Informed Decision-Makers

Health equity ideally needs to be part of every decision made in Arizona. From the zip code to the genetic code, policies have a profound effect on health and well-being. Vitalyst uses its voice and raises the voices of our partners at all levels to advance decisions that value community health and well-being with an equity lens. 

Vision Screening  

With Vitalyst’s help, the Arizona Department of Health Services completed the Vision Screening rules which will be used to implement mandatory vision screening in all schools. The rules are now in place and training is underway, and this requirement will positively impact thousands of students across Arizona.  

Civic Health  

Vitalyst engaged several strategies to improve the civic health of Arizonans. Vitalyst participated in the development of a National Trust for Civic Infrastructure, which will strengthen the infrastructure of our civic systems at the local and national level. Partnering with the Arizona Grantmakers Forum, we also convened philanthropic partners for a civic health briefing.  

Spark Briefs 

Vitalyst produced three Spark Briefs this year: “Cost Containment through Collaboration;” “Partnership in Action;” and “American Rescue Plan Act Funding Report.”   

• “Cost Containment through Collaboration” – This brief was prepared for legislative candidates, articulating the social and economic benefits of cross-sector collaboration.  
• “American Rescue Plan Act Funding Report” – In this brief, staff provided numerous presentations on the American Rescue Plan Act, informing decision-makers on how to appropriate Federal funds to solve issues facing Arizona.  
• “Partnership in Action” – In this brief, we share with nonprofits, philanthropies and government partners barriers, opportunities and desires nonprofits across Arizona are facing.   

Housing, Homelessness and Education 

Understanding the intersectionality of social determinants of health, Vitalyst staff worked this year to break down siloes and ensure state and local agencies and organizations were aware of the impact on each other’s work to improve conditions for Arizonans. We supported the creation of a toolkit by the Maricopa Association of Governments to form interdepartmental work groups to better address homelessness. Vitalyst also played an integral role in bringing together the Arizona Department of Housing, AHCCCS, the Department of Economic Security and the Arizona Department of Education for interdepartmental meetings to work together on affordable housing and trauma-informed education. Seeing the impact of the increasing housing costs across the state, we distributed a housing resources toolkit created by the Arizona Housing Coalition to childcare providers. 

Podcast 

The Vitalyst Spark Podcast continued to host guests on a wide range of topics, from the Elements of a Healthy Tribal Community and affordable housing to Black History and many others. The podcast allows us to take deeper dives on community health issues and learn more from our guests. Vitalyst produced 22 new podcast episodes and is averaging an audience of 1,500 listeners per month. We thank everyone for their listenership. Don’t forget to subscribe to the podcast on your favorite platform. New episodes are released every month.