Home: Highlights
Ready to Ignite Voter Participation?
Join Thrive Alliance on January 17 from 9:30 a.m. until 11 a.m. for their Voter Outreach Training session to learn the how, what, where, when, and why of effective voter engagement. This inclusive virtual training is open to everyone, providing valuable resources for voter education customized for your organization.
Join the South San Francisco Community Collaboration for Children’s Success!
El Concilio is leading a new iteration of the South San Francisco Community Collaboration for Children’s Success (SSF CCCS). CCCS brings partners together from multiple sectors to align efforts. The goal is to build on existing assets and address the most needs of children and youth (ages 0-24) and their caregivers. El Concilio has received initial funding from Silicon Valley Community Foundation to support their work on Public Policy and Advocacy, including their convening of this group.
The Community Health Improvement Plan is Underway!
The three CHIP Priority Area Work Groups have met twice since December. During the meetings, participants drafted goals and activities for each priority health area:
- Access to Health Care Services
- Social Determinants of Health
- Mental Health and Mental Disorders
An action plan will be developed in early 2024. A Community Health Improvement Collaborative will guide and support the implementation of the CHIP. To learn more about the PHPP strategic direction here.
Community Collaboration Process (CCP) Working Group and Leadership Meet!
On May 15, our HPP Equity Team hosted the first CCP
prioritization meeting in-person with our working group members.
The intent of the meeting was to work together with PHPP to
prioritize evaluation metrics for documenting progress on meeting
the
CCP recommendations for a community collaboration
structure. Summary of priorities:
BACHAC Hosts Soul Stroll 2023
The Bay Area Community Advisory Council (BACHAC) hosted Soul Stroll on May 20. This was its first outside event since 2019 due to the pandemic. This annual family-friendly festival encourages community members to engage in physical activities including walking, running, or biking for one, three, or five miles. The event also includes a health and wellness fair. This year’s Soul Stroll Ambassador was Feminista Jones, an author and activist who spoke about health disparities at the opening VIP event on May 19. She also rallied walkers to the finish during the event.
Strengthening Equity Across SMC Health!
On May 10, SMC Health’s Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) convened for the 2023 retreat. GARE consists of staff who champion and forward equity from various departments across SMCH.
Paid COVID Sick Leave Expires September 30, 2022
Community Legal Services in East Palo Alto supports workers’ rights with legal services and outreach to community members across San Mateo County. Here are their latest resources on vaccination rights and supplemental paid sick leave.
Living Through a Pandemic Behind Bars
For the last two years, Stanford researchers have been partnering with county correctional health officials to understand the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on people living and working in local jails. The study, now published in peer-reviewed journals, identified several barriers to infection control in jails, including inadequate access to face masks, deterrents to testing and symptom-reporting, and mistrust of jail staff.
This Is “See You Later,” Not Goodbye
Staff Perspective by Tania Perez
Dear Get Healthy SMC Partners,
Government Alliance on Race and Equity Conference Highlights
The Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) hosted their annual membership meeting online and in person in Portland, Oregon from April 19-21, 2022. This conference gathered hundreds of racial equity practitioners across the country who work in local, state and regional government to uplift best practices, celebrate victories, and share lessons learned from their work advancing racial equity in their jurisdictions. Key ideas discussed and lessons learned included:
Local Report Connects Student Housing Instability to Lower Educational Outcomes
2,600 public school students from San Mateo County are experiencing housing instability and that impacts their school performance, according to a recent report released by the John W.
Opportunities for Youth Civic Leadership
While many youth are not yet able to vote in the June 7th statewide primary election, they can still exercise civic empowerment through the channels that are available to them. Civic empowerment is a sense of agency to claim one’s own rights to engage in activities related to their community, school, city or town, and influence their environments. Youth can inform policies and programs that create the conditions for health and create lasting changes in their community.
Shape the Future of Housing in Your Community!
Check out your city’s housing element status to share your input! These cities are currently seeking feedback on their draft housing elements, a long-range plan to accommodate for all housing needs: Redwood City Draft 2023-2031 Housing Element, the City of San Mateo Draft 2023-2031 Housing Element, and the City of South San Francisco General Plan 2040.
Supporting Restorative Practices in South San Francisco Schools
Educational attainment is closely tied to school attendance. When students are suspended or expelled from school for disciplinary reasons, they are less likely to complete school and are more likely to become engaged in the juvenile justice system. The Young Men’s Christian Association’s (YMCA) Youth Services Bureau (YSB) was awarded funding from the 2021 Get Healthy SMC Implementation Funds to support the South San Francisco School District with offering middle and high school students alternatives to suspension.
Meet the New Health Equity Community Health Planner, Nupoor Kulkarni!
Dear Get Healthy SMC partners,
Food as Medicine Working Group
This year health plans administering Medi-Cal will be allowed to bill for community-based provider services or In Lieu of Services (ILOS) components that connect eligible populations with food and nutrition resources. This offers a great opportunity for us to support food as medicine strategies such as medically tailored meals and groceries, healthy food boxes, and healthy food vouchers via a sustainable and structured source of funding.
Congrats to the Next Cohort of EMS Corps Participants!
We are happy to share the following names of students selected from San Mateo County who will participate in our next round of EMS Corps, beginning April and running through August of this year:
Nature and Nurture, Springing Up Strategies for a New Team!
The Health Policy and Planning (HPP) team convened on March
15-16, 2022, for a staff retreat. The goals of the retreat were
to reassess priority areas, goals and objectives, incorporate
lessons from the pandemic, and build a cohesive and stronger
team.
Expanding Options for Testing and Vaccination during COVID-19 Surge
The highly transmissible Omicron variant is fueling a surge in the number of COVID-19 cases throughout the County. Test positivity rates countywide (17.3%) and in the Health Equity Quartile census tracts (24.4%) have increased in the latest 7-day lagged data that goes through January 12th. During this surge, the County has administered more tests than any other time since the pandemic began. This heightened demand for COVID-19 testing during the surge has been outstripping the capacity of healthcare providers, pharmacies, and County-sp
City and School Partnerships to Advance Safe School Travel!
East Palo Alto, Daly City, San Mateo, Redwood City and South San Francisco have been selected for the School Travel Fellowship program rolled out by the San Mateo County Office of Education to foster city-school partnerships to make active school travel safer for students. The interdisciplinary fellowship teams include a representative from city’s public works, transportation planning and/or engineering department, an elected official, school or school district personnel, community member, neighborhood association, and/or other local stakeholders.