That’s the message of Minority Health Month, which each April aims to raise awareness about disparities in health care affecting minorities.

This year’s theme, Advancing Health Equity Now: Uniting Our Communities to Bring Health Care Coverage to All, seeks to reduce disparities and improve health care outcomes with affordable access to care.

Health disparities — differences in health outcomes that are closely linked with social, economic, and environmental disadvantage — are often driven by the social conditions in which individuals live, learn, work and play.

Racial and ethnic minorities still lag behind in many health outcome measures. They are less likely to get the preventive care they need to stay healthy, more likely to suffer from serious illnesses, such as diabetes or heart disease, and when they do get sick, are less likely to have access to quality health care.

According to the HHS Action Plan to Reduce Racial and Ethnic Health Disparities:

• Infants born to black women are 1.5 to 3 times more likely to die than those born to women of other races/ethnicities and American Indian and Alaska Native infants die from SIDS at nearly 2.5 times the rate of white infants.
• Cancer is the second leading cause of death for most racial and ethnic minorities. African American men are more than twice as likely to die from prostate cancer and Hispanic women are more than 1.5 times as likely to be diagnosed with cervical cancer.
• African Americans, American Indians and Alaska Natives are twice as likely to have diabetes as white individuals; diabetes rates among Hispanics are 1.5 times higher.
• Although racial and ethnic minorities constitute one-third of the U.S. population, they make up more than half of the 50 million uninsured people.

Want to help?

Like other community health centers across the country, HealthNet’s full-service primary care centers are purposefully located in high need areas and are open to all, regardless of ability to pay.

 Sign up today to be an advocate for the community health center nearest you! Together we can make an impact in improving access to care and reducing health disparities in Indy.

To learn more about health centers and their model of care, check out the National Association of Community Health Center’s fact sheet.

Nearly 900,000 people die each year from causes that can be prevented. For the first time, American children may live shorter lives than their parents. Nearly 1 in 3 children are overweight or obese. More than 50 million Americans do not have health insurance.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. With your help, we can make America the healthiest nation – and Indy one of its healthiest communities — in one generation.

In honor of National Public Health Week this week, please join us and watch this video by the American Public Health Association and share it with people you care about.

Catching preventable illnesses and incidents before they develop is the key to improving our nation’s health. There are so many small steps we can take to begin leading healthier lives; sometimes it just takes a little motivation. We CAN work to encourage more people in Indianapolis to take preventive measures to help improve their lives. Little steps can lead to big changes.

One step you can take today to make our nation – and Indy – a healthier place to live is to advocate for the Community Health Center near you.

Community Health Centers like ours play a central role in improving public health – by providing access to affordable, preventive care close to home. They serve as the health care homes for over 20 million people in the United States.  BUT! There are still 60 million Americans, even those WITH insurance, who do not have regular access to health care.

JOIN THE CAMPAIGN

FOR AMERICA’S HEALTH CENTERS!

From Martindale-Brightwood to Downtown, Fountain Square to Brookside or Broad Ripple, we appreciate the personality and flavor of each small community.

At HealthNet, we’ve been deeply invested in our neighborhoods for more than 45 years.

In fact, many of our health centers began with small groups of residents working to bring health care to their communities, when they didn’t have any doctors nearby. Creating a health care home starts right in our own neighborhoods, with primary care providers who maintain long-term relationships with their patients.

This month, we joined our eighth community and became a West 10^th Street neighbor!

The new HealthNet West Health Center opened full-time at 10^th St. and I-465, and will serve more than 3,000 people each year. HealthNet West is really an outgrowth of Southwest Health & Dental Center, which has been serving the West Side community for 41 years!

The outpouring of community support for HealthNet West has been tremendous.

We’d like to thank the West Side Chamber of Commerce, the Speedway Town Council, the Speedway Chamber of Commerce, IU Health West Hospital and all the civic groups, churches and schools that have welcomed us to West 10th St. Check out these photos from this month’s Grand Opening Community Celebration!

Learn more about the new HealthNet West Health Center!

Our blogs this month focus on getting back to the basics during the often chaotic and stressful holiday season.

As a behavioral health therapist, I often hear my patients say that the holidays just don’t seem to be what they “should.”  Instead of instant holiday bliss as shown in magical holiday movies, people often report feeling frustrated, disappointed, and unfulfilled.  How does this happen?  And what can we do to live well… even during the holidays?

It seems that the first step is letting go of the romanticized idea that just because it is the holiday season, all will be right with the world.  If one is struggling emotionally before the holiday season, it is unlikely to disappear because November or December rolls around.  This seems like a silly, simple idea, but I think it has some merit.  Instead of pressuring ourselves into a forced happiness, let us give ourselves some grace in understanding that the holidays can be difficult.

