Healthy Chicago 2.0 Comes to Hamilton Park In Englewood

Dr. Julie Morita fields questions from Englewood residents on how to create a healthier Englewood. Photo By: Matt Smith, Director of Communications for DFFS
Dr. Julie Morita fields questions from Englewood residents on how to create a healthier Englewood. Photo By: Matt Smith, Director of Communications for DFFS

Healthy Chicago 2.0 Comes to Hamilton Park In Englewood

By Monique Smith

Over the course of the last few months, a new initiative was launched by the City’s Department of Public Health called Healthy Chicago 2.0. As part of the initiative, the city of Chicago held the last of 6 city-wide community meetings on May 25th at Hamilton Park in Englewood.

Healthy Chicago 2.0 is a program that was launched back in March and since then meetings have been held in various high risk communities to discuss plans and to get input from residents on how to improve health and well-being throughout the Chicago communities. During the meeting at Hamilton, residents came out to express their concerns as well as give their input on possible solutions to health-related problems.

Panelists discussed statistical data which shows a disparity in health services, diagnosis, diseases and other health habits among African Americans versus their white counterparts. Dr. Julie Morita, Health Commissioner for the Chicago Department of Public Health, who was one of the speakers at the meeting, acknowledged that while studies have been done before on these issues, Healthy Chicago 2.0 is taking a different approach. “What is different is that though we are limited on resources and can only do so much, we are creating partnerships with other agencies so there can be some cohesiveness in how we go about addressing these issues that affect one’s overall health,” she said.

One of the highlights of the meeting was a 10 minute video featuring Chicago Public School students who all come from some of the cities most impoverished neighborhoods and who are facing abhorrent conditions at home. The purpose of the video was to emphasis the need for more behavioral health services needed in the community and the schools and to show how when children have someone, a teacher, mentor and more importantly access to a trained social services provider, futures outcomes move in an upward direction.

In the final conclusion of the meeting, Dr. Morita thanked residents for their input and assured them that they are taking all the communities suggestions under advisement and further challenged residents to think of programs that can help change the health outcomes in their communities. The city has committed to offering grant money to 5-6 organizations that create programs addressing the different health disparities in their neighborhoods. “We are looking for programs that will have a positive lasting, long term effect in the community you live in,” said Dr. Morita. To apply for the grant visit healthychicago@cityofchicago.org.

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