No money. No quality childcare. No social or legal support. These big stressors plague many parents, and can spur domestic violence and child maltreatment, hampering a child’s early and future development. Fortunately, Project DULCE is testing a unique solution. DULCE adds a “family specialist” to a child’s pediatric healthcare team. The Family Specialist builds relationships of trust and respect with enrolled families and connects families to social services if they want ─ like food stamps, housing vouchers, and legal services ─ to reduce economic stress and prevent maltreatment. Public health advocates often talk about health and quality of life in an “upstream-downstream” fashion. They want to highlight the importance of prevention and the influence of ...
Adult obesity rates reached 35% in at least 7 states and saw increases in 31 states across the U.S. from 2012-2017, while no significant drops in obesity rates were seen in any state, over the last year. These are the latest findings from a report from the Trust for America's Health and The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The report developed using data from the CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey (BRFSS) goes on to highlight how adult obesity continued to rise in at least 6 states: Iowa, Massachusetts, Ohio, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, and South Carolina, between 2016-2017. In the case of Iowa and Oklahoma, this is the first time these states reach the 35% obesity threshold. The states with the highest levels of obesity by rank are: #1- West Virginia ...
“Affordable living” is a myth for many people in San Antonio, Texas (63.6% Latino). More than half of people here don’t make the $18 an hour needed to afford the median apartment rent. Population and job growth outpace housing by 2.3 to 1. Affordable housing is lacking. Evictions nearly doubled between 2013 and 2016. This threatens economic opportunity and health for many Latino families. That’s why the Mayor’s Housing Policy Task Force’s new report urges the San Antonio City Council to budget for new housing jobs, triple city spending on affordable housing production and rehabilitation, and even change the city’s charter to create new ways to pay for more affordable housing. “For us to make a significant impact, it’s going to require a long view and ...
In Columbus, Ohio (5.8% Latino), the diverse Southern Orchards neighborhood suffers racism, a lack of affordable housing, economic segregation, violent crime, poverty, and expensive medical use. That’s why the whole neighborhood has become a hospital’s “patient.” Nationwide Children’s Hospital saw “unsafe conditions” as their patient’s top symptom. They diagnosed their patient with “unstable housing,” which is known to cause many economic, social, and health hardships, especially for Latinos and other people of color. The hospital prescribed a “housing intervention” and spent the past 10 years revitalizing Columbus’ South Side and Southern Orchards neighborhood through its Healthy Neighborhoods Healthy Families (HNHF) partnership with faith, community, ...
Latino and black children are more likely to die of numerous childhood cancers than their white counterparts, NPR reports on a new study in the journal Cancer. Latinos also are more likely to receive a cancer diagnoses in later, less curable cancer stages. Socioeconomic status plays an enormous role in childhood cancer survival as well. Latino and black children are more likely to live in areas of poverty, which subjects them to persistent racism and institutional bias. "We know that there are some economic differences that are closely tied to race and ethnicity," Rebecca Kehm, lead author of the study, told NPR. "I wanted to show that there are other factors at play than the genetic component."
The Study: Social Class & Disparities
Cancer is the leading cause of death ...
Denver's lack of affordable housing is reaching crisis level. Teachers, police officers, and health care workers were getting "priced out of a city with a glut of quality housing, something many U.S. communities experience today," Next City reports. A group of finance and equity specialists, deal-makers, and policy folks wanted to help. They created a first-of-its-kind initiative called LIVE Denver (Lower Income Voucher Equity). The program, with $1.2 million in city funding, will bring hundreds of 21,000 brand-new, vacant apartment units within financial reach of severely rent-burdened families. Will it help solve the affordable housing crisis in Denver and elsewhere?
Affordable Housing and Health
Access to affordable, safe housing is a priority for maintaining good ...
Sonja Trauss hated her commute. Driving her car a long way from home to her job as a math teacher was unproductive, wasted time. It was expensive. It was stressful, harming her physical and mental health. And it was dangerous. Yet this was Trauss’ reality with no affordable housing near her job. But Trauss grew tired of paying so much time, money, and stress to drive a car because of a shortage of affordable housing in Marin County (16.1% Latino) in California’s San Francisco Bay Area. She decided to make a stand. Trauss formed a group to push for more affordable housing and challenged developers, decision-makers, and opposition to affordable housing in this region. Did it work?
Transportation Costs Matter for Affordable Housing
Behind housework, the daily car ...
Health starts and is sustained in the communities we live, work, and play. However, in many places, affordable housing is not available, subjecting families to unstable, inferior, and crowded housing while isolating them in areas with limited access to education and employment opportunities. This reduces their ability to stay healthy. It increases their risk of physical and mental health issues. Achieving and maintaining good health requires the efforts of urban and transportation planners, housing experts, elected leaders, educators, and many more. UPDATE: View a recap of this Tweetchat on Wakelet. Use #SaludTues on August 21, 2018, to tweet about why affordable housing matters for health, and what you can do to create healthier places to live! WHAT: #SaludTues ...
Only 1 in 2 big U.S. localities—500,000 or more people—have a local board of health, compared to over eight in ten small localities—less than 50,000 people. That means half our big cities miss out on public input on important health decisions. Half our big cities do not connect their local health departments to the community they serve or other public officials. Here are some benefits of having a local board of health for your city-and for you.
What a Local Board of Health Does
A local board of health provides community oversight and guidance for local health departments. They help set public health priorities for communities. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the top ten responsibilities of local boards of health are: Review public health ...