Remembering the loss of loved ones, strained family relationships, and financial stress can all contribute to lack of yuletide bliss.  Give yourself permission to be human– that is, to feel and grieve if you need to.  It seems that we often convince ourselves that we have to be robotic elves with painted smiles during the holidays.  What a tall order to live up to!

One the other hand, let’s not forget the power of genuine gratitude and positive thinking.  Though it is important to acknowledge our humanness and let ourselves feel, it’s also important to be intentional about focusing our thoughts on those things in our lives for which we are authentically thankful.  Finding those nuggets in our lives that are positive in the midst of frustration and darkness can change how we think about ourselves and the world and, in turn, influence our emotional experience.  In fact, studies have shown that those who exercise regular, intentional expressions of gratitude report higher levels of happiness, have fewer health complaints, exercise more, sleep better, express more goodwill toward others, and even have better marriages!

How do you make this happen?  Try a daily gratitude journal.  Each morning when you wake or each night before you go to bed, write down three things in your life that you are truly thankful for.  Also, be intentional each day about expressing to others what you appreciate about them as well as telling yourself one thing you’ve done well or a positive quality about yourself.

My hope is that we are all able let ourselves be human during the holidays and recognize the wonderful things in our lives for which we are genuinely grateful.

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What’s ONE thing you’re thankful for this holiday season? Tell us!

When you think of a “home” what comes to mind? 

Some words that come to mind for me are stability… consistency… safety… love… support… communication…and care. Home is where one can go to feel all of those things, and then some.

What do you think is the difference between a home and a house?  When I think of a house, the only thing that comes to mind is the structural part of the building – walls, ceiling, dry wall, floors, etc. However, with the above mentioned qualities, a house can definitely be turned into a home.

What goes on inside the home is more important than what the home looks like on the outside.  If you have a great huge house with a long drive, gated entry way, big garden, marble, ceramic, and tile floors/countertops but the people living there do not feel loved, cared or supported by each other, then what would that be like? Compare that with an average home or apartment with the minimum needs inside, however everyone gets along with each other and there is care, support, love, honesty, communication, etc.  — what would that be like? I think the latter of the two would be my preference every time.

When one goes home, one should feel safe entering one’s sanctuary, and that it provides the comfort and love needed. That is something that HealthNet provides to our patients. We create an environment of homeyness. We are a place where patients feel like they are cared for and someone listens to their needs. They feel trusted and safe.

We have patients that have been patients with us for so long, that their kids are seeing the same pediatrician they saw when they were younger.  Patients will come in and talk about not wanting to go to any other place for their health care services because of the level of care, support, love, consistency, and safety they feel and experience when they walk through our doors. Our patients feel so safe with our clinics and staff, that they will tell them things they do not feel comfortable telling other members of their family. 

The unfortunate or fortunate thing is that we – HealthNet – are the only ones in some of our patients’ lives that provide consistency, care, support, safety, etc., as they do not receive that at home or from family members.

As a health care “home,” it is our privilege to walk with the families we serve each day as they seek to live healthier lives!

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What’s one thing you can do today to make your home a healthier place to live? Tell us!

How do donors feel about this?  Would there be any businesses that might partner with us to try this?  Would it be worth NOT being able to build a relationship with our donors?

These are tough questions to answer.  With many of our outreach programs running at a deficit and the threat of D.C. cutting health center and Medicaid funding, our organization is really brainstorming on what we can do to assure greater access to care for all Indianapolis residents.  Here are three ways for you to give a care about greater access to health care and support services (we promise, no embedded giving here! This site is completely free to all!)

1. Like us on Facebook – A way to directly see how donations, awareness, and support affect the lives of many in Indianapolis. HealthNet’s Facebook page is a way to hear the stories, see the expansion of buildings, and engage with a community that cares about all Indianapolis residents.
2. Subscribe to this blog (up & to the right) – Doing so will send our blog posts directly to your e-mail inbox!  It’s an easy way to be updated on HealthNet happenings while simply going through your daily routine of checking e-mail.
3. Sign-up to receive our e-newsletter – Our monthly e-newsletter always highlights a different aspect of HealthNet and how it increases support and wrap-around care that is available to Indianapolis residents who need it.  Featuring success stories and staff opinions, our e-newsletter is a great way to stay involved and become a part of the HealthNet team.

Okay, so this may have been toeing the line of embedded giving, but look at it as simply rounding up the much appreciated time you took to read this post by taking three simple steps that will make it easier for us to keep in touch in the future!

THANK YOU for the support you have already shown. We look forward to building a relationship with you and asking for your input rather than just your quarters!