HealthConnect Blog

Welcome! This is a space for many stakeholders to share perspectives on how we address social determinants of health through advocacy and systems change. You are invited to learn with us and share these posts with others as we grow a network of champions for health equity.

Latest Posts

Creating a Culture of Inclusivity

How Prioritizing Communication Can Propel Your Workplace Forward

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How Community Health Workers Can Improve Heart Health

This role can promote prevention and early intervention that lead to equitable health outcomes

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How Medical-Legal Partnerships Can Link Systems to Improve Health Outcomes

Learn about the model and how it's being implemented in central Iowa

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Creating a Culture of Sustainability in Helping Professions

Policies and practices leaders can implement to help address burnout

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Meet Dr. Daniel Zinnel, Incoming Mid-Iowa Health Foundation Board Member

Foundation news
Aug 2, 2023
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Using Data for Systems-Level Advocacy

Advocacy
Jul 28, 2023
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7 Benefits of a Statewide System Approach to Community Health Work

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Why I Advocate for Heart Disease Preventive Strategies

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4 Ways to Center Youth in Mental Health Conversations

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Economic Burden of Health Inequities: 5 Insights to Inform Action

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Disability Rights Attorney Shares What Iowans Should Know About Medicaid

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Health Equity Work in Action: What Funders Should Know

Funder practices
Apr 5, 2023
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Basic Income: 4 Things to Know

Partnerships
Apr 4, 2023
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Prioritizing Advocacy: How a Nonprofit Created a Full-Time Role

Advocacy
Feb 1, 2023
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Meet the team leading UpLift – The Central Iowa Basic Income Pilot

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HealthConnect Fellows: Engaging authentically in systems change

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7 insights gained through a nonprofit merger

Foundation grants
Nov 17, 2022
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Six Elements to Consider with Community Conversations

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Community-Based Participatory Research: What to Know

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How student research informed the basic income project

Action planning
Sep 20, 2022
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How empathy is a part of systems-change work

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Making the Case: Communications Tactics that Work

Advocacy
Jul 26, 2022
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4 ways to measure system-change progress

System change
May 31, 2022
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Health disparities for Black pregnant Iowans: What you should know

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5 reasons why youth should lead systems-change work

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What we mean by 'system change'

System change
Apr 6, 2022
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4 insights from researching housing instability in central Iowa

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Iowa youth aging out of foster care: How are they doing?

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7 lessons learned from Sesame Street partnership

Foundation grants
Jan 31, 2022
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A closer look at mental health in schools during the pandemic

Community response
Nov 29, 2021
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Get to Know Dr. Nalo Johnson

Foundation news
Nov 24, 2021
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4 questions for nonprofit and community leaders

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5 questions for leaders in philanthropy

Funder practices
Nov 5, 2021
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5 ways to think about your personal brand as a part of your work

Leadership
Nov 1, 2021
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4 issues impacting children’s health during the pandemic

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7 lessons learned about systems change work

System change
Sep 9, 2021
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The Foundation's role in the HealthConnect Fellowship

Funder practices
Sep 8, 2021
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Go ahead: Brag a little

Leadership
Aug 5, 2021
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Planning from strength: questions to ask your team

Advocacy
Apr 26, 2021
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Preparing yourself to center the voices of those impacted by issues

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Vision vs. Tactics: How we can achieve the change we want to see

Action planning
Feb 22, 2021
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System-change achievements advocates are making for central Iowa’s kids

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How we can begin to find peace in 2021

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Disconnection matters

System change
Nov 24, 2020
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3 questions to reshape your policy agenda

Advocacy
Oct 30, 2020
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What you should know about homelessness in central Iowa during the pandemic

Community response
Oct 26, 2020
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Leading system change, even in times of uncertainty

System change
Jul 22, 2020
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We must all do our part to be anti-racist

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Lessons in preventing burnout

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5 barriers pregnant women in poverty face in getting the care they need

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What I've learned about system-change work during this time of crisis

System change
Jun 11, 2020
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What the COVID-19 pandemic has taught us about system change

System change
May 10, 2020
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We have the resources to build a better food system here in Iowa

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What we should do about COVID-19 racial disparities in Iowa

Advocacy
May 6, 2020
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11 best practices for working from home during COVID-19

Leadership
Apr 8, 2020
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5 things you must know about migrant farmworkers in Iowa

Community response
Mar 30, 2020
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4 ways to understand weight stigma and promote a healthier community

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5 lessons learned in building the village of support for early-grade reading

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How we can increase everyone's access to quality foods

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Approaching storytelling with authentic engagement

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How my advocacy work became personal

Advocacy
Jan 6, 2020
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Your town might keep you from meeting your New Year's resolution

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The best professional advice I have ever received

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Exploring a new use for the Count the Kicks app through fellow connections

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We all can do better for Iowa’s children and families

System change
Nov 27, 2019
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A fellow's perspective: Getting to do the work we should be doing

System change
Nov 25, 2019
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18 HealthConnect Fellows to advance system changes to improve children’s health

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Cultivating Change: How the HealthConnect Fellowship lifted a network of advocates to improve children's health

System change
Nov 15, 2019
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One voice for a children’s mental health system

System change
Nov 15, 2019
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Persistence for quality health care

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Who's at your table?

Advocacy
Nov 13, 2019
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A call to action for Latinx youth

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Putting the pieces together for children to learn

Partnerships
Nov 9, 2019
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Housing code for healthier lives

Advocacy
Nov 7, 2019
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Connecting systems, connecting families

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Transforming practices to prevent trauma before birth

System change
Oct 31, 2019
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Six insights from listening to health advocates' stories

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A small, thoughtful group isn't the only thing

Grassroots
Oct 16, 2019
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4 skills to being an effective leader in advocacy

Action planning
Aug 23, 2019
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Decolonizing every table

System change
Jul 31, 2019
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The power is in the partnership

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If we're going to reduce trauma and family stress, we have to start at the very beginning

Foundation grants
Jul 31, 2019
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Medicaid makes a difference

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The look of our community is still impacted by decades old policy choices

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Latinx youth mental health: Resiliency and its limitations

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What does opportunity look like for Iowa children (and are we doing the right things help them thrive)?

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Compassion architects activate and spread compassion

Leadership
Oct 4, 2018
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Mobilizing the political will to develop a children's mental health system in Iowa

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The power of positive stressors

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Together, inching closer to a tipping point on children's issues

Advocacy
May 22, 2018
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Long-haul Advocacy: Adopting a long-term, sustained advocacy approach to effective child health systems change

Advocacy
Mar 29, 2018
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Housing policy is health policy (and education policy, and economic policy...)

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What do youth who are homeless need? And how far am I willing to go to help?

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When you have that "aha" moment, there's no going back

System change
Oct 23, 2017
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Decision-makers arent' acting as we'd like: Three reasons

Advocacy
Oct 23, 2017
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I have a dream... and an action plan

System change
Oct 23, 2017
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The teachers will learn and the students will teach

Partnerships
Oct 23, 2017
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Taking a new approach - A MIHF board member's perspective

System change
Oct 23, 2017
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Mid-Iowa Health Foundation announces new strategic initiative

Foundation news
Oct 23, 2017
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