Date of Award

Spring 2021

Degree Type

Open Access Dissertation

Degree Name

Psychology, PhD

Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member

Paula H Palmer

Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member

Jay Orr

Dissertation or Thesis Committee Member

Jessica Clague DeHart

Terms of Use & License Information

Terms of Use for work posted in Scholarship@Claremont.

Keywords

Health improvement, Health in All Policies, Health policy, HiAP, Municipalities

Abstract

Rates of chronic disease are a long-term problem in the City of Montclair, a predominately high minority community with low socioeconomic status and limited resources. There is a need for leadership in small local jurisdictions, such as Montclair, to champion sustainable and effective health promotion strategies that meet the needs of its citizens and is accessible and tailored to the population.The purpose of this case study is to utilize a cross-sector social ecological lens to develop strategies for the City of Montclair to improve health through a collaborative health in all policies (HiAP) approach. This analysis of HiAP as a means to improve health, includes the incidence of chronic disease, uses document review and semi-structured interviews to adapt a logic model meant to guide a HiAP initiative for the City of Montclair. It also identifies the next steps in guiding a future HiAP initiative. Stakeholders within the City of Montclair were recruited to provide feedback on utilizing a HiAP approach to improve health. Five stakeholders participated in semi-structured interviews and were asked about barriers to creating a HiAP initiative in Montclair, how messaging can be better tailored for multiple sectors to buy-in, the feasibility of engaging high-level stakeholders and community leaders, and the potential benefits of HiAP in Montclair. This study fills a major need for investigation of how local municipalities might begin a HiAP initiative. Five critical themes were derived from the document review and from the six interviews conducted with Montclair city staff and community leaders provide perspective and insight into plans for a HiAP initiative. The five overall themes mentioned by both include: (1) communications and messaging, (2) incorporating health into decision making, (3) assessments and data collection, (4) building awareness and political support, and (5) formalizing HiAP. HiAP is an approach to improve chronic disease rates and ensure that future decisions are cross-sectoral and made only after serious consideration of their impacts on health. Other small cities can use this as an example of how to examine their specific environments and determine what they need to do and how to employ the existing literature as they tailor a foundational logic model for their own use.

DOI

10.5642/cguetd/205

ISBN

9798738632327

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