March 2017

Women’s Heart Alliance Names Nashville a “City with Heart”

We are excited to launch a partnership with the Women’s Heart Alliance. Nashville is the organization’s pilot location for their “Cities and Communities with Heart” Initiative, which aims to reduce heart disease and stroke among women. Co-founded by Barbra Streisand and Ronald O. Perelman, WHA launched the initiative on February 27 with Mayor Megan Barry, alongside Martina McBride and so many other NashvilleHealth partners. There is much we can do together in the months and year ahead to improve women’s heart health. Check out the press coverage and video here from The Tennessean.

Getting a Great Start: Partnerships for Babies and Moms

We are delighted to be a sponsor of the Baby University Community Baby Shower, alongside NashvilleHealth partners Meharry Medical College, Tennessee State University, and Metro Public Health Department. If you know a mom-to-be, share this invitation with her!

Friday, March 31, 2017 – 10:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
TSU/Avon Williams Campus Atrium

The free event includes pregnancy and infant care tips, giveaways, classes for the whole family, and other helpful pregnancy and infant care resources. NashvilleHealth will be there all day handing out resources for moms to promote safe sleep. Watch our social media to share announcements, or register today to be a vendor and share resources with moms and families.
More on Child Health… We look forward to our next meeting with the Nashville Infant Vitality Collaborative on Wednesday, April 12. We invite stakeholders to join us for this continuing discussion on action steps to make sure Nashville is the best place to be born. RSVP here.

Updates from NashvilleHealth Leadership

The NashvilleHealth Governing Board recently gathered for a quarterly update. One key discussion centered around workplace wellness. What works? What motivates employees to make changes in their daily lives that impact their health? Because ultimately, it’s their choice. We discussed various accountability and incentive programs. What does your company find effective? Share it with us.
The NashvilleHealth Steering Committee also met this month where the group heard from Dr. Shawn Joseph, director of Metro Nashville Public Schools, who gave an update on the strategic planning process for schools. We also heard updates from The Governor’s Foundation for Health & Wellness, The American Heart Association, Metro Public Health Department, and Saint Thomas Health.

Quittin’ Time a Success

Quittin’ Time in Tennessee wrapped this month, but there is more work to do! Alongside dozens of attending leaders from the state’s government, business, and non-profit organizations, Tennessee Department of Health Commissioner John Dreyzehner, MD, MPH, Governor’s Foundation for Health and Wellness CEO Richard Johnson, and NashvilleHealth Founder Senator Bill Frist, MD, discussed and continue to share the critical need to come together and help Tennesseans quit smoking.

We have a new location!

We are honored to now be co-located with the Center for Medical Interoperability. Our new offices are located on the OneC1ty Campus, just off Charlotte Avenue. We look forward to hosting many of you for various partnership meetings in this beautiful space!

ON THE BLOG

• As part of Quittin’ Time, we launched several resources on the blog.  Our Help Me Quit page includes a host of apps, hotlines, and tips! Our Quittin’ Time Toolkit helps organizations share about smoking cessation tools.
• The American Cancer Society of Greater Nashville brought national experts to our recent Twitter Chat!  Read the recap and follow future chats on #AskNashHealth.
• Dr. Michelle Fiscus, local family physician and deputy medical director for Chronic Disease Prevention, Injury Prevention and Health Promotion for the Tennessee Department of Health shared tips on how to quit smoking and the impact it can have on your family.

• “Where you live matters more to your health than your genetic code. We must hold ourselves accountable for the health of our community.” That was a theme from Dr. Tony Iton, of the California Endowment’s Building Healthy Communities Initiative, when speaking this month with the Nashville Health Care Council Fellows. 
• The American Heart Association will hold its Day on the Hill on March 22, focusing on two initiatives: Local Option, which gives communities the right to ban smoking, and  increasing PE for elementary schools. Both bills are in committees.  RSVP here.
• HealthierTN Week is March 27-31!  Learn more about this celebration here, and follow along – or tag your healthy event – with #healthierTNweek on social media. 
• On April 6, join the Nashville Civic Design Center for “Streetfight,” a breakfast featuring Janette Sadik-Khan.  She will share lessons Nashville can learn from NYC’s transformed public spaces and transportation system. Register here.
• Metro Public Health Department is hosting the 8th annual Healthy Nashville Summit on April 28.  Topics will focus on fostering resiliancy in children and understanding interconnectedness among communities – all so that our future thrives! Register here.
• Mark your calendars the YMCA’s chronic disease prevention summit on May 2. Details to come.

• Read Senator Frist’s column in The Tennessean, about tackling tobacco in the Volunteer State.
• We enjoyed recently hosting a meeting with The Nature Conservancy, which highlighted the need for smart city growth that pays attention to the connection between health and the environment.