Network's Spotlights
Welcome to the Minnesota Health Equity Connections Blog. This space is a tool to celebrate and share our work in health equity.
Health Equity Network Spotlight
Check in here to see the spotlights of your networks!
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Share Spotlight on: Le Sueur and Waseca Counties on Facebook Share Spotlight on: Le Sueur and Waseca Counties on Twitter Share Spotlight on: Le Sueur and Waseca Counties on Linkedin Email Spotlight on: Le Sueur and Waseca Counties link
Spotlight on: Le Sueur and Waseca Counties
In Le Sueur and Waseca Counties, a dedicated team of public health professionals serves their communities with equity at the forefront while leveraging data to meet future goals. Above all, their own lived experiences, as well as those of their family members, give them insights into community concerns and help to establish meaningful relationships and connections.
Colin Ayers is the community health educator and planner for Le Sueur and Waseca Counties. When he started the position three years ago, he focused on data collection and analysis. Now, he’s also the project lead in areas like mental health, cannabis, opioids, and... Continue reading
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Share Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging on Facebook Share Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging on Twitter Share Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging on Linkedin Email Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging link
Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging
Spotlight on: Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging
Named for Minnesota's northernmost scenic drive, which travels along the Rainy River from Voyageurs National Park near the Canadian border west to North Dakota, the Dancing Sky Area Agency on Aging supports a 21-county area. Like the scenic drive it’s named for, Dancing Sky covers a vast area of mostly rural communities. Because of this, it encounters both challenges and opportunities.
Dancing Sky is a program of the Northwest Regional Development Commission and collaborates with many partners and providers. They coordinate the pass-through funding intended to enrich the lives of older adults... Continue reading
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Share Spotlight on: Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services on Facebook Share Spotlight on: Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services on Twitter Share Spotlight on: Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services on Linkedin Email Spotlight on: Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services link
Spotlight on: Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services
The team working at Faribault and Martin County Health and Human Services is distinctive for many reasons, including the fact that two staff members have the same first name: Kaylee Diefenderfer is the Health Communications Planner, and Kaley Hernandez is the Public Health Planner and Statewide Health Improvement Partnership (SHIP) Coordinator.
Diefenderfer and Hernandez share more than their names. They also share a passion for their work, particularly the Bridges out of Poverty training their agency provides. Funded partly by a Minnesota Health Equity Networks grant, Bridges Out of Poverty is designed to give participants a deeper understanding of poverty... Continue reading
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Share "No one knows everything, but together we know a lot." on Facebook Share "No one knows everything, but together we know a lot." on Twitter Share "No one knows everything, but together we know a lot." on Linkedin Email "No one knows everything, but together we know a lot." link
"No one knows everything, but together we know a lot."
Spotlight on: Minnesota Health Equity Networks
In this month's newsletter, the Networks would like to spotlight its own efforts as they welcome new partners and celebrates two years of health equity work in Minnesota.
The Minnesota Health Equity Networks team photos reveal a lot about their approach to advancing health equity across Minnesota. Gathered in front of meaningful locations, such as in front of a mural in Mankato or by a wall sign that reads "Do the Most Good" at a community gathering space in Minneapolis, these images capture a vibrant, diverse, and united team of collaborators dedicated to their... Continue reading
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Share Building upon strength and culture on Facebook Share Building upon strength and culture on Twitter Share Building upon strength and culture on Linkedin Email Building upon strength and culture link
Building upon strength and culture
Spotlight on: Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES)
Vibrant colors and beautiful images greet visitors even before they enter the Comunidades Latinas Unidas en Servicio (CLUES) offices in St. Paul. Outside the light-filled lobby, a mural features a young girl draped in a shawl decorated with flags of numerous Latin American nations that the people of CLUES represent. Embedded within the symbolic design, a banner holds the text, “La Cultura Cura,” or “Culture Heals,” in English.
The CLUES building in St. Paul houses the Mexican Consulate, offices for the Abriendo Caminos Behavioral Health Department, space for cultural art exhibits, and... Continue reading
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Share Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education on Facebook Share Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education on Twitter Share Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education on Linkedin Email Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education link
Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education
Being a place for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare and education
Network member spotlight: WeARE - The Clinic (Brainerd, MN)
View the full July newsletter: Minnesota Health Equity Networks July Newsletter
Tucked in the middle of a strip mall on Oak Street near downtown Brainerd, WeARE – The Clinic boasts cheery bright green and purple signage. It's across the street from the Brainerd Family YMCA and about a block from the local high school. Welcoming and approachable, WeARE is the go-to resource for compassionate and inclusive sexual healthcare, transformational health education programming, and collaborations that serve reproductive justice in the... Continue reading
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Share Listening to what youth and community want and need on Facebook Share Listening to what youth and community want and need on Twitter Share Listening to what youth and community want and need on Linkedin Email Listening to what youth and community want and need link
Listening to what youth and community want and need
The lower level of the CornerStone Community and Youth Center in Frazee, MN, is a hive of activity. A 40-foot chalk wall, a pool table, ping pong, foosball, TV, and gaming offer artistic creativity and fun. In the Maker’s Space, youth can cook and eat in a full kitchen, with a pantry and cupboards full of ingredients for budding young chefs and cooks. They can learn to make t-shirts, woodworking, painting, sketching, and pottery. Youth can operate equipment like 3-D printers, laser engravers, Cricut Maker 3, and screen printers. Offered to youth from 4th to 12th grade as a free... Continue reading
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Share Making human to human connections on Facebook Share Making human to human connections on Twitter Share Making human to human connections on Linkedin Email Making human to human connections link
Making human to human connections
Making human-to-human connections
Network member spotlight: Zumbro Valley Medical Society Foundation Street Medicine Program
View the full May newsletter: Minnesota Health Equity Networks May Newsletter
Three years ago, Zumbro Valley Medical Society (ZVMS) started a Street Medicine program. This program brings together physicians, medical students, community partners, and individuals with lived experience to identify and create effective ways to improve health care for people experiencing homelessness in Olmsted County.
We need to adapt to people and their circumstances rather than expect people to adapt to us.” – Beth Kangas, Executive Director, ZVMS
During “street rounds,” a physician and medical student... Continue reading
What's in a recipe for health equity?
Our team at the Minnesota Health Equity Networks has been deeply engaged in discussions about our vision and future work, imagining what the next few years will bring. These conversations have been both productive and enjoyable. One particularly inspiring discussion led us to envision advancing health equity as if it were a recipe for a dish or even a full meal. We began considering the essential ingredients and the steps required to achieve health equity.
The coolest part of this process was realizing there’s no single right way to make this “meal.” The recipe needs constant adjustment, and sometimes, our efforts don’t yield the desired outcome. When that happens, we reflect on the ingredients or steps that impacted the result and then start again.
We brainstormed some ingredients to include on our recipe card (see below). What else could be included? What ingredients are missing? What directions do we need to add? What has worked well for you?
Thanks for adding to our collective recipe with us,
Shor
