JOINT CENTER News Room
Place Matters
October 24, 2007
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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
For more information contact: |
JACKSON, Miss. A group of health professionals, community health advocates and elected officials from more than a dozen states will tour areas of Mississippi, including parts of the Delta, Wednesday as they open a three-day meeting to consider how to reduce the health disparities that persist for African Americans and other racial and ethnic populations.
The meeting, based at the Marriott Jackson Hotel in Jackson, is sponsored by the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies, a Washington-based think tank, and its Health Policy Institute (HPI). More than 80 experts are expected to participate, representing the 22 counties and two cities (in more than 12 states and the District of Columbia) with which the institute has partnerships for its Place Matters initiative.
Two of the partnerships represent five counties in Mississippi: the Mid-Mississippi Delta Partnership (Coahoma, Sunflower and Washington counties) and Sharkey-Issaquena counties.
The tour, which includes a stop in Vicksburg, was planned to help the group understand how place, including its history, culture and economic successes and challenges, plays a role in determining health status. The hosts, including Dr. Alfio Rausa of the Mid-Mississippi Delta Partnership, and Dr. Andrew George of Sharkey-Issaquena counties, will point out how Mississippi's history and geographic features have contributed to the health problems its residents face. The answer to improving health status lies not merely with providing more health resources but also with improving incomes, housing, access to health care etc.
HPI's goal is to reduce health disparities by identifying their complex underlying causes and defining strategies to address those causes. Social science research has shown that patterns of health, illness, and health disparities can be modified if the social conditions that lead to poor health are changed.
By addressing upstream factors that produce poor health outcomes, "Place Matters" leverages an approach that differs from the usual disease reaction model. This initiative provides a critically important learning opportunity for participating jurisdictions and for the nation, as teams of dedicated participants develop, test and share new strategies to address social determinants of health, says Gina Wood, deputy director of the Joint Center's Health Policy Institute.
We need new approaches if we are to unravel the complex problems that contribute to the health care crisis in the African American community, said Ralph B. Everett, president and CEO of the Joint Center.
On Thursday and Friday, the group will talk about what projects they can undertake to change health status in their communities.
The gap in health status and well-being between African Americans and whites shows up in a variety of measures, including infant mortality, obesity, poverty rates for children as well as for adults -- and employment rates.
The Place Matters initiative is supported by a grant from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation.
For more information contact Betty Anne Williams, director of communications, for the Joint Center, in Washington at (202) 789-3505.
In Jackson, Miss., contact: Gina Wood, deputy director of the Joint Center's Health Policy Institute, or Vincent Lafronza, senior consultant for the Joint Center and a principal at CommonHealth ACTION, at the Marriott Jackson [200 E. Amite St., (601) 969-5100].
Participating Counties and Cities:
* Alameda County, Calif.
* Baltimore, Md.
* Bernalillo County, N.M.
* Cook County, Ill.
* Coahoma, Washington, & Sunflower Counties, Miss.
* Cuyahoga County, Ohio
* Jefferson County, Ala.
* King County, Wash.
* Marlboro County, S.C.
* Orleans Parish, La.
* Prince George’s County, Md.
* San Joaquin Valley Counties:Fresno, Kern, Kings, Merced, Madera, & Tulare, Calif.
* Sharkey-Issaquena Counties, Miss.
* Suffolk County, Mass.
* Wayne County, Mich.
* Washington, D.C.
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Keep up with events at the Joint Center by viewing Joint Center Journal, the organization's blog, at www.jointcenter.org.