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You can help your community be healthier and more fair. Have you ever thought about why some people have trouble getting good health care or safe homes? Everyone can help, no matter who they are. Here are some facts to know:
In 2023, Black babies died at a rate of 10.9 for every 1,000 live births. This was more than twice the rate for White babies.
American Indian and Alaska Native babies also had high death rates.
Many people from Hispanic, Black, Asian, and Native groups do not have a regular doctor. They sometimes skip doctor visits because it costs too much.
When you help, you make these problems smaller. Working together in your community can make health equity better for all.
Key Takeaways
Learn about health disparities in your area. Find out which groups have more health problems. Use facts and numbers to help you decide what to do.
Listen to people in your community. Talk with local residents to earn their trust. Work together to make health programs that help them.
Make strong partnerships. Work with local groups and teams. Solve health problems together and share what you have.
Speak up for fair health rules. Tell stories and work with the community. Ask for changes that help everyone get good health.
Help with community programs. Join or start projects that make health care easier to get. Work on things that affect health in your area.
Know Your Community
Identify Disparities
Start by looking for health differences in your area. Some groups have more health problems than others. People in rural places often cannot see doctors as easily. Here are some examples:
In rural places, 26% of adults smoke. In cities, only 23% smoke.
People in rural areas do not get checked for chronic diseases as much.
About 19% of rural people under 65 do not have health insurance. In cities, it is 16%.
There are not as many doctors in rural areas, but many people live there.
More rural youth smoke than city youth.
More people die in rural areas than in cities, especially from heart disease and cancer.
These facts show why it matters where people live and their backgrounds when working for health equity.
Community Data
You can use data to learn what your community needs. Demographic and socioeconomic data help you find where there are gaps. These numbers show how things like race, income, education, and where people live affect health. For example, people born into poverty often stay poor, which can cause bad health for a long time.
Tip: Tools like the Social Vulnerability Index and the Neighborhood Atlas can help you find places that need more help. These tools use facts about income, education, jobs, and housing to show where help is needed most.
When you use data from many places, you make better choices for your community.
Listen to Voices
You can learn a lot by listening to people in your community, especially those who are not always heard. Try these ideas:
Use equity-centered design thinking to include everyone in talks.
Build trust by making real partnerships.
Ask for open and honest talks about health problems.
When you listen to community voices, you make better plans and programs. People feel important, and you make stronger groups. Health equity action plans work best when everyone can share their ideas.
Build Partnerships
Local Organizations
You can help by working with local groups. These groups know your area well. They often help people who need it most. When you pick partners, see if they include healthcare and community groups. They should care about the health needs you see. They should use ideas that work. The table below shows what to look for in a partner:
Description | |
|---|---|
Composition of Collaboratives | At least one healthcare or insurance group and one community or social service group. |
Focus Areas | Address health problems found in your community data. |
Evidence-Based Strategies | Use proven or promising practices. |
Equitable Engagement | Include everyone and address power differences. |
Technology-Enabled Solutions | Use technology to reach more people. |
Plans for Sustainability | Plan for long-term success. |
Some good partnerships are hospitals working with colleges. Health departments can work with grocery stores. City programs can bring health care to parks. In Cleveland, hospitals and colleges worked together to help jobs and health. In Los Angeles, city groups made Park After Dark. This made parks safer and gave health care.
Coalitions
Coalitions are groups that join to fix health problems. You can join or help start a coalition in your area. These groups work best when everyone has the same goal. They need to trust each other. Coalitions help your community find answers and learn new skills. Here are some tips for strong coalitions:
Build trust and good relationships.
Make clear goals as a group.
Use rules to help guide the group.
Leaders should support the group’s mission.
Let everyone take part.
Bring in people from many backgrounds.
Work with other groups.
Keep the group together and excited.
If you join a coalition, you help health equity work last longer and reach more people.
Stakeholders
Stakeholders are people or groups who care about health. You should include healthcare workers, community groups, government, and local people. Each has a special job:
Stakeholder Type | |
|---|---|
Healthcare Providers | Give care, teach about health, and help those who need it most. |
Community Organizations | Offer services, speak up for change, and support those in need. |
Government Agencies | Make policies, give money, and support projects with partners. |
Individuals from Communities | Share ideas, help make decisions, and build community power. |
When you include many stakeholders, you get more ideas and help. People feel heard and want to help make changes that last.
