Considering Quality: Engaging Consumers to Make Better Health Care Decisions
This Issue Brief examines the potential of consumers to use information to select high-quality health services and to become drivers of quality improvement at the systems level. Information tools for consumers, such as report cards on health plans and providers, decision support aides, and the Internet are discussed. It also takes a look at the roles foundations can play in developing and disseminating quality information for consumers, such as developing quality indicators; assessing the effectiveness of information technology, including the Internet; and funding advocacy efforts to ensure consumers have the information needed to make appropriate health care choices.
Reversing the Obesity Epidemic: Policy Strategies for Health Funders
This report presents the rationale for using policy approaches to change food and physical activity environments. The report highlights the efforts of health funders supporting policy change in schools, food systems and sustainable agriculture, the built environment, and across communities. It also briefly examines trends and opportunities in health systems, workplaces, and state programs, and concludes with a discussion of challenges and opportunities for moving forward.
Knowledge to Action
This resource book, prepared in celebration of GIH’s 25th anniversary, takes a look at 10 critical health issues, considering both changes in the health sector and in health policy over 25 years and the work of health foundations in addressing these challenges.
Making the Most Out of Community Advisory Committees
Lessons from conversion foundation CACs can inform other foundations’ efforts to elicit community input.
Improving Health Care Access: Grantmakers Share Their Experiences
This report is a collection of profiles that tells the stories of how health funders across the country are working to improve access to health care. With these profiles, we have attempted to capture the priorities, funding strategies, accomplishments, and challenges of a cross section of grantmakers, giving readers a place to look for insights that they can adapt to their own circumstances. Download the full report or the executive summary.
Counting in Connecticut: Arming Advocates to Protect Health
A foundation provides a Medicaid coalition with the hard numbers that help sway a statehouse.
Behind the Smile: How Funders Can Improve Oral Health
The consequences of neglecting oral health are significant. Oral disease can interfere with the ability to speak, chew, and swallow. In some cases, painful mouth conditions can result in overuse of emergency rooms and lost productivity, and contribute to low self-esteem. Oral disease, in children alone, is responsible for almost 52 million lost school hours each year.
Annual Report 2005
The Annual Report looks back on 2005, highlighting key facts about the organization’s operations and governance.
What to Expect When You’re Expecting to Improve Community Health
Building grassroots capacity for change can be a messy, hard-to-measure business.