On April 6th, Health Action Council participated in a forum organized by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, the Greater Cleveland Partnership, University Hospitals, Health Action Council and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The Health Means Business Forum brought together a mix of prominent speakers, panel discussions involving a cross-section of business and community leaders and interactive plenary and breakout session discussions addressing community health priorities.
Patty Starr, Executive Director of Health Action Council, moderated the Forum's "Community Wellness" breakout session. Breakout participants included Richard Crespin, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation; Michael Summers, Mayor, City of Lakewhood, OH; Greg Brown, Executive Director, PolicyBridge and Co-Chair, HIP-Cuyahoga; Holly Hacker, Director, Direct Sales and Customer Experience, Vita-Mix Corporation; and Natoya Walker Minor, Healthy Cleveland Initiative. Breakout discussion included the value-add that businesses bring to improving community health and wellness, how they might further engage and the ROI for companies who are working both internally and externally to improve community health and wellness..
The 255 Forum registrants, who came from multiple sectors within the region, reported a positive experience and interest in continuing conversations begun at the Forum. Following its series of ten regional forums, the U.S. Chamber plans to release a toolkit for business engagement to promote healthier communities.