Race Matters: Organizational Self-Assessment
The Annie E. Casey Foundation created an organizational self- assessment to help organizations address racism. They believe that because unequal opportunities and racial inequity are deeply embedded and usually not intended, creating equal opportunities, operations and results requires intentional action. To view the self-assessment, click here.
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Preconception Resource Center and Research Updates!
Many public health practitioners are looking to improve health equity through preconception and interconception health. The Centers for Disease Control's Preconception Health and Health Care Resource Center includes health education materials for women and men, clinical strategies and model programs, policies and strategies, and state and local strategies and model programs. For bi-weekly updates on newly published research on preconception health, click here.
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The Magnolia Project:
Applying the Lifecourse Perspective to Case Management
The Magnolia Project is an innovative initiative in Jacksonville, FL that has taken the life course theory and put it into practice. The Northeast Florida Healthy Start Coalition changed their case management model to include financial literacy, career development, nutrition, and healthy relationship classes. To learn more listen to their webinar here.
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Achieving Health Equity in Latino Communities
This post by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation addresses the challenges to achieving good health in many Latino communities. Experts weigh in on the difficulty of finding affordable fruits and vegetables, and the abundance of calorie dense, low nutrition foods. They also address the lack of culturally appropriate care. To learn more about what is being done to achieve health equity in Latino communities, click here.
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Starting the Conversation
Here are some resources for starting the conversation about health equity in your community.
Race: The Power of an Illusion
This three part documentary series explores the evolution of race and racism and explains how the construction of race can have very real consequences. Click here for viewing information.
Unnatural Causes: Is inequality making us sick?
This seven part documentary series explores socioeconomic and racial health inequities. It explores the possibility that inequality itself is making our health worse. For viewing information, click here.
Hidden Bias Test
Psychologists at Harvard, the University of Virginia and the University of Washington created "Project Implicit" to develop Hidden Bias Tests--called Implicit Association Tests, or IATs, in the academic world--to measure unconscious bias. To take the test, click
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Why Trayvon Martin Has Everything to do with Black Women's Birth Outcomes
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Kimberly Seals Allers posted this video with the above headline to call attention to the affect of racism on birth outcomes. To read her article, click here.
One Thing White People Can Do That Would Make the World A Better Place
Watch this video about utilizing white privilege to call out an injustice.
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This Month: Health Equity
Our September newsletter focuses on improving health equity in the United States. With so much work to be done, this topic can sometimes feel overwhelming. But organizations and health departments all over the country are taking steps to improving opportunities and health outcomes for minority populations--and they're having positive results. This month we will highlight their stories, as well as provide tools for organizations ready to take on the challenge of addressing health disparities in their community.
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The 12-Point Plan to Close the Black-White Gap in Birth Outcomes
The disparity between Black and White birth outcomes is one of the central issues in health equity today. This disparity is often worse than the national average in the southeastern region of our country. In response to this striking disparity, Lu et al created a 12-point plan to close this gap. The three main goals include improving healthcare for African American women, strengthening African American families and communities, and addressing social and economic inequities. This plan has served as a guide for many public health practitioners and is a guiding document for action steps to address the Black-White gap in birth outcomes. To read the full report, click here. For an abbreviated outline of the plan, click here.
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East Durham Children's Initiative
The East Durham Children's Initiative (EDCI) is committed to changing outcomes and expectations for children and families living in a 120-block area of East Durham, North Carolina. Modeled after the Harlem Children's Zone, EDCI aims to reach this goal by providing a pipeline of high-quality services that starts with children at birth and continues with them through elementary school, middle school and high school. Their vision is to have all children and youth in the EDCI zone successfully graduate from high school, ready for college or a career. To learn more about this inspiring initiative, click here.
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Beginning to address social determinants of health
Most health disparities affect groups marginalized by race, socioeconomic status, neighborhood, geography and other life circumstances. People in these groups not only experience worse health but also tend to have less access to the social determinants or conditions (e.g., healthy food, good housing, good education, safe neighborhoods, freedom from racism and other forms of discrimination) that support health. The CDC has published a comprehensive report on how to address social determinants of health in communities, including nine examples of inspiring initiatives, ranging in size and budget, that are addressing this challenge in individual communities. To read the report, click here.
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LA Best Babies Network
The LA Best Babies Network is a comprehensive program working to improve the health and well-being of women and children in Los Angles. The Network is dedicated to achieving healthy pregnancies and births in Los Angeles County. Through the Network's trainings, technical assistance and advocacy, they work to unite perinatal providers and advocates across the County to increase access to quality perinatal care and inter-conception care, create a safety net of resources for at-risk families, create community driven forums to disseminate best practices and find solutions and advance policies that promote healthy deliveries. To learn more about LA Best Babies Network, click here.
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Looking for more resources on health equity?
The UNC Center for Maternal and Infant Health's website offers a wealth of information including toolkits, tools for getting the conversation about health equity started, and examples of equity work in action. Check it out at mombaby.org.
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Let us know - we welcome new bloggers any time!
What resources do you use to start the conversation about race and health equity in your community?
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