The Power of Grassroots Groups to Foster Wellness Vital Aging Network September, 2015 Nico Pronk, Ph.D. VP and Chief Science Officer HealthPartners Adj. Professor, Social and Behavioral Sciences Harvard School of Public Health

Agenda Last 2 years we talked a lot about OLM…how is that working for you? Let’s continue the conversation with a focus on “the importance of YOU!” – Grassroots leaders – Grassroots groups – Grassroots efforts – The role of a convener group Finding value in what we do as a community for a community

Optimal Lifestyle Metric (OLM) Being physically active Not smoking/no tobacco use Eating 5 fruits and vegetables each day Drinking alcohol in moderation …and add a healthy dose of “Healthy Thinking” to it by expressing an ATTITUDE OF GRATITUDE

…In Your World… Updates on use of the OLM concept – Phillips OLM experience – Others? Other activities – updates

Making healthy choices easy choices Individual Effort Environmental (physical, psychosocial) and Policy Interventions (Public, organizational, etc) Health Potential Source: Pronk NP, Kottke TE. Health Promotion in Health Systems. In: Rippe, J. Lifestyle Medicine, 2013.

6 Valuing in Context “Knowing is not enough; we must apply. Willing is not enough; we must do.” —Goethe Just a Couple of Questions to consider: “Who leads? Who follows? Who convenes?” “How do we know whether what we do carries value?” “How do we know that the changes we implemented do not add harms?”

Leadership Leading from the front Leading from the middle Leading from the back Servant leadership Convening – Ensuring that the conversation happens

The functions of a convener Serve as a trusted and accountable leader Engage partners from multiple sectors Facilitate agreement among multi-sector stakeholders on shared goals and metrics Assess community resources, including workforce capabilities, and work with partners to make appropriate adjustments Work at the systems level to make policy and practice changes in public and private sectors Convey what works at the policy/systems practice levels to reach sufficient scale Sustain change by impacting policies and practices in collaboration with institutions and community partners at the local, community and state levels Pursue financial sustainability including opportunities to employ multiple funding streams Gather, analyze, monitor, integrate, learn and share data at the individual and population level Identify and connect with system navigators who help individuals coordinate, access and manage multiple services and supports Develop a system of ongoing and intentional communication and with affected sectors, systems and communities Source: Nemours Health System

Valuing Prevention A Report of the IOM The value of a program is defined as its benefits minus its harms and costs Requires a comprehensive assessment of both benefits, harms, and costs Community-based prevention programs include worksite health promotion programs and services Value should be assigned to its benefits across 3 domains: – Health Physical and mental, disease, HRQOL, etc. – Community well-being Social norms, education, employment, etc. – Community process Local leadership, civic engagement, etc. Source: IOM 2012

A Framework for Valuing

Making it real… Some factors are well-accepted in terms of its value – Ability for self-care, functional capacity, safe streets, etc. Some factors are important to some, but not to others – E.g., needle exchange programs vs. illegal drug use

What can you do? Recognize that the trade-offs between benefits and harms are valued differently by groups Be transparent in decision-making and report on the deliberations leading-up to decisions Encourage representation of all groups Ask the community what they “value”…not all that is valued can be monetized, but it can be measured

…In Your World… Open dialogue Thank you!