Posts Tagged ‘Bottom Band’
At the center of all of our work is our Definition of Health
Health is a state of physical, mental, social, and spiritual well-being. It is not only the absence of infirmity and disease. Health is the state of balance, harmony, and connectedness within and between many systems ”“ the body, the family, the community, the environment, and culture. It cannot be seen only in an individual context. Health is an active state of being; people must be active participants to be healthy. It cannot be achieved by being passive. This issue of The Alley Newspaper is largely dedicated to reflecting the voices and the activities over the past year of the Backyard Initiative. Each of 12 CHAT teams have contributed their own stories and photos.
The Backyard Initiative: What It Is and Why It Exists
The Backyard Initiative is a dynamic partnership between Allina Health and its neighbors to improve health and health care in the seven communities immediately surrounding Allina Commons, Abbott Northwestern Hospital and the Phillips Eye Institute. The Backyard Initiative supports efforts to strengthen community health by empowering residents to draw upon their own knowledge, skills, and cultural values to care for themselves, their families, and their neighbors. Research shows that social conditions”“ including isolation and a lack of social support ”“ have a profound impact on our health. By partnering the expertise and resources of health care institutions with the wisdom and experience of residents, The Backyard Initiative is exploring a new dimension to a health care system that will focus on promoting health in addition to treating sickness. Beginning in 2008, Allina partnered with the Cultural Wellness Center, a community nonprofit organization in South [...]
Themes that Emerged
An assessment team was formed to create a picture of the current state of health and well-being of the residents in the Backyard, engage a broad network of residents in the process, and inform and plan the next steps for The Backyard Initiative. The assessment team included community residents, staff from Allina, the CWC, and Wilder Research. Through 21 Listening Circles and 677 face-to-face, walk-around interviews, three themes began to emerge: The Power of Interconnectedness. Each dimension of health named in the community definition of health is dependent on the others; one dimension of health cannot be understood or addressed in isolation. The Power of Relationships. Relationships impact the determinants of health. People know that they need exercise and healthy food, plenty of rest and occasional check-ups to be healthy, but their relationships are crucial to whether they consistently act on that knowledge. Developing healthy relationships between community residents and [...]
