Social and Community Context Healthy People in Action

People need people. We connect with one another as family and friends, through the communities within which we live, in our workplaces, across support networks that stretch beyond our geographic location, and in many other ways that — whether we intend them to or not — help fulfill our fundamental human need to socialize and interact. All these encounters, big and small, add up and reflect an individual’s level of connection with the world — a vital ingredient in developing and maintaining overall health and well-being. This connection is a social imperative that we, both individually and as communities, have come to overlook far too often.

ICYMI: The recording of the Healthy People 2030 webinar Planning for Individual and Community Health is now available. During this one-hour event, ODPHP presented on the webinar’s four featured objectives related to public health infrastructure and planning. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics also shared the latest data for each objective, and the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials discussed addressing public health infrastructure at the state and local levels.

The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) is pleased to announce its next Healthy People 2030 webinar: Planning for Individual and Community Health. This webinar will take place on Tuesday, March 19 from 2:00 to 3:00 pm ET. During this event, ODPHP will present on the webinar’s four featured objectives related to public health infrastructure and planning. The webinar will also feature a presentation by the Centers for Disease Control National Center for Health Statistics to share the latest data on the four featured objectives and a presentation by Healthy People 2030 Champion, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, on their efforts to address public health infrastructure at the state and local level. Continuing Education Credits* (CEs) are available.

ICYMI, you can still view the recording of December's Healthy People Webinar, Substance Misuse Prevention Strategies to Improve Public Health: A Focus on State Practice. During this one-hour event, ODPHP and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics presented on the webinar’s three featured objectives related to substance misuse. Additionally, New York State Department of Health discussed their efforts to address substance misuse through their state health improvement plan.

There is abundant evidence that good nutrition is imperative to overall physical health, supports disease prevention, and offers cognitive benefits too. But when it comes to our overall mental and emotional health or our sense of well-being, what specific outcomes can we expect from good nutrition? And what negative effects can we expect from inadequate nutrition? These questions are just a few of many being asked by the Food and Mood Project — an initiative led by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Food and Nutrition Service (FNS).

Last month I was honored to deliver the keynote address to the American Public Health Association 2023 Annual Meeting held in Atlanta, Georgia. I spoke about an important initiative that we are continuing to develop and the need to take the social determinants of health “to the next level.” To reach the broadest possible audience, I am sharing my remarks from that meeting.

Space is still available for the next Healthy People 2030 webinar: Substance Misuse Prevention Strategies to Improve Public Health: A Focus on State Practices. This webinar will take place on Wednesday, December 6 from 2:00 to 3:00 pm ET. To register, please visit the Healthy People 2030 Webinar Series Registration page. Continuing Education Credits (CEs) are available.

It’s my pleasure to introduce another entry in our quarterly vlog series, where we engage with partners in the public and private sectors to discuss the ways in which we can collaborate to advance our collective mission to promote greater health equity and well-being for all people. As part of our November observance of Veterans Day,  I joined Dr. Ernest Moy, Executive Director of the Office of Health Equity at the Veterans Health Administration, to discuss the unique health challenges and disparities that our Veterans population faces, and what is being done to address them.

The Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) is pleased to announce its next Healthy People 2030 webinar: Substance Misuse Prevention Strategies to Improve Public Health: A Focus on State Practices. This webinar will take place on Wednesday, December 6 from 2:00 to 3:00 pm ET. To register, please visit the Healthy People 2030 Webinar Series Registration page. Continuing Education Credits (CEs) are available.

Each year core, developmental, and/or research objectives may be proposed for inclusion in Healthy People 2030. This helps ensure that the initiative remains relevant and reflects current public health priorities throughout the decade. Most recently, ODPHP has recategorized an important research objective to core status: Increase the proportion of the voting-age citizens who vote — SDOH‑07.