Health is about more than health care. Where people live can have a profound influence on daily choices that can promote population health — or harm it. Kaiser Permanente Washington Health Research Institute (KPWHRI) scientists work to improve and sustain community conditions that support health and equity.
At KPWHRI’s Center for Community Health and Evaluation (CCHE) we are working with foundations, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies to evaluate their community health improvement initiatives. A few examples:
CCHE serves as the evaluation partner for Kaiser Permanente Washington’s (KPWA) Community Health and Benefit program, providing evaluation and strategic support for a wide range of regional initiatives, including built environment improvements in the community, school-based health centers, and healthy eating/active living programming for teachers. Beyond CCHE, other KPWHRI researchers are exploring opportunities to improve population health by creating healthier communities. Among these efforts are:
Answering questions about what makes a healthy environment gives policymakers, urban planners, and others the information they need to create healthier communities in the future.
Cheadle A, Rauzon S, Spring R, Schwartz PM, Gee S, Gonzalez E, Ravel J, Reilly C, Taylor A, Williamson D. Kaiser Permanente's Community Health Initiative in Northern California: evaluation findings and lessons learned. Am J Health Promot. 2012;27(2):e59-68. doi: 10.4278/ajhp.111222-QUAN-462. PubMed
Cheadle A, Samuels SE, Rauzon S, Yoshida SC, Schwartz PM, Boyle M, Beery WL, Craypo L, Solomon L. Approaches to measuring the extent and impact of environmental change in three California community-level obesity prevention initiatives. Am J Public Health. 2010;100(11):2129-36. PubMed
Cheadle A, Schwartz PM, Rauzon S, Beery WL, Gee S, Solomon L. The Kaiser Permanente Community Health Initiative: overview and evaluation design. Am J Public Health. 2010;100(11):2111-3. PubMed
Cheadle A, Schwartz PM, Rauzon S, Bourcier E, Senter S, Spring R, Beery WL. Using the concept of "population dose" in planning and evaluating community-level obesity prevention initiatives. Am J Eval. 2013;34(1):64-77. doi: 10.1177/1098214012458824. Epub 2012 Nov 6.
Chen R, Carrillo M, Kapp J, Cheadle A, Angulo A, Chrisman N, Rubio R. Partnering with REACH to create a "diabetes-friendly" restaurant: a restaurant owner's experience. Prog Community Health Partnersh. 2011;5(3):307-12. PubMed
Allen Cheadle, PhDSenior Investigator, KPWHRI; Senior Research Associate, CCHE |
Clarissa Hsu, PhDAssociate Investigator |
Dori E. Rosenberg, PhD, MPHSenior Scientific Investigator |
Maricela Cruz, PhDAssistant Biostatistics Investigator |
Nicole M. Gatto, PhD, MPHPrincipal Collaborative Scientist |
Meagan C. Brown, PhD, MPHAssistant Investigator |
Kimberly Arthur, MPHCollaborative Scientist |
David Grembowski, PhD
Professor, Health Services and Oral Health Sciences
University of Washington