At Health Forward, we strive to create a more equitable future by investing in partnerships that address pressing health and wealth issues in our communities. Join us in championing fairness and equity for all.
We at Argus Newspaper Online, strive to salute the non-profit organizations in Missouri and beyond, that are making a difference in their communities. With that being said, each week we will try to bring you the latest mover and shaker in your region, and tell you about their progressive effort. Today, we feature a company in Kansas City, MO, called Health Forward Foundation.
Health Forward is dedicated to supporting work that builds health and wealth for all. At Health Forward, we support and build communities where racial equity and fair access to health are the norm.
Since we began partnering with the community in 2005, we have invested more than $392 million to champion an equitable future that will serve us all. By addressing the most pressing issues that some in our communities face, we’re improving conditions for everyone.
Communities of focus
Our commitment to change prioritizes working to improve the lives of people who experience the greatest injustice in health outcomes, including:
- People of color whose outcomes are shaped by structural racism and other socioeconomic conditions
- People in rural areas where systemic barriers hinder optimal health
These communities often overlap with people of varied identities who experience economic insecurity, live in marginalized conditions, and find barriers to accessing high-quality care that is affordable, equitable, and trauma-informed.
Our purpose
Every day we work to support and build inclusive, powerful, and healthy communities characterized by racial equity and economically just systems.
Our mission
To achieve health equity and secure a fair and just region through leadership, advocacy, and resources.
We honor and trust the expertise of our community partners and staff to do their best work. We take actions that align with our words by cultivating authentic relationships grounded in honesty, listening, and power sharing.
People
Equitable systems support community health. Our approach to fostering healthy people is to center equity in all aspects of our community health ecosystem and to support innovative ideas that make it more inclusive.
Power
Powerful communities are healthy communities. We work to adjust the balance of power by encouraging community members to participate in democracy, amplifying community movements, and supporting community leaders and advocates.
Place
The places we live impact how healthy we are. Our approach to improving where we live focuses on two influential social factors: housing and digital access.
Platform
How healthy we are is strongly influenced by our society’s systems, policies, and stories.
To advance racial equity and economic inclusion, Health Forward is partnering with local governments and funders to center equity and race in all policies, systems, and decisions. We are reshaping the way people understand and talk about racial, economic, and health equity. And we are aligning our invested resources in a way that advances our purpose and has a positive impact on the people and communities we serve.
A purpose-driven approach to community health
Healthy people need healthy communities. We recognize that health equity, racial justice, and economic inclusion overlap. We cannot have one without the other. We also recognize that our effort to build racial equity and economically just systems commits us to changing the systems under which we all live. These changes mean healthier people, an increase in community power, and creating equitable and just places.
Where we make our impact
Health Forward forms community partnerships in, urban, suburban, and rural communities on both sides of the state line.
Missouri
- Cass County
- Jackson County
- Kansas City, MO (including portions of Clay and Platte counties)
- Lafayette County
Kansas
- Allen County
- Johnson County
- Wyandotte County
Health Forward’s funding service area was established by the Missouri State Attorney General in 2002 and is made up of the communities previously served by Health Midwest prior to its sale.
Our purpose plan
This five-year plan outlines how Health Forward will use our leadership, advocacy, and resources to advance health equity by promoting racial and economic equity.
Director of Community Impact, Health Forward Foundation
Hayat Abdullahi
For the complete list of staff, click here.
2300 Main Street, Suite 304 Kansas City, MO 64108
Phone: (816) 241-7006
Email: communications@healthforward.org
Interesting organization, and if you have any further questions, just feel free to click the links provided. You may also find our organization Argus Community Foundation on Facebook by click here.
