Dear Invest Health city team members and friends,
Is it really December already? Many might say, yes, please, and look forward to closing the book on 2020. But in reflection, this year has been one of change, growth, sorrow…and hope. And yet, the Invest Health journey continues, as we look forward to hearing stories of inspiration and perseverance from the 50-city learning community in 2021, with small to mid-sized cities demonstrating innovation in advancing health equity and wellbeing across the nation.
There’s never been a more pressing time for cross-sector collaboration and as we’ve learned over time, Invest Health has helped to catalyze the building of trusted relationships across sectors - relationships that are sometimes tested, but also adapt and strengthen. We are particularly eager to hear about how community voice is prioritized and valued in response to COVID-19. In a recent Shelterforce article on how the pandemic has affected health care and community development partnerships, Invest Health team members from Missoula and Greensboro shared how relationships established as partners and with local residents were instrumental to understanding and meeting community needs.
We’ll close the year sharing our usual array of conference and resource information below, but also feeling the weight of the moment, knowing that throughout the year partnerships have been tested and deepened, mission delivery is holding even more meaning, and existing inequities have the attention of a much broader audience. Let’s look to 2021 with a commitment to continue connecting, learning and building more equitable communities.
In partnership,
Jennifer Fassbender and the Invest Health Program Team
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Opportunities
[Funding] DASH Mentor 3.0 Program Funding Opportunity
Data Across Sectors for Health (DASH) is launching the third round of funding for local multi-sector collaborations who are seeking to build new partnerships, engage stakeholders and community members, or plan a collaborative data-sharing project. The DASH Mentor Program provides one-on-one coaching from experienced DASH Mentors and supports participation in various peer-to-peer learning opportunities. Each selected Mentee team organization is eligible to receive up to $10,000 for participation, with most awards at $5,000. To join for an informational webinar on Wednesday, December 16, 2020, click here. Application submissions will be accepted between December 7, 2020 - January 22, 2021.
[Funding] Improving Social Determinants of Health – Getting Further Faster
The Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) and National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) are committed to the promotion of health equity and the elimination of health inequities. The purpose of this funding opportunity is to conduct a retrospective evaluation of strategies that advance health equity and improve chronic disease conditions by addressing the social determinants of health (SDoH). This effort will fund up to fifty (50) community multi-sector partnerships/coalitions with demonstrated success implementing strategies in one or more of five SDoH domains: the built environment, clinical-community linkages, food insecurity, social connectedness, and tobacco-free policies. The project will evaluate and assess the impact of the implemented SDoH strategies and highlight successes and lessons learned. Proposal are due by Tuesday, December 8, 2020 at 5:00pm EST. To apply, click here.
[Conference] All In National Virtual Meeting 2020
Join  All In on December 8-10, 2020 for the 4th Annual All In: Data for Community Health National VIRTUAL Meeting. This year’s themes include: examining work through the lens of racial justice and health equity; incorporating community voice and leadership; and unpacking the nuts and bolts of data sharing. The meeting will feature inspirational speakers including Dr. Ruha Benjamin to speak on the compelling issues facing our communities, practitioners and residents who will share their stories, tools and practical lessons; and interactive opportunities to share your experience tackling common challenges as they relate to multi-sector community-based data sharing projects focused on health, well-being, and equity. Learn more and register here.
[Conference] Social Determinants of Health Symposium
The Social Determinants of Health Symposium, hosted by Modern Healthcare, will take place on December 8, 2020. Experts will discuss the inseparable relationship between the social determinants of health and health outcomes. Healthcare industry leaders will provide challenges and successes, best practices, and strategies to effectively advance community health. The goal of this event is to address the systemic inequities that prevent communities from experiencing good health. Together, providers can develop effective strategies and innovative solutions, leveraging purchasing, hiring, and investing, to benefit the communities they serve. To register, click here.
[Webinar Recording] COVID-19 Recovery in Small and Midsize Cities
Robert Wood Johnson Foundation hosted a webinar on COVID-19 recovery in small to mid-sized cities. This event featured Akilah Watkins-Butler from the Center for Community Progress, who spoke at Invest Health's Health.Equity.Capital convening in Atlanta in November 2018. Watch the recording here.
[Webinar Recording] Promoting Health Through Housing Quality: Exploring Roles for Healthcare and Housing
At the second session of the Health and Housing series by Enterprise Community Partners on November 17, Megan Sandel, MD, associate professor of pediatrics at the Boston University School of Medicine discussed needs around housing quality in the U.S. and how they are linked to adverse health outcomes and increased health care utilization and costs. Invest Health Greensboro team member Josie Williams, Executive Director for the Greensboro Housing Coalition explored the roles residents, the health care sector, and the housing sector can play through targeted programs, systems or policy to improve health through housing conditions. To watch the recording, click here.
