Community Health Improvement Week

This year, Community Health Improvement Week takes place from June 5 to June 11. The purpose of the week is to honor healthcare professionals who work closely with communities and dedicate their lives to improving the health of others. This has been more evident than ever during the COVID-19 pandemic during which many frontline healthcare workers died while saving lives. Yes, they are the heroes of today and they deserve to be recognized for the numerous causes they work for on a daily basis. Though a week is not enough to show appreciation and gratitude for the services provided by these amazing and dedicated health workers, it’s definitely a start!

HISTORY OF COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK

What would the world be without healthcare professionals? A really dark and unhealthy place. Believe it or not, no matter how much medical technology evolves, it would all be useless without the presence of dedicated healthcare professionals. Yes, empathy, care, and the human element provided by healthcare workers make them irreplaceable. The most impressive part is, many of these workers are willing to sacrifice their lives just to ensure that others remain healthy.

Community Health Improvement Week was formed by the Association for Community Health Improvement (ACHI) to acknowledge all the efforts of health professionals and create awareness regarding the work they do. The mission of ACHI is to advance health communities across the U.S. by forming numerous collaborations and endorsing health-based campaigns.

Keeping this in mind, the focus of 2021’s Community Health Improvement Week is the COVID-19 pandemic that had a dire impact on nations across the globe. Since numerous countries are slowly getting back on their feet now, the theme for the Community Health Improvement Week revolves around three points. The first aim is to ‘reflect’ on the health disparities that caused the coronavirus to spread like wildfire, as well as the actions that need to be taken to avoid another crisis of a similar nature. The second theme magnifies the importance of ‘renewing’ the commitment to improving the health sector, while the third theme encourages communities to form alliances, collaborate, and ‘rise together’. Are you ready to do your part to help and honor healthcare professionals this week?

COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK TIMELINE

460–370 B.C.: The Father of Medicine

Hippocrates creates a medical school of thought.

250 B.C.: Male Order

The first nursing school for men is established in India.

5th Century B.C.: Building Away

A formal hospital is formed in Sri Lanka.

1873: First of All

Linda Richards becomes the first American with a nursing degree.

COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK FAQS

What is community health improvement?

This is a long-term effort that is formed to detect ways in which healthcare can be improved.

What is a community health worker?

Some of the duties of community health workers include helping ill patients and educating people regarding the importance of healthcare.

What are the qualities of a community health nurse?

Community health nurses are caring, empathic, funny, attentive, and focused on a patient’s well-being.

HOW TO CELEBRATE COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK

Volunteer at a clinic

Want to show healthcare professionals how much their services mean to you? If you’re a medical student or in the medical field, why not volunteer at a community clinic during this week and give them some relief? Reducing their workload is the best way to show them appreciation.

Host an event to honor healthcare workers

Host an event or a party to pay tribute to the health workers of your town. This will also be a great opportunity to mingle with the professionals and find out why they do what they do.

Design a poster

Get creative and design a poster that shows the gratitude you feel. The poster can be put up at your local hospital for the entire staff to see!

5 FACTS YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT HEALTHCARE WORKERS

The most honest profession in the U.S.

A Gallup survey revealed that Americans rate nurses as the most honest and ethical professionals.

More working hours than the average American

A doctor works 1.5 times more hours per week than the average American.

Nurses walk a lot

Nurses walk four to five miles in a 12-hour shift.

Many are overworked

Around 64% of physicians work overtime.

Deep in student loan debt

The average debt for medical graduates was $170,000 in 2012.

WHY COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK IS IMPORTANT

It highlights the importance of healthcare workers

This week plays an important role in placing healthcare workers in the spotlight by highlighting the good work they do in sustaining our society. This is definitely a well-deserved honor.

The week motivates others to work in healthcare

Seeing the admiration health are professionals receive during this week is bound to encourage the youth to take up this profession. The more the merrier!

It boosts morale

Ever been stuck in a thankless job that you just want to quit? Well, these are the kind of feelings we don’t want our healthcare professionals to experience. Community Health Improvement Week encourages health professionals to continue doing their jobs with dedication.

COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT WEEK DATES

Year	Date	Day
2022	June 5	Sunday
2023	June 4	Sunday
2024	June 2	Sunday
2025	June 1	Sunday
2026	June 7	Sunday