Take Action
Policy Advocacy
You can help by asking for fair health rules. Policy advocacy means you try to change laws to help everyone be healthier. Here are some ways you can do this: 1. Tell stories and facts about health in your area. 2. Work with others to decide what should change. 3. Use news and events to get people to join in.
Most states now care about health equity. They make groups to fix health gaps and ask people for ideas. You can help by giving your thoughts or joining projects. When you work with others, you help make strong support for better health.
Strategy | Description |
|---|---|
Community Engagement | Bring in local voices to shape health messages and plans. |
Cross-Sector Collaboration | Partner with schools, clinics, and other groups to solve health problems. |
Tailored Messaging | Use words and stories that fit your community’s values. |
Capacity Building | Help health workers learn new skills to speak up for health equity. |
Infrastructure Rebuilding | Support funding and repairs for clinics and health programs. |
Tip: You can help by going to meetings, writing letters, or telling your story to leaders. Every voice is important.
Recent changes in rules have helped people. Medicaid expansion helped more people get health insurance. Now, only about 8%-10% of people in the U.S. do not have insurance. More people can see doctors, get cancer checks, and treat diseases like diabetes and high blood pressure.
Community Programs
You can join or start programs to help people be healthier. Community programs work best when they listen to what people need and include everyone. Here are some examples of programs that made a big difference:
Program Name | Location | Target Population | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|
REACH Program | DeKalb County, GA | African Americans | 34% more people eat fruits and vegetables |
Creighton University REACH | Omaha, NE | Low-income neighborhoods | Safer places for exercise |
Produce Prescription Program | Cuyahoga County, OH | Patients with hypertension | Better nutrition and affordable produce |
Toiyabe Indian Health Project | Various tribes | American Indians | More healthy foods from community gardens |
Boston Children’s Hospital Initiative | Massachusetts | Children with asthma | 79% fewer hospital stays for asthma |
Greater Lawrence Family Health Center | Merrimack Valley, MA | Latino patients with diabetes | 71.9% lower cholesterol levels |
South Eastern African American Center | South Carolina | African Americans with diabetes | 44% fewer diabetes-related amputations |
You can help by joining these programs or starting your own. When you work with others, you help your community eat better, move more, and get care for diseases. Community-based research lets people fix their own health problems. You can also help by sharing ideas with leaders and making sure everyone can join.
Note: Programs work best when you listen to what people need and include everyone, especially those who face the biggest health gaps.
Social Determinants
You can help fix the main causes of health problems. Social determinants are things like housing, school, jobs, and where people live. These things shape health for everyone. Here are some facts: – Social determinants include where you are born, grow, live, work, and age. – Your family’s money, your school, and your neighborhood affect your health. – Kids in families with less education often live in unsafe homes and have fewer places to play.
You can help by working to make housing better, support good schools, and help people find jobs. You can also fight racism and unfair treatment. These steps help everyone have a fair chance at good health.
Callout: There is an 18-year difference in life span between rich and poor countries. In Africa, young kids die much more often than in Europe. Fixing social determinants can save lives.
To make real change, use a community health equity action plan. Here are key steps: 1. Help staff and volunteers speak up for patients. 2. Focus on care that treats everyone fairly. 3. Measure your progress and share what you find. 4. Use surveys to learn what works and what needs to change.
When you take action, you help build a stronger, healthier community. Every step you take brings us closer to health equity for all.
Health Equity Awareness
Events
You can help people learn by joining community events. These events teach about health problems and let people share ideas. Community-led projects help groups that are not always heard. When you talk with others, you help people use their skills to fix problems. Events also help people work together for public health equity.
Training public health workers helps them serve more people.
Events let everyone share stories and build trust.
Tip: Listen to people who have faced health inequities. Their stories help find better answers.
