Health and Wellness Program
Through education, access to nutritious foods, and community health advocacy, we aim to improve health outcomes within the Latine and larger BIPOC communities in Washington County, Oregon.
UPCOMING CLASSES & EVENTS
Contact our program manager, Carla Fisanich, for information about enrolling at cfisanich@adelantemujeres.org
Program Components
At Adelante Mujeres, we view racial equity as health equity. The pandemic illuminated inequalities that have existed for generations and revealed a known, but often unaddressed, epidemic impacting health: racism. The Health Equity team provides a community-based solution to reduce health disparities that confront the different systems of oppression surrounding whole health.
Produce RX
Produce RX is a collaboration between Adelante Mujeres and the Virginia Garcia Memorial Health Center, benefitting Latine individuals who risk diet-related illnesses. This transformative initiative includes monthly participation in nutrition education classes, which empower participants to learn how to incorporate fresh fruits and vegetables into their diets.
Participants receive monthly allowances on a Fresh Connect debit card designated for purchasing fresh fruits and vegetables at the Forest Grove and Cornelius Farmers’ Markets. During the markets’ off-season, this resourceful program ensures access to nutritious produce by allowing participants to shop at approved supermarkets. This program represents a holistic commitment to the health and well-being of the community, fostering healthier eating habits and enhancing access to the freshest, most nourishing food options.
Community Health Workers
Adelante Mujeres’ dedicated team of Spanish-speaking and state-certified Community Health Workers (CHWs) leverage their lived experience and deep understanding of community needs to advance public health.
The CHW program establishes connections to healthcare resources, advocates for health education, and addresses social determinants of health. Through individualized case management, the CHW team engages directly with the Latine community, enabling and empowering them to take charge of their health and well-being.
Coming soon: Educational workshops for the community using popular education facilitated by our CHWs.
Child Nutrition Program
Adelante Mujeres' Child Nutrition program provides Latine children ages 0-5 years old with healthy meals during a crucial time in child development. The children served come from AM's certified Early Childhood Education classrooms that serve as a CACFP site.
The Child Nutrition team prepares activities throughout the school year that include educational lessons for children on how food in Washington County is grown, purchased, and prepared into a meal. The program also facilitates family involvement through events like the Kids Farmer's Market, where parents and caregivers can learn alongside their children, enhancing their understanding of the significance of healthy eating habits.
Program Strategies
Adelante’s Health Equity programming works to increase access to healthy foods in order for people of color and their families to achieve greater health outcomes, cultivate and sustain channels for locally-grown crops produced by minority farmers, and provide educational opportunities for people of color using culturally-specific nutrition recommendations to improve health outcomes.
Popular Education
Our Health Equity Program utilizes a Popular Education approach, which breaks down the barrier between teacher and student, recognizing that everyone brings knowledge through life experience. We respect the wealth of knowledge and expertise that everyone brings to the classroom.
A Whole Family Approach
We recognize that health doesn’t stem from individual programs, but rather a result of holistic, collaborative efforts that include the whole family. We center the family at the core of this program to provide them with a system of support to achieve whole health. With this in mind, this program is designed to integrate into all of the Adelante Mujeres programs and age groups.
A Focus on Hunger
For the Latine families we serve, proper nutrition competes with other necessary expenses, such as childcare, housing, insurance, and transportation. Hunger, and its connection with health, is an equity issue. Our programming focuses on equitable, comprehensive, long-term solutions to fight hunger.
Culturally- Responsive
We are committed to the inclusion of communities of color and underserved communities by embedding culturally-responsive practices at all levels of our work. We provide culturally-specific and bilingual programming and outreach to ensure equitable health outcomes for Latine families.
During 2021 - 2022:
18
Promotores de Salud were recruited and mentored.
237
vaccinations were administered at 11 Adelante Mujeres hosted vaccination clinics.
650
community members engaged with Promotores de Salud services/support.
900
community members received food vouchers to purchase fresh produce from Adelante’s farmers markets.
300
children accessed free meals and/or produce.
2,400
community members were engaged in COVID-19 educational events.
Why Health and Wellness?
24.5% of Washington County’s impoverished individuals are Latine. Conditions of poverty have a compounding impact on each individual in a family, and on the family as a whole. Without access to education and to resources like health care, physical exercise opportunities, and healthy food options, low-income families are at a higher risk for developing behaviors that compromise their physical, psychological, and social-emotional health. Our Health Equity Programming works to break patterns of chronic health issues that impede the advancement of a healthy Latine community.
USDA Non Discrimination statement
In accordance with federal civil rights law and U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) civil rights regulations and policies, this institution is prohibited from discriminating on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex (including gender identity and sexual orientation), disability, age, or reprisal or retaliation for prior civil rights activity.
Program information may be made available in languages other than English. Persons with disabilities who require alternative means of communication to obtain program information (e.g., Braille, large print, audiotape, American Sign Language), should contact the responsible state or local agency that administers the program or USDA's TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY) or contact USDA through the Federal Relay Service at (800) 877-8339.
To file a program discrimination complaint, a Complainant should complete a Form AD-3027, USDA Program Discrimination Complaint Form which can be obtained online at: https://www.usda.gov/sites/default/files/documents/ad-3027.pdf, from any USDA office, by calling (866) 632-9992, or by writing a letter addressed to USDA. The letter must contain the complainant's name, address, telephone number, and a written description of the alleged discriminatory action in sufficient detail to inform the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights (ASCR) about the nature and date of an alleged civil rights violation. The completed AD-3027 form or letter must be submitted to USDA by:
mail: U.S. Department of Agriculture Office of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights 1400 Independence Avenue, SW Washington, D.C. 20250-9410; or
fax: (833) 256-1665 or (202) 690-7442; or
email: Program.Intake@usda.gov
This institution is an equal opportunity provider.