Public health officials, representatives of the natural environment and built environment, community health advocates, environmental and consumer activists, academics, housing, public safety, and other stakeholders that contribute to population health provide policy, community education, and advocacy recommendations. The Population Health Council sponsors a Population Health Blog, publishes an annual report on the State of Population Health, and sponsors an annual Population Health Forum.
The passage of the Affordable Care Act has created unprecedented opportunity to improve the health of our communities through increased access to health care services. In Wayne County, which has among the poorest health indicators in the nation, the challenge is greater than any one organizational entity. With collaboration, however, we can create a more synergistic impact on the health of the population we serve.
The Detroit Wayne County Health Authority, in its role of connecting safety net resources to provide more effective and efficient health care for the uninsured and underserved, has convened stakeholders at various levels of the safety net: the Community Advisory Committee, Primary Care Network Council, and Provider Advisory Committee. In addition, we have established initiatives to create synergy among key health delivery processes such as integrated behavioral health, and childhood obesity.
Given the new opportunities and challenges of health reform, the Health Authority has established a Population Health Council to convene public health officials, along with community health advocates and representatives of private health systems and physician practices to achieve synergy among organizations in the following areas:
- Conduct and/or assemble community health assessments and action plans for specific improvements in population health, including conducting interventions through health impact assessments.
- Chronic disease management and wellness promotion in the safety net.
- Promote health equity and reduction in health disparities among vulnerable populations.
The Population Health Council is comprised of representatives from various public health departments, including the City of Detroit and Wayne County, faculty from graduate schools of public health, researchers working with community health issues, community health training and employment experts, housing officials, occupational and environmental health experts, epidemiology, along health system and physician representatives.
Co-Chairs of the Population Health Council are Loretta Davis, President of the Institute for Population Health, Detroit; and john powell, Executive Director of the Haas Center for Diversity and Inclusion at the University of California-Berkeley.
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