Knowledge to Action Accelerating Progress in Health, Well-Being, and Equity

AN ESSENTIAL CONVERSATION FROM TODAY'S LEADING VOICES ON EFFECTING CHANGE IN HEALTH AND SOCIETY

"The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation has changed the conversation about health in the United States." --Jo Ivey Boufford, President, New York Academy of Medicine

In a society where a person's zip code is a stronger predictor of health status than their genetic profile, every public health challenge is also a challenge of equity, implementation, and policy. For better or worse, improving health requires societal change, and the scale of today's societal challenges can have a stifling effect on even the most well-intended efforts.

Assembled by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and featuring today's most prominent voices from diverse sectors, Knowledge to Action is a collection of short conversations focused on the idea of meaningful change -- its definition, its impediments, and exploring how we can transition from research to action in health, well-being, and equity. Steeped in honesty and benefiting from the diverse experiences of an extraordinary assembly of academics, journalists, policymakers, public health practitioners, and researchers, this book offers provocative yet actionable perspectives that will benefit anyone who reads it.

Alonzo L. Plough, PhD, MPH, MA, is the Chief Science Officer and Vice President of Research-Evaluation-Learning at the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Plough has had a distinguished career in public health practice, academia, and philanthropy, previously serving as: an executive leader in the Los Angeles County, Seattle-King County, and Boston Departments of Public Health; Professor of Health Services at the University of Washington School of Public Health; Professor at Harvard, Tufts, and Boston Universities; and Vice President of the California Endowment. His work has focused on improving health and well-being, and increasing health equity. Plough also serves as a board member for many health and social welfare organizations.

Preface
Alonzo L. Plough

Acknowledgements

I. Accelerating a Culture of Health by Sharing Knowledge and Acting Together

Introduction
Risa Lavizzo-Mourey

II. Views on Understanding Culture, Experience, and Health

1. Fear and Despair: Consequences of Inequity
Anne Case and Ta-Nehisi Coates

2. From Disparity to Equity
David Williams

3. How Americans Value Health
Larry Bye, Dante Chinni, and Alia Crum


III. Pursuing Knowledge with Purpose

4. The Tyranny of Evidence
Rajiv Mehta, Brian Mittman, Karen Pittman, Lisbeth Schorr, and Emily Tanner-Smith

5. Measure the Change You Wish to See in the World
Sarah Burd-Sharps, Bruce Y. Lee, Karen Matsuoka, and Carley Riley

6. The Secrecy Divide: Sharing Data Across Sectors
Heather Joseph, Joshua Sharfstein, and Steven Woolf

7. The Importance of Community-Based Participatory Research
Christopher Gibbons and Consuelo H. Wilkins

IV. Critical Pathways for Systems Change

8. Fostering Healthier Environments for Children and Families
Max Crowley, Ron Haskins, Eboni Howard, and Debra Ness

9. Aligning Systems of Health and Health Care
Manik Bhat, Sherry Glied, Manmeet Kaur, and Rocco Perla

10. Building Healthy Cities
Kate DeSantis, Gil Penalosa, and Ela Rausch

11. Rethinking How We Police Communities
Amanda Geller, John Rich, and Auke van Dijk

12. Climate Change Through a Health Lens
Eric Klinenberg, Sabrina McCormick, and Linda Rudolph

V. Innovating to Build a Culture of Health

13. Public, Private, Nonprofit Partnership: A Case Study of Social Impact Bonds
Chris Ellis, Andrea Phillips, and John Roman

14. Forward in Baltimore: Illuminating the Possible, Achieving the Potential
Lew Daly and Leana Wen

15. A Look Inside RWJF's Approaches
Priya Gandhi and Brian Quinn

VI. Conclusion
Alonzo L. Plough

References

Index

Culture of Health Action Framework