Public health research shows that addressing the social determinants of health can have a major impact on improving population health and decreasing health disparities. Tax-exempt hospitals, given federal requirements around community health needs assessments and implementation strategies, are important partners in addressing the social drivers of health.
What are the Social Determinants of Health?
The World Health Organization defines the social determinants of health as "the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life. These forces and systems include economic policies and systems, development agendas, social norms, social policies and political systems."
Healthy People 2030 (HP2030) highlights the importance of addressing the social determinants of health by including "Create social, physical, and economic environments that promote attaining the full potential for health and well-being for all” as one of the five overarching goals for the decade. HP2030 features many objectives related to the five (5) key areas of social determinants of health:
These five key areas (determinants) include:
- Economic Stability — Poverty, Employment, Food Security, Housing Stability
- Education Access and Quality — High School Graduation, Enrollment in Higher Education, Language and Literacy, Early Childhood Education and Development
- Social and Community Context — Social Cohesion, Civic Participation, Discrimination, Incarceration
- Health Care Access and Quality — Access to Health Care, Access to Primary Care, Health Literacy
- Neighborhood and Built Environment — Access to Healthy Foods, Quality of Housing, Crime and Violence, Environmental Conditions
CHA Resources
Addressing the root causes of poor health is not unique to Catholic health care. What is unique to Catholic health care is that our faith and values compel us to give special attention to our neighbors who are economically poor and to work for the common good. CHA has developed a set of resources to help engage health care leaders on how addressing the social determinants of health is a part of our DNA — stemming from our founding congregations of religious women and men who saw needs in the communities they were sent to serve, and then fulfilled those needs, working in partnership.
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Investing in Community Health: A Toolkit for Hospitals
This toolkit is designed to help health care organizations look at their resources in a different light, expand their efforts to support their communities, and maximize their impact on community health by harnessing the power of their investment capital.
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Healing the Multitudes - Catholic Health Care's Commitment to Community Health - A Resource for Boards
This resource, Healing the Multitudes – Catholic Health Care’s Commitment to Community Health: A Resource for Boards, explains why the Catholic health ministry is called to take a leadership role in addressing the social determinants of health and the board’s key role in making this work a strategic focus of their organization. This focus on addressing the root causes of poor health is not unique to Catholic health care. What is unique to Catholic health care is that our faith compels us to give special attention to our neighbors who are economically poor and to work for the common good. It is these values that drive us to lead the way in this work, even when the path forward is not clear.
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Healing the Multitudes - Catholic Health Care's Commitment to Community Health
This resource, Healing the Multitudes: Catholic Health Care’s Commitment to Community Health, explains why the Catholic health ministry is called to take a leadership role in addressing the social determinants of health and outlines the key components of a comprehensive strategy that organizations need to consider when undertaking this work.
Healing the Multitudes - Catholic Health Care's Commitment to Community Health PowerPoint Template
This PowerPoint is one you can use in your organization to facilitate discussion around your organization’s efforts to make community health a strategic priority.
Healing the Multitudes - Social Determinants of Health and Catholic Tradition: A Reflection & Integration Resource for Boards
Addressing the root causes of poor health is not unique to Catholic health care. What is unique to Catholic health care is that our faith compels us to give special attention to our neighbors who are economically poor and to work for the common good. It is these values that drive us to lead the way in this work, even when the path forward is not clear. CHA has developed a set of resources to help engage health care leaders on how this activity — addressing the social determinants of health — is not at all new to Catholic health ministry. It is a part of our DNA — stemming from our founding congregations of religious women and men who saw needs in the communities they were sent to serve, and then fulfilled those needs, working in partnership.This reflection guide, a companion piece for the Healing the Multitudes booklets, provides reflective exercises and facilitation guidance to help engage health care leaders on how this activity — addressing the social determinants of health — is an important part of Catholic social tradition. It is available for order hardcopy or electronic download.
Healing the Multitudes, Social Determinants of Health Video
This six-minute video highlights the roots of Catholic health care ministry’s commitment to seek out the needs of a community as part of our tradition and actions of our founding congregations. It features Sr. Barbara Moore, Ph.D., a members of the Sisters of St. Joseph of Carondelet who is a former Ascension sponsor; John Fialka, author of the book Sisters: Catholic Nuns and the Making of America, and former reporter with the Wall Street Journal in its Washington D.C. bureau; and Julie Trocchio, former senior director of community benefit and continuing care at the Catholic Health Association.
Webinar Recordings
Investing in Community Health: A Toolkit for Hospitals
» Watch the webinar recording
» Watch the webinar recording
Other Resources
- Call to Action: Addressing Health-Related Social Needs in Communities Across the Nation | U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) | November 2023
- Social Determinants of Health: Know What Affects Health | Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
- Community Toolbox | Center for Community Health and Development at the University of Kansas
- The U.S. Playbook to Address Social Determinants of Health (SDOH) | Domestic Policy Council Office of Science and Technology Policy | November 2023
- Social Determinates of Health Series | American Hospital Association