According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: “Health equity means that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be as healthy as possible. This requires removing obstacles to health such as poverty, discrimination, and their consequences, including powerlessness and lack of access to good jobs with fair pay, quality education and housing, safe environments, and health care.”  According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), health equity is achieved when every person has the opportunity to "attain his or her full health potential" and no one is "disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of social position or other socially determined circumstances”. Health inequities are reflected in differences in length of life; quality of life; rates of disease, disability, and death; severity of disease; and access to treatment. 

With that in mind, the Brown County Health Equity Coalition was established by a collaborative group of community partners. Through the development and implementation of a guiding charter, the following key concepts were mutually agreed upon as foundational to the work at hand. The Health Equity Coalition will:

• Conduct ongoing assessments of community need 
• Take an aligned and collaborative approach across organizations to navigate what work is being done and being planned to avoid redundances and capitalize on existing assets for crafting and implementing initiatives that fill gaps in the work being done to promote health equity 
• Share and support funding/resource opportunities with the aim of promoting/supporting grassroot organizations/programs in an equitable way
• Share and support initiatives/opportunities aimed at increasing equity, diversity, and inclusion for marginalized populations in our community

A Key Principle

“Nothing about us without us”. This will increase prospects that the coalition can move forward smoothly, with mutual respect and in the same direction. In other words, people affected by an issue must be at the table.  

Members must include true stakeholders, who are so well connected with their communities that they can provide trustworthy information about demographics, health statistics, issues, organizational dynamics, and other stakeholders who might be engaged. Stakeholders are individuals who have reasons to be deeply concerned with an issue. The reasons may be organizational (their organization’s mission is to address these issues), or they may be personal (based on a person’s own experiences or the experiences of the racial and ethnic group to which they belong.)  

Building Trust and Mutual Respect: 

The building of trust begins with understanding, which is achieved through respectful, patient listening and accommodation. Mutual respect is based on the acknowledgment, appreciation, and experience of another’s path, contributions, and abilities. Developing trust and respect takes time and should be ongoing. It starts with honoring the individual as a person first, and then, the community he or she represents. 

Shared Priorities

In February of 2022, the Health Equity Coalition adopted the following overarching statements which will guide the scope of the work completed:

• Priority Area: Improved health equity in Brown County
• Problem Statement: Structural and systemic policies create health inequities in Brown County
• Goal: Ensure health equity for all marginalized community members in Brown County

Opportunities for Engagment

The Health Equity Coalition identified three key opportunities for engagement to advance this important work: education, advocacy, and structural change. The adopted strategies align with these three overarching concepts.  To join in these efforts, please contact Brown County Public Health at bc_health@browncountywi.gov.