APHA Annual Meeting Reflection by M.S. Saint-Bienvil

My Reflection on the APHAAnnual Meeting by Marie Sonia Saint-Bienvil, MPH ‘18

             One American Public Health Association Annual Meeting session I attended was titled “Partnering with community: Addressing equity and health disparities through philanthropy”, and was presented by Craig Martinez, DrPH, MPH, Program Manager, The California Endowment; Noelle Melchizedek, Advocacy & Policy Partner, The Colorado Trust; C.J. Eisenbarth Hager, Director, Health Community Policies, Vitalyst Health Foundation, and Megan Armentrout, MSW, Incarnate Word Foundation. This segment of the APHA conference presents philanthropy as a tool to address equity and health disparities. Philanthropy serves three main purposes. First, philanthropy as relief, which means it operates on the principle of compassion to soothe human suffering. Second, philanthropy as improvement- it works on the principle of progress to help humans reach their full potential. Lastly, philanthropy as social reform - it functions on the principle of justice to resolve social problems. Each conferrer gave an overview of how her/his respective organization is working to tackle health disparities and promote equity. Although different in nature, all four organizations share a common element - community partnership.

The California Endowment's mission is to expand access to affordable, quality healthcare for underserved individuals and communities in addition to promoting fundamental improvements in the health status of all Californians. They operate on a two-steps process: the narrative change and bringing smart solutions in different communities through their 10-year $1 billion initiative, “Building Healthy Communities.” The goal of this program is to bring health to where people live, work, learn and play. The Colorado Trust is a health foundation whose mission is to end inequalities affecting racial, ethnic, low-income and other vulnerable populations. They believe everyone deserves fair and equal opportunities to achieve good health. Their presentation focused mainly on their advocacy works.

Vitalyst Health Foundation works to improve well-being in Arizona by tackling basic agents and broader problems that influence health. Its priorities are: Healthy Community Design, Access to care, Capacity Building, and Innovations & Collaborations. This foundation has completed a project called “Complete Streets,” which is a transportation policy that demands that streets to be designed in a way that allows users of all ages, and mobility to travel safely regardless of their means of transport. Lastly, the Incarnate Word Foundation, a religious based organization, operates as a community partner that joins forces with organizations and various community allies to reach common goals. They actively engage in the community by providing funds, convening, collaborating, representing, and educating.

It is very amazing to see how effective the programs effectuated by these organizations have been. Their success is due largely to the great involvement of community organizations and members. Funding alone cannot resolve the problems. Community members must take an active role in identifying, addressing health issues in their communities and taking appropriate actions to resolve them. I truly believe this is a practical way to tackle health equity to obtain lasting results.