Communities in Action
Telemedicine connects rural patients with specialty care
In rural South Dakota, patients need specialty services but specialists have traditionally been few and far between. When patients needed immediate or intensive services, local providers had few team members to back them up and little access to specialist assistance. Now with Avera Health’s eCARE services, primary and long-term care providers can access urgent care services and consult with...
Literacy Network Improves Adults’ Health Care Knowledge in WI
Literacy skills are a key predictor of an individual’s health status. After attending the 2009 Health Literacy Summit in Madison, WI, Literacy Network of Dane County developed English for Health, an award-winning program that helps adults with low literacy learn about good...
Focusing on food equity priorities in Joplin, MO
Joplin, Missouri is a place of hope. Three years after an EF5 multiple-vortex tornado cut a one mile swath through the city, the area is being reborn through the collaborative efforts of hundreds of organizations and thousands of volunteers who have proven resilient and committed. However, in spite of many outreach efforts, many families in the Joplin area are experiencing food insecurity. In...
Santa Cruz County Coalition Addresses Underage Drinking
Bringing Plans to Life
A plan for action is a roadmap for achieving your goals. It comes to life when it includes clear, measurable goals, timelines, and accountabilities for accomplishing the work. With many multi-sector workgroups and successful programs and policy wins across several health focus areas, the Greater Flint Health Coalition (GFHC) had a proven track record for developing strategic action plans that...
Changing the Narrative in Minnesota
Through its “Ban the Box” campaign the Justice4All Program, run by TakeAction Minnesota, tackled our nation’s racial jobs disparity head on. For three years, Justice4All led an ultimately successful campaign for “Ban the Box” policies preventing employers from asking job applicants about criminal history on an initial employment application. Because African Americans and Latinos are arrested,...
Historygram Helps Rockingham County Build on Best of Past
There is a sense of loss in Rockingham County, NC. Historically, the community had a robust economy that was largely built on the textile and tobacco industries. In the mid-90s, Rockingham lost their tobacco industry and not long after that lost their textile industry. “We went from being a wealthy county to being a poor county very quickly...
Partners in Salt Lake County Centralize Social Services
In low income communities in Salt Lake, Davis, and Summit Counties, United Way and its partners are answering the multiple challenges of poverty with multiple coordinated services in convenient community hubs. Through Promise Partnerships, community stakeholders set goals, share data and results, and align...
Toledo Launches Universal School Breakfast Program
Community Engages in San Bernardino County, CA, Assessment
In San Bernardino County, CA, the Community Vital Signs initiative is a community-driven effort that uses data to set priorities for action to improve the health and wellness of the county. To understand the county’s needs and resources, the Community Vital Signs initiative pulled together 34 indicators on a range of issues including health, education, the economy, and the environment. To set...