Community Inclusion

The Center for Health Care Strategies, with support from the New York Health Foundation and in partnership with ATW Health Solutions, assisted seven New York-based health care organizations in piloting strategies for engaging patients of color to advance health equity. This CHCS brief outlines considerations for health care organizations in developing patient engagement strategies, including: (1) building trust with patient partners over time; (2) tailoring outreach strategies; (3) using-trauma-informed approaches; (4) engaging patients in data use; and (5) approaching engagement with humility.

Community Care Corps has developed a new publication highlighting the accomplishments of their 2021-2022 grantees. Each grantee snapshot includes a program overview highlighting key efforts, partners and future directions. Returning grantees applied lessons learned from year one to enhance their volunteer service models while first-time grantees launched creative new volunteer program models to respond to the changing needs of their communities.

The Housing and Services Resource Center was created for people who work in the space of housing resources and homelessness services, behavioral and mental health services, independent living services and other supportive services. The Center is part of a partnership between the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development to expand affordable housing, improve home and community-based services, and address bias in America's long-term care system.

In this blog post, Jill Jacobs, Commissioner on Disabilities at ACL, reflects on Developmental Disabilites (DD) Awareness month by highlighting recent innovations in ACL's DD programs, and the Administration on Disabilities (AOD) goals for the year ahead. AOD's upcoming priorities include continuing to address the DSP workforce crisis, investing in projects to advance equity and reach people with disabilities at the intersections of identity, and continuing to support individuals with both DD and mental health diagnoses. The blog post also shares experiences with disability that the new Commissioner brings to her role.

A 2020 study, developed and led by people with disabilities, examined member engagement and outcomes in the Massachusetts One Care Program, which provides comprehensive, integrated, coordinated care for dually eligible individuals under 65. The Better Care Playbook spoke with Dennis Heaphy, MPH, MEd, MDiv, a policy analyst and health justice advocate at the Massachusetts Disability Policy Consortium and a One Care member, to learn more about the findings of the One Care study. This blog post highlights the impact of engaging members with disabilities in care planning and strategies that health systems and payers can use to advance health equity through improved engagement with people with disabilities.

The National Paralysis Resource Center has launched a new partnership with Kakana, an accessible fitness platform, to offer free adaptive fitness opportunities to people living with paralysis. Kakana is designed to provide inclusive and accessible workouts for individuals of all abilities and includes fitness instructors with disabilities to guide the sessions.

To celebrate Black History Month and National Caregivers Day, NCLER interviewed Dr. Donna Benton of the University of Southern California’s Leonard Davis School of Gerontology. During the interview, Dr. Benton discussed her work supporting Black caregivers, the importance of caregiving in the Black community, and strategies for advocates to support their Black older adult clients. She also spoke about the need for legal assistance in advance planning and addressing housing scams in the Black community.

Many states are directing focus toward achieving racial health equity as a key priority within their Medicaid programs and managed care contracts. This blog post discusses the importance of equitable access to high-quality and comprehensive primary care and the structural and interpersonal racism that creates barriers within health systems. The post explores how states can advance more equitable primary care by building on the patient-centered medical home (PCMH) framework.

The National Paralysis Resource Center has launched a virtual support group program for people living with paralysis and their family members or caregivers. The support groups provide an opportunity for members to connect with eachother to gain support, insight, and guidance. The meetings are led by mental health professionals and welcome disucssion about any issues or concerns members are experiencing and topics they want to learn about. Two meetings are offered every month for people living with paraplegia, quadriplegia, and family members or caregivers.

The White House Office of Science and Technology Policy (OSTP) has launched the Community Connected Health Initiative, with the intention of integrating innovation, technology, and human connection to support communities in achieving better health. OSTP released a Request for Information (RFI) on Strengthening Community Health Through Technology. This RFI is open to all stakeholders and will likely remain open until March 31, 2022.