Community members participate in a CPR training coordinated by Kathy Arriola, Coordinator of Equity in Health, and Rubi Mar, Assistant Coordinator of Equity in Health.

Paula Swepson, Executive Director of West Marion Inc., leads a community meeting.

Rubi Mar and Kathy Arriola on the job during Covid-response efforts.

 

Robert Wood Johnson

Equity in Health for Black & Brown Communities

Mission:

Engage and listen to the voices of directly impacted communities, look for patterns, engage partners, and co-create locally tailored action plans that support the needs of communities of color and their families when receiving medical attention.

Vision:

Healthcare settings have more culturally informed physical, mental, and behavioral health policies and practices and have adopted an equity lens to better serve people of color.

Purpose of Program:

Partner with structurally excluded communities and local healthcare system leaders to reduce racial disparities that exist in the quality of care received by communities of color and develop inclusive care delivery models to advance health equity for all.

Goals:

  • Black and Brown communities openly and honestly share their experiences in receiving health care services from our local hospital and healthcare system as a whole.

  • Grassroots and the healthcare system work together to co-create culturally informed health policies that are more inclusive and reflective of Black and Brown communities.

  • Grassroots leaders and healthcare system staff work together to co-create culturally informed health care policies that support the needs of communities of color and their families.

Impacts:

We will use this grant to build relationships between structurally excluded communities and healthcare system leaders to name these challenges, identify areas for immediate improvements, and advocate for policy changes that create more culturally appropriate care for Black and Brown patients and their families.

Team: