Supportive Solutions
Supportive solutions include providing support to individuals and organizations. Our work has taught us that support needs to be timely, flexible, and often behind the scenes. What we provide ranges from the services provided through our helpline to individuals to support for organizations. We offer different levels and types of support to organizations using a combination of our assets.
For example, as a commitment to our sector, during periods of organizational recalibration, HAF provided a home and support for organizations including the National Council on Patient Information and Education, Columbus Children’s Foundation, and the National Human Services Assembly.
Another critical component of supportive solutions is the Healthy Americas Institute established by the Alliance at the University of Southern California (USC) Keck School of Medicine to implement community participatory models and provide the data to drive change.
The core of our successful supportive solutions are a combination of seed grants, research, and advocacy. These solutions are often initiatives that provide a first in the field opportunity. A good example of this was in implementation of Medicare Part D. Alliance internal research predicted that with the passage of the legislation there would be a huge need to inform consumers about the new benefits. The Alliance worked to obtain funds to implement a program before the final passage of the legislation. As soon as the legislation passed, the Alliance was ready to inform and engage Hispanics about the new program reaching over a half million Medicare beneficiaries and their families with one-to-one support in obtaining access to insurance coverage.
Today there is a great imperative for timely information to drive decisions and policy. Our model challenges the 20th century models in medicine, science, and health to rethink the existing frameworks of health and wellness. HAF addresses problems that are too often ignored. This can be the targeting of Hispanic youth by the tobacco industry or the exclusion of the Hispanic data and the voices of Hispanic women in considering guidelines for cervical cancer screening. HAF supports solutions in making voices heard and amplifying those voices. Our response has been swift and impactful:
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With support from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Nuestro Futuro (Our Voices): Preventing LatinX Youth Tobacco Addiction will support convening of community and national expertise to develop a community-driven action plan and report to the nation to address the tobacco tipping point among LatinX youth and secure a healthier future.
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Along similar lines Mi Hermana— The Latina Health Champions (LHC) is a network of Health Champions that offers a solution to increase the capacity of Hispanic women to develop and implement strategies for their self-care. Working with a variety of partners, the Latina Health Champions will conduct research and extend a low-cost screening network that will deliver proven and promising culturally proficient solutions to prevent and reduce cervical cancer and breast cancer. Hologic's commitment to women's health has made these activities possible.
The success of our efforts is a result of our finely tuned strategy for leveraging seed grants, research, and advocacy to improve the health of communities.