state and local non-profit organizations within 36 states, including seven tribes and one territory. At least 20 percent of grant funds will be directed to rural and frontier areas. http://www.cdc.gov/communitytransformation/ |
| Healthy Living Grant Program, American Medical Association (AMA) The Healthy Living Grant Program encourages grassroots health education in communities across America. Obesity kills more Americans every year than AIDS, all cancers and all accidents combined. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention state that a third of Americans are obese, causing significant health and financial consequences to our nation. A recent White House study found a 400% jump in prescription drug abuse between 1998 and 2008. From infants to the elderly, violence affects the health of people in all stages of life. The AMA Foundation, with support from the AMA Alliance , began the Healthy Living Grant Program to address these critical issues. Based on the thought that local leaders can come up with the best solutions to these problems, this initiative supports grassroots organizations who are on the front lines in their communities. These grants provide critical funding that can jumpstart a project, affect change quickly, increase visibility for a project/organization, encourage collaboration and make a lasting difference in a community. http://www.ama-assn.org/ama/pub/about-ama/ama-foundation/our-programs/public-health/healthy-living-grants.page |
| Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (HKHC), Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities (HKHC) is a national program helping dozens of communities across the country to reshape their environments to support healthy living and prevent childhood obesity? The primary goal of HKHC is to implement healthy eating and active living policy- and environmental-change initiatives that can support healthier communities for children and families across the United States. Healthy Kids, Healthy Communities places special emphasis on reaching children who are at highest risk for obesity on the basis of race/ethnicity, income and/or geographic location. Through the program, RWJF seeks to catalyze and support communities? efforts to address the root causes of childhood obesity through integrated changes in policies, norms, practices, social supports and the physical environment. http://www.healthykidshealthycommunities.org/ |
| National Prevention Strategy The Affordable Care Act, landmark health legislation passed in 2010, created the National Prevention Council and called for the development of the National Prevention Strategy to realize the benefits of prevention for all Americans? health. The National Prevention Strategy is critical to the prevention focus of the Affordable Care Act and builds on the law?s efforts to lower health care costs, improve the quality of care, and provide coverage options for the uninsured. The National Prevention Strategy aims to guide our nation in the most effective and achievable means for improving health and well-being. The Strategy prioritizes prevention by integrating recommendations and actions across multiple settings to improve health and save lives. http://www.healthcare.gov/prevention/nphpphc/strategy/report.pdf |
| Healthy People 2020 Healthy People 2020 is based on the accomplishments of 4 previous Healthy People initiatives: a. 1979 Surgeon General?s Report, Healthy People: The Surgeon General?s Report on Health Promotion and Disease Prevention b. Healthy People 1990: Promoting Health/Preventing Disease: Objectives for the Nation c. Healthy People 2000: National Health Promotion and Disease Prevention Objectives d. Healthy People 2010: Objectives for Improving Health Healthy People 2020 is the product of an extensive stakeholder feedback process that is unparalleled in government and health. It integrates input from public health and prevention experts, a wide range of federal, state and local government officials, a consortium of more than 2,000 organizations, and perhaps most importantly, the public. More than 8,000 comments were considered in drafting a comprehensive set of Healthy People 2020 objectives. The Healthy People initiative is grounded in the principle that setting national objectives and monitoring progress can motivate action, and indeed, in just the last decade, preliminary analyses indicate that the country has either progressed toward or met 71 percent of its Healthy People targets. http://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/default.aspx |
