Humana Foundation Advances Equity Through Community-Engaged Research Practices

Grantmakers In Health’s Maya Schane spoke with Heather Hyden and Soojin Conover of the Humana Foundation about the Foundation’s recently published report, Strengthening Science and Community Impact Through Equitable Research Practices. The report examines innovative research methods adopted by the Foundation’s partners to promote health equity in public health research through community-engaged research practices.

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Collaborating for Impact: Providing Trust-Based Grantmaking and Technical Assistance to Support Local Resilience to Extreme Weather Events

In the last few years, there has been an increased number of extreme weather events, including wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, floods and heatwaves in the United States. In 2023, the United States experienced 28 disasters that cost at least $1 billion, the largest number of billion-dollar disasters in a single year on record (Smith 2024). While some areas of the country are more susceptible to these threats, there are no regions immune to disasters. According to a recent Gallup poll, 37 percent of adults in the United States report they have been personally impacted by at least one extreme weather event in the last two years, which is higher than the 2022/2023 survey result at 33 percent.

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Working Through Challenges to Sharing Power With Community: Highlights from a session at Grantmakers in Health’s Annual Conference

The people closest to the issue best know the solutions. For health funders, sharing power with community could mean giving residents a voice in shaping your grantmaking priorities or where grant dollars are spent. Many funders understand that solutions are more likely to be successful when the people who are most affected have a voice in shaping them. But when it comes to including that voice, the work often stalls before it starts.

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Older Adults’ Mental Health Needs

A new report from The Commonwealth Fund compares older adults’ mental health needs and access to treatment in the United States and other high-income countries to better understand coverage gaps and opportunities for improvement.

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New York State Health Foundation Brief Examines Food Scarcity’s Influence on Mental Health

A new issue brief authored by the New York State Health Foundation, “Food Scarcity’s Influence on Mental Health During the COVID-19 Pandemic in New York State,” builds of previous analyses foundation analyses that documented increased rates of poor mental health and food scarcity among New York residents. Using national research as the basis, this new report explores the association between experiencing food scarcity and poor mental health during the pandemic.

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New Archstone Report Reflects on 30 Years of Palliative Care Investment

For three decades the Archstone Foundation has focused investments on improving the care and experience of people with serious illness. Their portfolio has championed numerous palliative care and end-of-life initiatives at the local, state, and national levels. Reflecting on this body of grantmaking, the foundation has released a new legacy report that examines this work, grantee achievements, and the enduring impact of this investment.

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The Power of Partnerships in Improving Health Care Access and Outcomes

Partnerships are essential to improving health care access, and outcomes, and forming partnerships require listening, learning, transparency, and flexibility.

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Resolutions for a Revolution in Philanthropy

Heading into the new year, we are now asking one another, “What risks did our foundations take during these past two years that we may want to continue? What has philanthropy done differently over the last two years that perhaps has made our sector more effective, inclusive, and responsive? We highlight three ways our foundations changed for the better during the pandemic, strategies funders are using to support building or shifting power to nonprofit partners.

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Homelessness and Health Equity: Health Funders’ Alignment and California’s Next Medicaid Waiver

California has a new plan under its recently-approved Medicaid waiver that builds on innovations implemented in recent state programs and is centered on health equity, especially for people experiencing homelessness.

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