HEALTH OF A NYC COMMUNITY

Understanding the Health of a NYC Community

Understanding the Health of a NYC Community

Introduction

As people of New York City continue to uncover the inequities that limit access to social, economic, political, and environmental well-being, the foundation and history of community health workers as advocates for social justice becomes increasingly relevant.

Although health care access and quality care remains a laudable goal, the fact is that, day to day, too many people in New York City still do not have access to these benefits. Community health professionals in New York City play a critical role in responding to issues of health care. (New York City Community Health Profiles: http://www.nyc.gov/html/doh/html/data/data.shtml)

They must be understood as a critical component of integrated systems of health care and as advocates for the myriad issues that keep people outside of the grasp of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. From a New York City health policy perspective, the practical role of community health and the information that citizens have access to can inform how health practitioners and policymakers define health and well-being and how they can improve these areas. Basic knowledge about community health can bring changes in system and structures. New York City community health departments have the ability to serve as connectors and navigators of the health system, which is critical, but departmental work and firsthand knowledge must also be harnessed and expanded to ensure capacity to affect policies and inform decision-makers. Community health policy makers are resources to not only their communities as connectors to care. They also to advocates and politicians, for the information they bring and the potential to create change.

Overview

The background of proper goals for the New York's health care system, which started few decades ago, led us to examine discussions of New York's health and social policies as a whole. New York community health care system is second to none in its ability to bring the latest technologic biomedical breakthroughs to an individual patient. Unfortunately, the tremendous scientific accomplishments of this century stand in stark contrast to the nation's near impotence in approaching health problems that result from the interplay of social, economic, and biologic factors. Children are particularly vulnerable to health problems that stem from the complex relationship of environment and physiology. To protect citizen's health, there is an urgent need for a better conceptualization of health approach to community care. (For further details see ...