Community prevention works: it builds healthier communities, saves money and supports equity. Here are our suggestions for capturing and reflecting the full impact of your community prevention efforts:
Connect improvements to community environments, projected health outcomes, and projected savings.
It is important to connect improvements in the environments where people live, work, play and learn--including bike lanes or healthy school lunches--directly to positive health outcomes.
Here's an example: Chronic disease related to unhealthy food options and lack of safe places to playcosts the US $215 billion a year in direct medical costs and lost productivity. In [My Community], one way we're trying to prevent people from getting sick in the first place is by changing the community environment to increase safe opportunities for walking and biking, like the 35 miles of bike and walking paths we've connected throughout the city. By ensuring we have a strong network of bike and walking paths between residential and business areas, we are increasing walking and cycling to school, to work, and to run errands. These improvements make a community a healthier, more desirable place to live, which can also increase the likelihood that businesses will locate there.
Information you may include: Regional health stats and costs, where available-current obesity/smoking/physical activity rates, specific disparities, healthcare costs in county, walkability, distance to grocery stores, number of ‘unhealthy' food outlets, etc. In describing your outcome be as specific as you can--this many miles of walking or bicycle paths from our complete street policy; this many servings of fruits and vegetables as a result of our farm to school project; this many kids who won't be exposed to smoke.
Keep it local.
A desire for local control and decision making is being reflected in our national conversation-people worry about someone making decisions for them, or taking their ability to make decisions away. It's critical to emphasize that community prevention is local. Community prevention is about helping neighborhoods to work together with local businesses, community groups and local health departments to figure out the best ways to build health where they live-whether that's putting more fruits and vegetables on a child's school lunch plate, or making the local park safer so a mom doesn't have to put her kid in front of the tv. The essence of community prevention is about building health and supporting decision making in the ways that communities think will work best right where they live.
Data to include:
- Partnerships that have been strengthened or created, most particularly non-traditional and community-based partnerships, i.e. local business, local churches, parent groups, insurance orgs, gyms, childcare, farmers etc.
- Data that emphasizes ‘local' nature of efforts: decision making processes, local leadership; community, parents, youth, elderly, high-need population involvement
Include benefits to the local economy.
With a high unemployment rate, concerns about the survival of small businesses, and a still struggling economy, people want to hear that any monetary investment is helping to create jobs, help small business and put/keep money in the local economy. Look for, collect and include these kinds of data and examples, quotes from local businesses etc, wherever you can.
Here's a great example from Steve Tarver of the Louisville YMCA, in the Louisville Courier-Journal: "Funds from a $7.9 million federal stimulus grant (Communities Putting Prevention to Work) are making it possible for us to grow the number of Healthy Corner Stores in Louisville food deserts. ... The grant enables us to provide local store owners with new equipment, business planning, and minor construction improvements. Residents in those neighborhoods no longer have lengthy bus rides, long walks or inconvenient trips to supermarkets that exist miles away from their homes. Families will enjoy thousands more servings of fresh fruits and vegetables."
Data to include: Economic benefits, including new jobs created or kept; job training/leadership opportunities for youth; equipment upgraded or purchased for local businesses; jobs or business kept locally; promotion of local merchants, farmers; increased access to or utilization of local businesses and services; community re-investment or revitalization.
For examples of community prevention efforts, visit our Communities Taking Action Map.
