San Andreas, CA…The Emerging Health Equity Practice Award was given to the Calaveras Health and Human Services Agency, Public Health Division, for the creation and ongoing implementation of The Calaveras Oral Health Program which encourages positive oral health prevention practices.

The California Endowment, the state’s largest health foundation, announced the recipients of the 2019 Advancing Health Equity Awards for their local innovations in improving public health on December 3, 2019. The ceremony was held to honor work that goes beyond the traditional scope of public health to positively impact the health of low resource, high need communities. Calaveras Public Health was the only rural county to win an award out of the eight awardees.

Calaveras County is often hindered by the lack of data on health issues impacting people living in Calaveras County. Health data is often grouped with other smaller counties or data is not captured at all. This lack of data makes it especially difficult to address public health issues in rural areas resulting in poor health outcomes for Californian’s in rural communities. Calaveras Public Health conducted a needs assessment and used the findings to create the Calaveras County Oral Health improvement Plan. The needs assessment and improvement plan show how communities can use knowledge to give voice to an issue, gain resources and positively affect the health of the community. Leading health improvement efforts through effective community partnerships and commitment to collaboration will be key to the success of the program.

Calaveras Oral Health Program, helping make healthy smiles happen.
For more information on Calaveras Public Health please visit www.calaveraspublichealth.com or call 209-754-6460.