Resources
You can use different resources to learn and teach about health equity. These tools help you understand health problems and ways to help. The table below shows some useful resources:
Resource | Description |
|---|---|
How Improving Health Literacy Can Advance Health Equity | Explains why health literacy is important for all. |
Health Equity Resource Library | Gives guides and facts about health equity. |
Cliff Analogy of Health | Shows how social conditions change health. |
Health equity: Make it your business | Short videos explain health inequities. |
Spent | A web game shows how low-wage jobs affect families. |
Effective communication | Tips for talking about health equity and social issues. |
Creating the Healthiest Nation: Health and Educational Equity | Fact sheet on improving health and education together. |
Social Media
You can use social media to share health equity messages with many people. Social media helps you reach groups who may not get news in other ways. You can make posts in different languages and use pictures to explain ideas. Working with community groups helps your messages reach more people.
Strategy | Description |
|---|---|
Targeted Outreach | Share messages with certain groups, like low-income families. |
Language Accessibility | Use many languages so everyone can join in. |
Health Literacy | Use easy words and pictures to help people understand. |
Address Digital Divide | Help people get technology and learn to use it. |
Collaborate with Community Organizations | Work with local groups to share your message. |
Note: Working with others on social media helps more people learn about health equity and join in.
Track Progress
Set Goals
You need to have clear goals to make real change. Pick goals that you can measure. Use frameworks to help you plan your work. The Health Equity Measurement Framework (HEMF) helps you look at social factors that affect health. NCQA’s Measurement Framework for Medicaid shows ways to track fair care in Medicaid. These tools help you focus on what is most important.
Framework | Description | Strengths |
|---|---|---|
Health Equity Measurement Framework (HEMF) | Measures social inequities in health and includes social determinants of health. | Integrates many social factors and shows where to act. |
NCQA’s Measurement Framework for Medicaid | Promotes health equity in Medicaid, focusing on accountability. | Standardizes measurement and covers many areas of care. |
Pick goals that fit what your community needs. Make sure everyone knows what you want to do.
Measure Outcomes
You need to check your progress to see if your work helps. Use different metrics to see how you are doing. Patient outcome metrics show if health gaps are getting smaller. Access metrics tell you if more people can get care. Workforce metrics help you see if your staff looks like your community. Training metrics show if your team learns about health equity.
Metric Type | Description |
|---|---|
Patient Outcome Metrics | Compare outcomes across groups to find gaps. |
Access Metrics | Track who gets preventive and specialty care. |
Workforce Metrics | Check staff and leadership diversity. |
Training Metrics | Monitor health equity training completion. |
You can use advanced data analytics to put these measures together. The PROGRESS-Plus framework helps you look at equity in many ways.
Adapt
You should change your plans when you see what works and what does not. Make changes as a team. Include people from your community in every step. Use cultural adaptation to make programs fit local needs. Change your plan if you find new problems. Always check if your changes help close health gaps.
Use a formal process to help guide changes.
Involve many people to make better choices.
Treat adaptation as an important part of your plan.
Tip: When you change your plan based on what you learn, you help everyone get closer to health equity.
You can help your community be healthier and more fair. First, learn about health problems in your area. Next, work with others and take action. Every small step is important. Projects like the NU-BIG project show teamwork brings real change:
Getting people involved helps health programs last.
Working together helps people make healthy choices.
Sticking with it makes health better for all.
Keep trying and keep learning new things. What you do helps everyone have a fair chance at good health. 🌟
FAQ
What is health equity?
Health equity means everyone gets a fair chance to be healthy. You help by making sure people have what they need, like good doctors, safe homes, and healthy food.
How can you find health gaps in your community?
You look at data from local health departments, schools, and surveys. You listen to people’s stories. You notice which groups have more health problems or less access to care.
Who should you work with to improve health equity?
You work with hospitals, schools, local groups, and government agencies. You also include people from your community. Everyone brings different ideas and skills.
What actions make the biggest difference?
You support fair rules, join community programs, and help fix things like housing and jobs. You speak up for people who need help. Every small step matters.
How do you know if your work helps?
You set clear goals and measure results. You check if more people get care and if health gaps shrink. You ask for feedback and change your plan when needed.
