The following are a few ways in which the CDC's National Center for State, Tribal, Local, and Territorial Public Health Infrastructure and Workforce (Public Health Infrastructure Center) integrates SDOH into its activities.
Keep Reading: Research Summary: Social Determinants of HealthKeep Reading: Examples of How SDOH Can Be Addressed Through the 10 EPHSPathways to Population Health EquityPathways to Population Health Equity (P2PHE) provides tools for public health leaders to enhance population health, well-being, and equity. P2PHE includes a framework, roadmaps, compass, and various tools to help public health practitioners develop more prepared, resilient, and proactive systems. These tools and framework are adaptable to address the most pressing issues in any jurisdiction.
Community health assessment and improvement planningCDC collaborates with various partners to offer technical support, resources, and training. This helps health departments and community partners in assessment and planning. For instance, the Public Health Infrastructure Center partners with the National Association of County and City Health Officials to promote the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) planning framework. This framework integrates health equity in its guidance and practice.
Health department, hospitals, and others use certain tools and requirements to drive planning for community health assessment and health improvement. These tools and requirements emphasize data on health inequities, SDOH, and structural determinants of health in state and community planning efforts.
These collaborative processes involve diverse populations and multi-sector partners across jurisdictions. This results in plans that identify priorities and strategies to tackle health disparities.
Innovative funding strategies to support SDOH effortsThe Public Health Infrastructure Center works with partner organizations to explore health department use of innovative financing strategies. These strategies can be opportunities to address SDOH. Examples from partners include case stories about the following:
Braiding and layering funds to address housing and food insecurity. Use of participatory budgeting to ensure community-driven funding decisions. COVID-19 health equity grantThe National Initiative to Address COVID-19 Health Disparities Among Populations at High-Risk and Underserved, Including Racial and Ethnic Minority Populations and Rural Communities is a $2.5 billion grant supporting 108 state, territorial, local, and tribal health departments. It aims to reduce COVID-19 health disparities and promote health equity by enhancing capacity and services of the following health departments:
State Local US territorial Freely associated stateOne key strategy is to engage partners and collaborators to advance health equity and address SDOH related to COVID-19's effect on higher-risk and underserved groups.
Public health accreditationThe CDC backs the national accreditation program, managed by the Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB). The national standards, which are central to the accreditation program, emphasize health equity and SDOH across various requirements. This includes community health assessment, health improvement planning, health promotion, policy development, and internal training. Health departments are striving to meet these standards. Evidence from evaluation studies and accredited sites indicates that in doing so, they are enhancing multi-sectoral partnerships and adopting practices like:
Formulating health equity policies. Setting up agency-wide health equity councils.