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.

Interview with MDPH's Rachel Tanenhaus: Making Accessibility a Priority at the 2013 Ounce of Prevention Conference (Part 2)

Thanks to the hard work of the Ounce of Prevention Accessibility Committee, this year’s conference is shaping up to be the most accessible one ever organized.  Here's part 2 of our interview with Rachel Tanenhaus, an active member of the Accessibility Committee and Program Coordinator at MDPH’s Health and Disability Program, which is part of the Office of Health Equity.

(Here's part 1 in case you missed it!)  

Rachel Tanenhaus and her guide dog Salem

What are some frequent challenges that people with disabilities experience at conferences and how can this be improved?

The first question is always, "Can I get there?" A lot of us don't drive, and many conference sites are located far from public transit. Affordability is another big issue, since many people with disabilities are unemployed or have low incomes for other reasons. Of course there's always the question of whether someone can get in the door and navigate around the conference site, including the restrooms. Communication issues are huge, since most conferences focus on imparting information and networking -- if you have trouble seeing or hearing and there are no interpreters or accessible formats for printed materials or people aren't verbalizing their Power Point slides -- that makes it really hard to get much out of a conference.