New Research Shows How Enhanced Connectivity Between Health and Social Service Systems Can Reduce Inequality, Inefficiency

This article explores research showing that cross-sector connections have been slower to develop in rural than urban communities, giving rise to a new and growing form of inequality across the United States.

These findings are part of a collection of 15 new studies released on July 14, 2020, in a special issue of the American Journal of Public Health, all focused on the topic of aligning health and social systems to improve population health.

Components of Alignment

Shared Purpose

Author Organization

Systems for Action

Publication Date

07.14.2020

Topic Area

Alignment 101

Health Care

Public Health

Social Needs

Brief

Intermediary Organizations Are Urgently Needed to Assist in Modernizing Public Health and Addressing the Drivers of Health in the United States

This issue brief describes the different roles intermediaries can play; provides examples of where they have been used in practice; and identifies the risks, benefits, and possible innovations of intermediaries as well as policy approaches that might facilitate their appropriate use.

Publication

“More Than Just Giving Them a Piece of Paper”: Interviews with Primary Care on Social Needs Referrals to Community-Based Organizations

This publication characterizes referrals to community-based organizations by primary care practices, which are increasingly being used by healthcare organizations to invest in social care.

Publication

Revising the Foundational Public Health Services in 2022

This publication provides a framework outlining the unique responsibilities of governmental public health and can be used to explain the vital role of governmental public health in a thriving community; identify capacity and resource gaps; determine the cost for assuring foundational activities; and justify funding needs