We return this spring with a podcast reboot and begin with our Healthcare Justice Series with episodes that:   Focus on the social determinants of health  And highlight the needs of communities and populations experiencing barriers to health care   

 In 1991 the United Nations declared housing to be a fundamental human right, and the United States has worked to reduce overall homelessness by over 20 percent between 2005 and 2013.  However, homelessness continues to persist across the country, with the highest concentration in mid-to-large metropolitan areas and disproportionately impacts those living in poverty, people of color and immigrants.  Those experiencing homelessness also have the highest rates of chronic mental, behavioral and physical disease have significant barriers to health care and affordable housing and a lower life expectancy.  Their use of emergency services for episodic care also leads to higher treatment costs.  

In this episode, I’m talking with Clarita Santos, Executive Director of Community Health Initiatives at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois. As Executive Director, Clarita advances Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois’ investment strategy in alignment with the Plan’s vision and enterprise imperatives to address critical community health issues, focusing on access to care, health equity and population health. We’ll be talking today about how the FHP brings value and impact to those served by Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, and the vision for the health plan on investing in housing to improve population health outcomes.

As hospitals across the state are consolidating through mergers and acquisitions to gain market share, many Catholic hospital systems have made strong gains based on their financial strength.  As a greater share of Illinois hospitals is operating under the Ethical & Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, a recent University of Chicago report indicates there are unintended consequences for women’s health and a disproportionate number of low-income women.  In this episode, we talk with maternal child health researcher and public health lecturer, Janine Hill about the report and the implications for health equity.  Janine's expertise in public health policy, health systems and maternal and child health research brings a unique perspective to this new challenge in Illinois, as the health outcomes for women and their children is largely dependent on broad access to comprehensive reproductive health care services.    Soar Strategies is a consulting and coaching firm committed to helping leaders and groups in the social good and corporate sectors to share their strengths, create goals, and achieve their professional as well as personal goals through a collaborative process.

The rapid consolidation of hospital systems across Illinois has been dominated by Catholic hospitals, making strong gains based on their financial strength.  With a growing share of hospitals now operating under the Ethical & Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, providers in these systems of care face limitations on the provision of family planning services for their patients and limited options for OB-GYN training as well. A recent University of Chicago report indicates there are a disproportionate number of low-income women in health plans served by these hospital systems and that health disparities are likely to increase.  In this episode, we talk with a women’s health provider and women’s health advocate about the rapid consolidations, the report and the implications for patients and providers across Illinois.    In this episode, I’m talking with Kai Tao, ND, APN, MPH. For more nearly two decades, Kai has been in practice as a certified nurse-midwife, Deputy Commissioner with the Chicago Department of Public Health, Senior Policy Advisor for the Director of the Illinois Department of Health and Family Services, and Vice President of Clinical Operations with Planned Parenthood of Illinois.  In 2018, Kai launched Juno4Me, a non-profit that provides free IUDs and implants to people in Chicago. Kai’s extensive experience in women’s health, program development, public health policy advocacy, and clinical operations brings a multi-sectoral approach to the challenges of access and equity these recent hospital merges pose to women across Illinois. 

While the implications aren’t all immediately clear, our conversation with a public health sector leader will breakdown some of the key elements and outline ongoing advocacy and education campaigns that seek to support affected immigrant families and the organizations and institutions that provide direct services to those communities. In this episode, I’m talking with Luvia Quinones, Health Policy Director with the Illinois Coalition for Immigrant and Refugee Rights, or ICIRR. ICIRR, located in Chicago, Illinois, is dedicated to promoting the rights of immigrants and refugees to full and equal participation in the civic, cultural, social and political life of our diverse society, and works with many member organizations on various programs and campaigns to empower the immigrant community in Illinois.

Often in community development work, too many organizations are working in isolation from one another. According to the Collective Impact Forum, collective impact brings people together in a structured way to achieve social change.   In this two-part episode, I’ll be exploring the efficacy of the collective impact model from two perspectives: Philanthropy and Community Development. Today, I am talking with Nan Silva, Program Director with Community Memorial Foundation. Community Memorial Foundation aims to measurably improve the health of those who live and work in the western suburbs of Chicago.

Often in community development work, too many organizations are working in isolation from one another. According to the Collective Impact Forum, collective impact brings people together in a structured way to achieve social change.   In this two-part episode, I’ll be exploring the efficacy of the collective impact model from two perspectives: Philanthropy and Community Development. Today I’m talking with Tevonne Ellis (of Claretian Associates), who is the Network Coordinator for the South Chicago Neighborhood Network.