Coming April 7, 2015: Ounce of Prevention, Working Together for Healthy Communities Conference

Please note: this blog serves as an archive dedicated to the 2013 Ounce of Prevention Conference and is not a central resource for the 2015 conference.

Save the date!
April 7, 2015

Location : DCU Center, Worcester, MA

Information and registration here

Sponsored by the MA Department of Public Health:
The Ounce of Prevention, Working Together for Healthier Communities, is a statewide conference designed to bring together a wide range of stakeholders in support of healthier and more equitable communities in Massachusetts.

Call for Nominations: Ounce of Prevention Conference - Peter R. Lee Healthy Communities Award and Commissioner's Leadership Award

2013 Ounce Conference Participants Tweeted Their Love

Yesterday marked multiple firsts for the Ounce of Prevention Conference! Record attendance. Four concurrent plenaries. First social media campaign. In our first live-tweet event, conference attendees tweeted photos, questions, reactions and presenter quotes in real-time using the hashtag #Ounce2013. Instant gratification! Here are some of our favorites.

Thanks #ounce2013 for a great event and this awesome award. pic.twitter.com/fcHQIhJ0XK
— HHSI Prevention (@HarborHealthEd) October 22, 2013

#CommunityOrganizing for #HealthEquity: Building&Sustaining Leadership in #CommunitiesOfColor #ounce2013 http://t.co/A2kRF1sJx8
— MAPublicHealthAssoc (@MAPublicHealth) October 22, 2013

Public Health is Everyone's Business: Interview with Elecia Miller

Elecia Miller

Elecia Miller, of the Lawrence Mayor's Health Task Force, is longtime and dynamic member of the Ounce of Prevention Conference Planning Committee, involved in crafting the Healthcare Reform and the Integrated Chronic Disease Prevention plenaries. Here, Elecia reflects on her work and the on this year's conference.

What do you want participants to learn at the conference?
I often hear “how does what I do affect Public Health?”, or “what does that have to with me?”  Public Health is everyone’s business, no matter who you are. Think of the impact of smoking bans in public places, or immunization requirement for all residents and then ask those questions again. I am hoping that the conference keynote and plenaries will bring some of that thought process home.

New Perspectives on Community Partnership: Interview with Laura Hillier

Laura Hillier

Laura Hillier directs Community Partnerships at the School of Education at Merrimack College.  As a member of the Ounce of Prevention Conference Planning Committee, she has helped design plenary topics and workshops that address health equity and social justice. Elecia Miller interviewed Laura about her experience with the Ounce of Prevention Conference.

What do you want participants of the conference to walk away with?

My hope is that participants walk away from this conference with two things. First, a new perspective or a new way of looking at an issue they currently address in their work. It could be a better understanding of the administrative challenges that their organization will experience in the face of implementing payment reform, gaining a better perspective of how a community-based agency can collaborate with a primary care organization, etc. I imagined it as not just gaining new knowledge, but changing the way they see the issue or service they provide. Second, I hope they leave the conference with one specific action they can take to strengthen the work they do and the communities they serve.

Registration is Open!

Registration is now open for the October 22nd Ounce of Prevention 2013 Conference: Many Paths to Healthier Communities
Click here for event summary and to register!

This year’s conference will focus on four themes:

• Health Care Reform & Primary Prevention
• Integrating Primary Health & Primary Care
• Community Organizing for Health Equity
• Climate Change & Public Health

Wondering How to Navigate the Current Prevention Landscape? These four topics offer a roadmap

The October 22, 2013 Ounce of Prevention Conference will focus on four distinct but complementary themes, which will be explored in plenaries and workshops throughout the day. The planning committee has been working diligently to craft conference content that will help participants better understand and navigate the ever-changing prevention landscape. Here is a sneak preview of our plenary topics and descriptions. Stay tuned for details about presenters, workshops and more.

Plenary Titles: 

● Steering the Health System Upstream: Health Care Reform and Primary Prevention

● New Partnerships for Systems Change: Integrating Behavioral Health and Primary Care

● Community Organizing for Health Equity: Building & Sustaining Leadership in Communities of Color

● Climate Change and Public Health: Cross-sector Collaboration and Community Resilience

Reflections on the Ounce of Prevention Conference: An Interview with Clara Savage

Clara Savage

Clara Savage, Director of Common Pathways, is a long-time member of the Ounce of Prevention Conference Planning Committee. Her contributions to the conference have made a major impact over the years, especially in the areas of community inclusion, health equity and the connection between health care and public health. Clara, a graduate of the MassForum for Healthy Communities, frequently references and is guided by the Healthy Communities Principles.

How did you get involved in the Ounce of Prevention Conference?

Through Cathy O’Connor and Peter Lee when I attended the MassForum for Creating Healthy Communities about 8 years ago. Based on the Healthy Communities Principles, we all have to come together and learned from each other. With the Ounce of Prevention Conference we have the opportunity to come together and talk about common issues. It’s a great opportunity for anyone interested in public health to learn, get training, hear about lessons learned, and learn about the latest issues.