Organizational Development for Health Equity: Lessons Learned from an Environment and Policy Change Community Benefits Health Initiative

Community benefits are a potential resource for funding health equity intervention given their requirement to serve unmet need in a service region. Participatory approaches to community benefits are ideal for optimal community engagement; however, community-based participatory research (CBPR) is often conducted in partnerships between institutions and established community based-organizations (CBO). Underserved communities often lack thriving CBOs or do not have organizations with adequate capacity to participate in research. Organizational development and community capacity building are therefore key considerations for sustaining community benefits investments. This paper explores the lessons learned from Healthy Belvedere, a community benefits health initiative in south DeKalb County, Georgia. Healthy Belvedere is a partnership between Kaiser Foundation Health Plan for Georgia, The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, DeKalb County, Georgia State University and the Belvedere community. The primary objective of the initiative is to support environment and policy changes that promote healthy eating and active living (HEAL). Belvedere is a predominantly Black urban neighborhood with a high prevalence of hypertension and other health disparities. While Belvedere has two neighborhood associations, neither has 501(c)(3) status and no other viable non-profits currently exist to sustain fundraising beyond Kaiser's investment. As such, the partnership has undertaken organizational development and community capacity building as a scope of work parallel to HEAL environment and policy change. The broader implications of Healthy Belvedere's lessons learned suggest that, while organizational development may seem distal to the aims of community benefits programming, the capacity of a community is key to sustaining investment and improving health.