The following preliminary recommendations are organized around the four identified health initiatives and are based on research presented in this report as well as the work of the planning groups for each initiative. Within each health initiative general recommendations are provided that focus on integrating mental health, physical health, and substance abuse issues. These initiatives are inter-linked; the action of any one will impact the other three. To reduce health disparities we need more emphases on wellness and prevention programs, better access to care, and we need to reduce the impact of substance abuse on the community. The synergistic effects of these initiatives will have a greater impact on the health of the community than any one of them individually.
Many of our community's most serious problems such as substance abuse, diabetes, hypertension, and heart disease could be seriously impacted by a targeted effort at individual health behaviors. For example, a consortium of community employers, organizations, schools, public/private sector health providers might replicate innovative anti-smoking models such as California's very successful state-wide initiative. The exponential impact of a successful anti-smoking campaign on hospital costs, heart disease, cancer rates, and productivity lost at the work place provides just one cost-effective illustration of the potential effect of a major preventive collaborative effort.
Table 10-1 identifies the support planning groups that are being utilized for each initiative. The next step will be for the initiative planning groups to develop more detailed plans and recommendations with input from community workgroups for each health initiative.
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