New Hampshire Health & Equity Partnership Begins Work on New Priorities

On Wednesday, January 27th, 2016 more than 70 stakeholders from all over New Hampshire attended the Winter Convening of the NH Health & Equity Partnership at the Manchester Health Department. This interactive session kicked off our process to create our common agenda to focus our collective efforts the next two years.

The meeting began with a recap of the Partnership’s work and priorities since its inception, and the recognition that the Plan to Address Health Disparities and Promote Health Equity in New Hampshire has 25 priorities for action. While all of us have collectively done a lot of really great work these last four years, the overwhelming challenge is that we’ve been trying to do too much. Thus, it’s been difficult to demonstrate significant progress.  We want to be more effective in advancing our vision of “Everyone in New Hampshire has a fair opportunity to live a long, healthy life.”

 

Participants were invited to reflect individually, engage in group discussion, hear from others, and then vote on which ideas should be prioritized. There was an enormous amount of energy and enthusiasm in the room.

 

The steering committee carried out the work after the convening by first determining the top six priorities based on the participants’ votes and then asking the Partnership to select their top three priorities.  Below are the three priorities the Partnership chose to focus on for the next two years:

 

1.- Increase the capacity in NH for the collection of high quality Race, Ethnicity and Language (REaL) data across all systems at the state and local level to identify disparities and promote utilization of data to inform improvements, policies and procedures.

2.-Increase organizational cultural effectiveness and improve the capacity of organizations in NH to provide high quality services to all populations (especially Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic minorities) by incorporating the elements of a culturally effective organization.

3.-Increase a diversified work-force to support economic opportunities for Racial, Ethnic and Linguistic minorities and all populations in NH.

 

What are the next steps?

 

  • A workgroup will start meeting in April to plan and discuss work around a specific priority (one workgroup for each priority), organize a convening to decide WHAT we’re actually going to do, AND agree on common measures.

 

  • Everyone is welcome to participate at every stage and be included fully in the process going forward. Sign up to work in the workgroup you are interested in by contacting Nathalie Ahyi, H&EP Program Director.

 

To become involved with the H&EP, please sign up for the Partnership’s electronic mailing list on the Partnership’s website atwww.equitynh.org

 

 By Nathalie Ahyi, Director of the NH Health & Equity Partnership