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Resources
Forming Partnerships with Public Health Departments: Parts 1 & 2
The Colorad o State Department of Health (Health Equity Department) realized early that they needed to create a response team to focus on racial equity. It was clear then, and still is, that the virus was disproportionately harming people of color. Department staff convened a team of grassroots leaders and community organizers, almost all people of color, ensuring they had representation from rural, Native, queer, and disabled communities. The team met weekly to develop recommendations focused not just on stopping the spread of COVID-19, but also on building an equitable recovery and embedding racial equity into the state’s emergency response system. How was the health department able to pull these partners together so quickly? Since 2007, the Office of Health Equity has been building collaborative partnerships with community organizers to address the root causes of health through its advisory commission and grant programs. To read about their work in this two part series, click here (for Part 1) and here (for Part 2).
Health Care and Community Development Partnerships in the Time of COVID-19
This year health care institutions and community development organizations that focus on low-income communities’ social determinants of health, have been brought to the forefront due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Suddenly, hospitals and other health care institutions had to radically shift resources to treat this new illness. Patients and doctors alike canceled elective procedures, vastly reducing hospital revenues. At the same time, low-income communities and people of color were disproportionately hard-hit by the virus, laying bare the exact inequities these programs have been aiming to address. The racial justice protests that erupted this summer after George Floyd’s killing by police have further underscored the depth of structural inequalities in this country. To read more, including insights from Invest Health Missoula and Greensboro city team members, click here.
Health System Investments in Housing: A Development Guide
This guidebook, cre ated by Corporation for Supportive Housing (CSH), explores why and how health systems and hospitals can and should invest in supportive and affordable housing. Part One is intended to help health professionals understand what investing in housing looks like and how it can benefit the local community. By examining the key benefits of investing in housing and different examples of investment opportunities across the country, health professionals will be able to make the case for addressing housing as an essential social determinant of health. Part Two is a 101 Level Guide to Housing Finance and Development for health partners motivated to learn more about the process and get step-by-step instruction on the “how,” this section covers the steps needed to put you in the position to take concrete action. To access the guide, click here. In addition, you can read an article from Shelterforce that goes in-depth on the growing number of hospitals and health systems, including members of Healthcare Anchor Network (HAN), who are using their economic resources and devoting a small portion of their investment portfolio to accelerate, expand, and focus on affordable housing, healthy food financing, child development, and small business development in communities where health inequities are concentrated.
What Would It Take to Overcome the Damaging Effects of Structural Racism and Ensure a More Equitable Future?
For most of its history, the United States excluded people of color from its main pathways of opportunity and upward mobility, causing deep inequities across many aspects of life. But we can imagine a more equitable future in which structural racism—the policies, programs, and institutional practices that generated inequitable outcomes—and its consequences are remedied. Looking ahead, disruptive forces—like technological innovation, increasingly frequent and severe climate events, and global economic pressures—could further widen today’s equity gaps. And while many Americans are excited and proud about the demographic changes making our nation more diverse, some fear they may be losing familiar positions of power, social roles, and ways of life. To read the full report, click here. In addition, the Center for Community Investment just released a new report, “COVID-19, Structural Racism, and Community Investment Notes Toward a Just Recovery”. To read the report, click here.
City Types for Improving Health and Equity in Small and Midsize Cities
America’s small and  midsize cities face many of the same health disparities that larger cities do. Their challenges don’t get the same attention or resources, yet these cities—more than 700 of them—are home to far more people. With support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, City Health Dashboard created the new City Types framework that categorized 719 cities – those with populations of 50,000 to 500,000 - into ten discrete City Types based on population, commuting patterns, poverty, and more. The goal is to help city leaders and their partners understand how health disparities in their communities are driven by social factors like income inequality and rent burden. A full report, titled “City Types for Improving Health and Equity: Understanding America’s Small and Midsize Cities” describes the City Types in greater detail, as well as what was learned by analyzing the social drivers of health within and across these types. To explore the dashboard and access the report, click here.
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City Team News
Akron, OH:  The Invest Health Akron team partnered with community members to build a new playground at Adams Park as part of an effort to revitalize Akron’s Middlebury neighborhood. The park was created through the Healthier Communities program, that Invest Health Akron city team members participate in, and partnership with Summa Health, the Akron Health Department, and the Akron Parks Collaborative. To watch the video, click here.
Richmond, VA:  Invest Health Richmond team members have been integral in establishing a grocery store in partnership with healthcare anchors in the Church Hill neighborhood of East Richmond. The Market@25th, is part of a larger $40 million development that includes a Virginia Commonwealth University-sponsored health hub, 54 affordable apartments, a Boys and Girls Club, and the Kitchens at Reynolds, a culinary school that is housed at the nearby community college. This Market is modeled after a similar development in Toledo in partnership with the Social Determinants Institute with Promedica. To learn more, click here.
Keep sharing updates on your work, including special events and news media pieces to us using this online FORM. We look forward to hearing from you and the notable news your Invest Health city team is creating!
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