"Now, more than ever, broadband Internet access (BIA) must be recognized as a social determinant of health. Disparities in access should be treated as a public health issue because they affect the health of people and communities where they live, learn, work and play. The COVID-19 pandemic demonstrates that lack of BIA influences each of the six social determinant of health domains defined by the American Medical Association. It also affects an additional domain, which is particularly...

The source of what the philosopher Immanuel Kant called “the moral law within” may be mysterious, but its role in the social order is not. In any nation short of dictatorship some form of moral compact, implicit or explicit, should be the basis of a just society. Without a common sense of what is “right,” groups fracture and the fragments wander. Science and knowledge can guide action; they do not cause action. No scientific doubt exists that, mostly, circumstances outside health care...

The National Organization of State Offices of Rural Health sets aside the third Thursday of every November to celebrate National Rural Health Day. National Rural Health Day is an opportunity to “Celebrate the Power of Rural” by honoring the selfless, community-minded, “can do” spirit that prevails in rural America, gives us a chance to bring to light the unique healthcare challenges that rural citizens face, and showcase the efforts of rural healthcare providers, State Offices of Rural...

To answer your first question, ELI5 is text lingo for 'explain like I'm five' - a way to break down often complex topics into digestible bits. This post will introduce the Social Determinants of Health and help to ELI5 the topic.

It makes me think about the health impact pyramid. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2836340/ We can spend countless hours and immense effort trying to coax people to change behavior when we might be able to make a greater impact through a focus on changing the context in which people live, learn, work, and play. Thanks for making this so simple to understand!

It also means being courageous in communities where we can push the envelope in presenting new ideas. And to recognize that our Extension work is a both / and rather than an either / or in terms of direct education and the public health approach of policy, systems, environments.

TL;DR: The social determinants of health are gaining the attention on the hill, there is bipartisan support, and there is strong hope that the 117th Congress and the Biden-Harris administration will make progress – particularly regarding health equity. The main driving factor…money.

Thanks for summarizing the information shared in the briefing!

This is encouraging, thank you for sharing. I work in transportation education at Cornell Cooperative Extension in Tompkins County, New York. Sometimes people know what they need to do to improve their health, but they have no reasonable way to get to their doctor's appointments, or to physical therapy, or even to the pharmacy.

I taught a course titled Integrating Public Health and Clinical Systems. There is of course no standard text book for such a topic, but I found a great compendium of essays from the deBeaumont Foundation called the Practical Playbook for Integrating Public Health and Primary Care. The social determinants of health are at the heart of connecting the two sectors. The second edition of this book talks about developing multisector partnerships. https://www.debeaumont.org/pro.../practical-playbook/

Thank you! What great sets of questions to assist in a deeper understanding.

Many years ago, I participated in a book study of A Framework for Understanding Poverty , by Dr. Ruby Payne. While her work has sometimes been criticized for being a framework using a white, middle-class lens of the issue, it garnered significant traction is raising awareness and providing for conversations about poverty across many sectors, professions, and communities. Your ELI5 article stirs up many of the same opportunities. It is hard for an individual to look at things from another...

As Extension professionals working with a variety of audiences it is crucial that we take a good, hard look at our broccoli. That's not a typo; read on to see what I'm talking about!

The focus of the November EXCITE Spotlight session was utilizing Social Media in our Vaccine Education project. Teams shared resources, success stories, and difficulties of using social media to share their project messages and reach their audiences. As part of the presentation, The College of Menominee Nation was highlighted for the significant progress made in their projects goals after launching social media campaigns to reach their target audience. The College of Menominee Nation is a...

Excellent to see this - Extension is often uniquely and perfectly placed to act as a 'backbone' organization in Collective Impact initiatives.

Throughout our Extension careers, most all of us have been introduced to a variety of readings that include lists of the characteristics associated with great leaders. On those lists are such things as humility, trust, and vision. But a recent article in the Stanford Social Innovation Review by Jacqueline Novogratz and Anne Welsh McNulty identifies a less commonly mentioned characteristic that may be more important that any. "We see moral courage as the single most important attribute that...

Join OneOp on Tuesday, March 7, 2023 at 11:00 AM ET as we provide important information about the basics of the Supplemental Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) and Supplemental Security Income (SSI) programs and the application process. RSVP to join at: Social Security Benefits in 2023 . According to the Social Security Administration (SSA) approximately 70 million Americans will see an 8.7% increase in their Social Security benefits and SSI payments in 2023. On average, Social Security...

Thanks for making this announcement through Connect Extension! Looks like a great session.

Cooperative Extension is uniquely positioned to be a key leader in advancing community-based initiatives aimed at tackling health inequities in underserved communities. In 2021, the Extension Committee on Operations and Policy (ECOP) adopted Cooperative Extension’s National Framework for Health Equity & Well-being (Framework) that articulates a vision for this work. Advancing health equity as a core system value across the Extension system is the first of five key recommendations. A case...

Michigan State University Extension is hosting a winter/spring Sustainability Speakers Series. The first speaker will present on Inflation Reduction Act: Funding for Sustainable Energy Upgrades. The session is on January 9, 2024, from Noon to 1:00 p.m. Eastern Time. The complete Sustainability Speakers Series, flyer attached, offers a diverse lineup of sessions addressing critical sustainability and environmental topics. Learn about opportunities to access funding for sustainable energy...

April 22 – 29 is National Infant Immunization Week It highlights the importance of protecting children two years and younger from vaccine-preventable diseases. The new Partner Vaccination Toolkit for early care and education providers explains how early care and education professional can help. Together, we can help raise awareness about the importance of vaccines for infants and young children and encourage parents and caregivers to talk their child’s doctor about staying up to date on...