MPH NEWSLETTER VOL. 18
WE’RE HERE TO HELP WITH YOUR COMMUNITY HEALTH NEEDS ASSESSMENT & IMPLEMENTATION STRATEGY / IMPROVEMENT PLAN!
Hi there,
Don’t forget your hydration and sunscreen in this August heat! Wishing you all a wonderful end to the summer season. In this month’s newsletter we discuss “social prescribing” - what it is and what it means in communities!
Getting ahead on your fall to-do list? Reach out to us anytime to learn more about Community Health Needs Assessments and CHIPs/Implementation Strategies! Set up a FREE discovery call with us here.
Stay healthy,
IN THE NEWS…
We recently published three short videos of conversations between our CEO, Stephanie Moxley, and our full service consulting clients from Ottawa County Health Department, Magruder Hospital, Butler County General Health District, and Columbus Community Hospital.
“We received weekly updates as to the project and how that’s advancing. We met our timeline, our benchmarks. The focus group experience this time around with MPH’s leadership was phenomenal and just the strategic intent of how we’ve carried out the project to date is second to none and best in class.”
- Columbus Community Hospital
Make sure to check them out - they highlight what makes completing a community health (needs) assessment and improvement plan/implementation strategy different when working with Moxley Public Health! A huge thanks to our clients for making this possible.
WHAT IS SOCIAL PRESCRIBING?
The Alliance for Healthier Communities defines social prescribing as:
“A holistic approach to healthcare that brings together the social and medical models of health and wellness. It provides a formal pathway for health providers to address the diverse determinants of health, using the familiar and trusted process of writing a prescription”
Social Prescribing USA seeks to promote this approach nationally, and further defines it as utilizing the arts, nature, volunteerism, and local community organizations as medicine for patients of all ages.
This is a powerful technique for communities to use to share resources that support the social determinants of health!
did you know?
A 2019 scoping review from the WHO found that results from over 3000 studies identified a major role for the arts in the prevention of ill health, promotion of health, and management and treatment of illness across the lifespan.
While the arts aren’t the only types of activities that can be socially prescribed, they sure are a good start! Art includes any creative expression, a little something for everyone. Consider integrating visual arts, performing arts, music, and more in your community and personal life.
tips & tricks of the month
Wondering how to integrate social prescribing for the arts in your community? Check out this amazing FREE resource from Tasha Golden with partners Mass Cultural Council and University of Florida Center for Arts in Medicine.
The field guide offers a roadmap for developing programs that formally integrate arts, culture, and nature resources into local health and social care systems. While all communities are unique, there’s a lot that we can learn in overall approach.
public health organization spotlight
The Canadian Institute for Social Prescribing is a NEW national hub that shares resources and makes linkages to community-based supports and services that help improve health and well-being for Canadians.
We are so impressed by this amazing initiative that produces video and digital resources, events, a community of practice, and even their first ever conference this September!
mph favorites to share with you…
Steph has another great documentary recommendation for this month - Netflix’s Blue Zones. In this documentary they discuss how one of the things that the oldest people in this world have in common is social connection. Check out also this article that discusses why social bonds are so important for health, and how this connects to the world’s blue zones.
This month Allie recommends checking out Action for Happiness’ initiatives! They focus on helping people get together regularly (face-to-face where possible) to learn evidence-based skills for happier living, feel a sense of belonging and commit to personal action to create more happiness, both for themselves and others. They often release monthly calendars that include daily prompts to promote kindness, like this one for August!
If quick explanatory videos are your thing, Elissa LOVES this one about social prescribing from Transformative Partners in Healthcare in the UK.
For parents with children heading back to school soon, don’t miss these health tips from John Hopkins Medicine!
