HealthyTown

America's Pharmaceutical Research Companies

Purpose:

To educate citizens of Jackson, Miss., and Fresno, Calif., on health and wellness and to reduce the burden of chronic disease on communities

Target Population:

All residents of Jackson and Fresno

Program Goals:

• To improve positive lifestyle behaviors in order to reduce preventable chronic conditions

• To raise awareness of the prevalence and cost of chronic disease

Years in Operation:

2006 – present

Results:

• HealthyJackson - Since HealthyJackson began, it has been supported by many community partners and sponsors, including all of the medical centers in Jackson, the City of Jackson, and restaurants and health food stores around the city. The program has screened almost 5,000 people throughout the metro area. Additionally, HealthyJackson provided 35 days of health curriculum to more than 900 children at a local summer camp, and more than 7,500 employees participated in HealthyJackson's Well Workplace seminar.

  • Health Literacy and Compliance Luncheon - The luncheon brought pharmacists throughout the community together with program partners to work on understanding the obstacles that community members faced due to health literacy.

• HealthyFresno - Since HealthyFresno's inception, the program has been able to bring together health care organizations, community and civic leaders, and business community and nonprofit groups to encourage Fresno residents to lead healthier lives. HealthyFresno has been able to host multiple events, including: worksite wellness initiatives; health literacy outreach efforts for the Latino, Hmong and African-American populations; chronic disease screenings; and children's sport and activity programs.

  • Body Mass Index Challenge - The program worked with 10 small businesses on this challenge over eight weeks. About 180 employees competed to lower their body mass indexes (BMIs), and competitors lost 351 pounds and 51.5 BMI points collectively. As a result of the challenge, 26 people joined a gym.

Funding:

HealthyTown is funded by America’s pharmaceutical research companies.

Key Partners:

American Lung Association of Mississippi; Central Mississippi Medical Center; Community Eldercare Services; Fresno Business Council; Coalition of Urban Renewal and Excellence; The Discovery Center; Mental Health Association of Greater Fresno; Arthritis Foundation Fresno; American Stroke Association of Mississippi; Mothers Against Drunk Driving; Quinn Healthcare; The University of Mississippi Medical Center

What Works and Why:

HealthyJackson and HealthyFresno have worked because they have both demonstrated teamwork at the community level by coming together to prevent chronic disease. Leaders in both communities were also involved, and in both created health communications networks to steer the community effort. Business communities in both Jackson and Fresno supported the program as well. Businesses offered discounts on healthy goods and services, and they sponsored events throughout the community. Businesses played an integral part in the program by encouraging employees to lead healthier lives.

Structure and Operations:

Both HealthyJackson and HealthyFresno offer numerous programs and interventions for their respective constituents. Healthy Living programs are offered on topics such as healthy eating, fitness and worksite wellness. Program participants are advised to take the whole-family approach when making healthy lifestyle changes. Participants are also educated on how to take control of their health, through visiting a local physician and learning how to prepare for that visit.

Other programs offered include chronic disease and prevention programs for asthma, cancer, diabetes, heart disease and mental health. Other programs that the communities focused on were prenatal and neonatal health, children's health, young adult health and senior health. HealthyJackson and HealthyFresno have also partnered with the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to promote Medicare preventive benefits. Both participating communities have incorporated "best-in-class" educational resources on health literacy and communication.

Barriers to Success:

The major barrier to success of HealthyJackson and HealthyFresno was finding a unified vision within the community itself. It was difficult at times for different organizations to come together and work toward a common goal to encourage healthy behaviors for the benefit of the community. Another barrier to the success of the programs was overcoming cultural issues. For example, in Jackson, many types of unhealthy food (e.g., fried foods) are consumed on a daily basis. In Fresno, many community members were skeptical of the program at the outset, and interactions had to be tailored to include more face-to-face interactions at every level of the program, from the individual community member to the CEO or elected official.

More Information:

http://healthyjackson.org

http://healthyfresno.org

Download:

Download this program information in PDF format.