Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health System (Nemours) and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

Authors: Vy Oxman and Roshelle Payes

The COVID-19 pandemic has had serious impacts on the health and well-being of families and children, particularly among Black and Latino communities. Unemployment and poverty exacerbated the twin epidemics of food insecurity and obesity for children. As of June 2020, an estimated 14,000,000 children were not getting enough to eat. Research also shows an increase in childhood obesity since the onset of the pandemic that has widened pre-existing disparities. Additionally, the pandemic severely impacted the early care and education (ECE) sector, as child care programs faced lengthy closures, reduced enrollment, and financial constraints. In response, the President and Congress increased funding for federal programs that address food insecurity, early childhood, and the child care sector through the American Rescue Plan and other COVID-19 packages.[i] As the sector begins to recover, we must turn our focus to improving children’s health and well-being and addressing the inequities in communities most impacted by the pandemic. We urge Congress and the Biden Administration to focus on quality improvements in the ECE settings, not only for school readiness but to improve the health, nutrition and wellness of children.   [Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health System (Nemours) and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

Community Health Improvement Week 2020 (June 6-12) is a time to celebrate and honor those working in partnership to improve the health and well-being of individuals and communities. This year, as our nation moves further toward recovery and rebuilding after the COVID-19 pandemic, the American Hospital Association is highlighting three themes during Community Health Improvement Week:

• Reflect on health disparities illuminated by the pandemic and consider further actions needed to improve the health and well-being of all people.
• Renew commitment to community health improvement, including working with cross-sector partners to better serve our communities.
• Rise Together to strengthen our communities through collaborative and creative work and investment in our neighborhoods and one another.

In this blog post, Nemours Children’s Health System offers reflections from participants in the Nemours 2020 Integrator Learning Lab on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the focus, functioning, and sustainability of their population health networks. We share these responses as an example of the Rise Together theme; interview responses illustrate the ability of strong population health networks to pivot in times of emergency to meet new demands. We believe many of the lessons learned from our partners are valuable to the field as we collectively try to understand the urgency of this moment; and the opportunity it creates to change the conversation on social determinants of health and cross-sector networks that are working to change systems and advance racial and health equity on an on-going basis.

[Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health System (Nemours) and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

The COVID-19 pandemic has profound and likely long-lasting impacts on children, youth and families. It has created and exacerbated negative impacts across every aspect of life: mental and physical health, suicidal ideation, learning loss, food insecurity, poverty, a diminished childcare sector, housing insecurity and homelessness, skyrocketing youth unemployment, and growing racial and economic inequities. The American Rescue Plan (P.L. 117-2) makes critical down payments to address these deep challenges and support the resilience of children and youth. The American Families Plan proposes additional, once in a generation investments in children and youth. To most effectively implement the provisions in the American Rescue Plan and build out a bold agenda that can successfully optimize equity, health, and well-being for children and youth over time, we need coordinated, sustained federal leadership.

[Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health System (Nemours) and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

At Nemours, our core mission to help keep children healthy and thriving.

We are very encouraged to see that the Biden Administration announced this month another funding campaign to increase availability of the COVID-19 vaccine in an effort to lessen the spread and impact of the novel corona virus. Along with funding, the Administration is doubling down on efforts to combat vaccine hesitancy and disinformation – two powerful forces working against our nation’s recovery.

[Read more…]

Disclaimer: Moving Health Care Upstream is a collaborative effort originally co-led by Nemours Children’s Health System (Nemours) and the Center for Healthier Children, Families & Communities at the University of California- Los Angeles (UCLA). The views and opinions expressed in this article are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Nemours, UCLA or the Moving Health Care Upstream initiative.

The  Building a Systems Change Initiative Theory of Change helps to visually organize the focal areas and intended outcomes of systems change initiatives. This version provides annotations to guide users through the process to develop their own Theory of Change for their systems change initiative and includes specific examples using Nemours’ Harnessing Opportunity for Positive, Equitable Early Childhood Development Project (Project HOPE).  Click here for the resource.

This fillable form for the Building a Systems Change Initiative Theory of Change can be downloaded here separately without annotations. This version allows users to enter their systems change initiative focal areas and intended outcomes into a shareable PDF file. The organization completing this theory of change can also place their logo in the bottom right corner of the fillable form. Click here for the fillable form. (Right click to save the fillable form to your computer.)