Submitted by: Unity Care NW
As a health care provider, Unity Care staff is committed to increasing the years of healthy life in the people and communities we serve. Our staff works every day to help our patients avoid illness and improve their health. We recognize, however, that the health care services we provide to our patients account for just a small part of what determines whether they are able to live a healthy life.
We typically think about health as being the result of our family history, our health habits and our behaviors. There are many other factors, however, that contribute to poor or good health. Familiar recommendations for improved health include regular exercise a healthy diet, adequate sleep, reducing stress and getting an annual check-up. There are many other factors, however, such as housing insecurity, food insecurity, environmental quality, income, loneliness, domestic violence and social connection that affect a person’s health. There is a direct relationship between these environmental factors and our health. The overall health of our community is also directly related to the cost of our health care system. When our health suffers, the cost of health care increases.
What can we do to improve the health of our community? In 2014, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation decided to take a look at these external factors. They focused their work on creating a “Culture of Health.” The first step was to identify “the ways in which our culture makes it more difficult, not less difficult, to make health choices; the ways in which our culture reinforces policies and practices that are not promoting health; and the ways in which our culture defines health very narrowly, rather than broadly, and not in terms of people’s overall well-being.”
In August, Unity Care NW will join community health centers across the country in celebrating Natio
nal Health Center Week, August 13-17. National Health Center Week is an annual event recognizing the mission and accomplishments of the nation’s community health centers over the past 50 years. Community health centers got their start in the 1960s as part of President Lyndon Johnson’s “War on Poverty.” Today, a national network of community health centers provides affordable, quality health care to over 27 million Americans. They are committed to improving access to health care, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay, and breaking down barriers to care.
We are excited to take the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s work as a focus point for the week and delve into our local “culture of health.” We will be hosting two exciting events that complement each other well. We hope that we can further this conversation about how we can make our community a healthier place for everyone.
On Tuesday, August 14, we will welcome the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation to Bellingham. Beth Toner, Senior Communications Officer with the Foundation, will join us in an “armchair discussion” to provide her perspective on the ways that we can create and sustain a “culture of health” in our community. The conversation will be guided by Mauri Ingram, President and CEO of the Whatcom Community Foundation. An audience Q&A session and a reception will follow. The event will be held from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. at the brand new Sylvia Center for the Arts.
On Thursday, August 16, we will screen “Ola: Health is Everything” at the Pickford Film Center. This documentary, produced by the Hawaii Primary Care Association and the Hawaii State Department of Health, is described as “a film about health, hope and the power of communities to heal themselves.” It tells the story of communities in Hawaii that are identifying innovative solutions to create a “Culture of Health.” We will be joined by Matthew Nagato, the film’s writer, producer and director, for a post-screening Q&A session. A reception will start at 5:00 p.m., followed by the screening at 5:30 p.m.
We look forward to celebrating National Health Center Week and a week of thoughtful discussion about the health conditions in Whatcom County.
Both of these events are free and open to the public. To RSVP for the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation event, call us at 360-594-6617 or email development@ucnw.org. Free tickets to the screening of “Ola: Health is Everything” are now available at the Pickford Film Center box office.
