National Academy of Sciences

Research has increasingly found that social determinants, such as income, education, behavioral health, and environmental health, have a disproportionate impact on population health.

In an effort to catalyze needed action to improve population health, NYHealth awarded the National Academies of Sciences (NAS) Institute of Medicine a grant in 2012 to help launch the Roundtable on Population Health Improvement. The roundtable began identifying and raising awareness of innovative population health interventions. In 2016, NYHealth awarded NAS a second grant for the roundtable to build on these efforts and include more experts from broader sectors, convene workshops to accelerate community and state improvements in population health, and create recommendations on best practices for stakeholders. In 2019, NYHealth awarded NAS a grant to further support the roundtable as it takes a more action-oriented approach in its work.

Under this grant, the roundtable convened national experts and organizations, including NYHealth, to strategize and cultivate innovative interventions to improve population health. The roundtable held workshops that spotlighted effective models for best practices and informed the development of useful framework and tools. It also developed action collaboratives in the field and nurtured important relationships among stakeholders that may otherwise not occurred. As a roundtable member, NYHealth was part of a community of science-informed leaders working to spark urgently needed action toward a stronger, more healthful, and more productive society, including those in the fields of public health; health care; business; education and early childhood development; housing; agriculture; transportation; economic development; and nonprofit and faith organizations.