Program and policy development to address health inequities in a local public health department

Alarmed by overwhelming evidence of health inequities, the Riverside County Department of Public Health (RCDOPH) began laying the foundation necessary to address challenges existing among vulnerable populations including ethnic/cultural minorities, sexual minorities, and disparities based on age or disability. Like many jurisdictions, Riverside County had many grant-funded programs addressing issues among individual groups creating disjointed silos. With a desire to develop a unified and planned approach, the RCDOPH formed the Health Disparities Committee. The work of the Committee broadened thinking to include factors such as predatory lending practices, land use, institutional and historic racism and homophobia, crime, stress, and other issues linked to social justice and social determinants of health. Since its inception in 2008, the Committee has remained representative of multiple disciplines, job classifications, and cultural experiences. The membership has worked on staff development, establishing agency-wide policies, committee by-laws, and objectives. This presentation will review the steps taken, those planned, lessons learned and successes to date. Specific discussion will focus on Committee development, internal/external efforts, early actions, administration support, process formalization, policy development, working toward organization culture change, cultural competency, and reduction of health disparities/inequities. RCDOPH believes you cannot have healthy communities while disparate health inequities exist and to promote healthy minds and bodies these must be fully addressed.