The status of your health extends far beyond the four walls of a medical center and what most consider traditional “health care.” Events hosted in September at the center highlighted a variety of organizations’ exciting efforts to tackle the bigger picture of health at an individual, community, and even global level.
- Bernard J. Tyson, Kaiser Permanente Chairman and CEO, and Stephen Parodi, MD, EVP of External Affairs, Communications and Brand of the Permanente Federation, hosted the Partnership for Quality Care’s (PQC’s) annual “The Path Forward” event, focusing on the future of health care reform. Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) and Sarah Kliff, senior policy correspondent for Vox.com shared their perspective with members of the coalition that represents 50 million patients nationwide.
- Feeding America and the National Council on Aging co-hosted an event that focused on ways to “Close the Senior SNAP Gap.” Only 41% of eligible seniors nationwide are enrolled and receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, and the convening leveraged the human centered innovation design process to involve seniors in designing solutions for programmatic improvements, communications and policy, as well as exploring other innovative opportunities to expand access to this benefit.
- 100 Million Lives hosted workgroups on “Measuring Wellbeing in Communities” and advancing the implementation of metrics around the landscape of wellbeing across the U.S. Participants worked to identify a measurement approach for population health that could stand alone as a resource or be integrated into existing surveys.
- The BUILD Health Challenge brought together a new cohort of awardees from 20+ cities across the U.S. to meet with funders, partners and guest speakers for networking and sharing best practices. The BUILD Health Challenge is creating a new norm by putting multi-sector community partnerships at the center of health to reduce health disparities caused by system-based or social inequality.
- A meeting hosted by the Coalition for Nonprofit Housing and Economic Development and the Democracy Collaborative, reminded us that supplier diversity is another effective lever to improve community health by growing local economies. The forum included presentations by local medical and educational institutions on best practices in purchasing to stimulate small and minority businesses in the District. Kaiser Permanente is a proud member of the Billion Dollar Roundtable, a group of employers that invest at least $1 billion dollars with minority and woman-owned suppliers in our communities.
- The Georgetown Center on Poverty and Inequality and Mental Health America worked together to define the next generation of behavioral health strategies. This meeting is the first in a series to be held at the Center as Kaiser Permanente launches a public service campaign called “Find Your Words” to combat the stigma associated with mental illness.
- The San Diego Chamber of Commerce and businesses from across the city converged at the Center to talk about what lies ahead in health care reform and other local issues. That evening, the Association of California Cities-Orange County held a networking reception during their meetings in DC, and we were proud to feature a new display on Kaiser Permanente hospitals and our newly opened San Diego Medical Center.
- International visitors were also welcomed at the Center in September. Kaiser Permanente’s Coalition of Trade Unions hosted an Argentine delegation with Louise (Lu) Casa, MSN, CRNP, CTTS, a nurse practitioner in adult medicine, and our own Union Ambassador who answered questions about health in the workplace and beyond. American University sponsored a Korean executive delegation interested in learning more about Kaiser Permanente’s electronic health records and digital health approaches.
We want to thank our guests for considering the Kaiser Permanente Center for Total Health as not only a background for their conversations, but as a partner in helping to facilitate the next phase of their work.
More exciting events are planned for this fall, including our next “Thriving after 60” event, which features educational workshops led by expert physicians, therapists, and health educators, in addition to wellness activities including yoga and meditation sessions, sexual health seminars, massages, and more. This event, planned for November 13, 2017, is open to the public at our medical center next door – learn more and register here.
We also encourage you to check back soon to learn more information about a special tour we will offer on addressing mental health issues in health care.
Lastly, don’t forget to get your flu shot! Free flu vaccinations are available at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center.
The Kaiser Permanente Center for Total Health hosts both internal and external educational events; full-day educational programs are also available for a fee through Kaiser Permanente International. All events – including annual banquets, quarterly meetings, trainings, interviews – can be customized to incorporate the interactive exhibits that make the Center for Total health experience both fun and informative for attendees. If your organization is interested in hosting an event, please send us an event request via our website and follow us on Twitter at @KPTotalHealth. We look forward to hearing from you!
