In March, it will have been three years since the spread of COVID-19 prompted lockdowns across the United States and the world. At different points throughout the past three years, hospitals have overflowed with patients, nursing homes have been overwhelmed and understaffed, school years interrupted and businesses shuttered. The anniversary of those initial lockdowns marks a time of dramatic change, grief, and anxiety that has impacted personal and professional lives. Today, three years later, life looks very different: masks and social distancing are no longer mandated, schools have largely resumed in-person classes, restaurants and other shops are open for business.  (more…)

January 22nd, 2023 would have been the 50th anniversary of Roe v Wade. For nearly half a century, the Supreme Court’s landmark decision guaranteed the protection of a woman's constitutional right to an abortion “without excessive government restriction.” This anniversary is an ever-cruel reminder that this fight is not and never has been over, and it is more important than ever to redirect public health efforts to support comprehensive reproductive health services throughout the country. (more…)

As we welcome 2023, on behalf of Health Outreach Partners Board of Directors and staff, I want to wish all our partners, collaborators, friends, and supporters a Happy New Year. I am looking forward to a year where we get to see each other more and share ideas, innovations, and friendships in person.

HOP Staff at our Holiday Party, January 2023 

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According to Healthy People 2030, the percentage of children and adolescents who engage in physical activities is declining. From 2016-2017, it was reported that 58.4% of children aged 6-17 years participated in physical activities, and this percentage decreased to 56.1% for 2018-2019.[1] Exposing children to sports at a young age teaches them life-long skills and helps create lasting physical, mental, and emotional benefits. Sports improve one’s mood, academic performance, sleep patterns, healthy eating, teamwork, problem-solving skills, concentration, and self-confidence. All this helps combat Type 2 Diabetes, as well as reduce levels of stress, depression, and anxiety.

Image attribution: USAG-Humphreys on Flickr (more…)

Community health workers have been on mind quite a bit lately.  Not totally surprising, as the core of Health Outreach Partners’ work is strengthening, supporting, and integrating outreach programs in communities and health centers.  No other profession has more influence and impact on outreach programs than community health workers (CHWs).  As the COVID-19 public health crisis moves towards its third anniversary, I can’t help but reflect on how different the outcomes would be right now without the contributions of CHWs.  I firmly believe that without the hard work and dedication of CHWs many more people would have died and/or been hospitalized with much more serious illness from COVID-19 without their collective mobilization. (more…)

Image by Freepik.com 

Halloween just ended and the thoughts of the holidays sends a rush of adrenaline down my spine. The past two years have been a blur to me as I navigate through how I spent the holidays with fewer family and friends. How is this one going to be? The stress of putting things in order, sending invites and greeting cards across countries, and also the many gifts and meals to deal with. There’s one thing I keep reminding myself of: to prioritize my inner self, my emotional well-being before others. (more…)

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Many people romanticize the idea of having a college experience. The people you meet, the unbreakable bonds you create and the memories that will last a lifetime. But nobody talks about the pressure to choose a career, the realities of living with roommates, the unforeseen changes that occur... and in some cases a pandemic that will completely alter this romanticized version of reality. My college experience has not been the perfect picture that everyone paints and hopes for but it has taught me so much more than I ever could have imagined. I have been so lucky to create my own life in San Diego, establish a close-knit group of friends, become exposed to different-minded people, and acquire more knowledge in my field of study. (more…)

“To feel the problems of our world is to know its suffering, but this requires compassionate ‘response-ability.’ If we fail to address the world’s collective trauma with clarity and compassion, we imperil the survival of our children and our children’s children—and countless other species.” - Thomas Hübl

As I was standing at my gate in a packed airport on a layover in Phoenix, Arizona, I noticed that only a couple of people getting ready to board our plane were wearing a mask besides myself. I am not shocked or upset at people’s decision not to wear one. Wearing it was a personal choice - and at times the soreness I felt behind my ears from the tightness of my KN95 made me want to take off it for a bit. I still could not help but dwell on the question that, after everything that’s happened and still going on, what is the difference between those who choose to wear one and those who don’t? More specifically, how differently has everyone processed the last 2.5 years? (more…)

Image Source: Center for Reproductive Rights

When I first heard about Roe v. Wade being overturned, I was overcome with many emotions. I thought of the students I have taught. The students I will be teaching this upcoming fall. And students who I can’t teach because they’re in states where sex education is restricted. I felt rage. Hurt. And hope. (more…)

We are so excited to announce that a research study on the financial benefits of outreach, using HOP's Outreach Business Value Toolkit, was recently published in the Texas Public Health Association Journal! Read more about it below: (more…)

Image credit: Jasjyot Singh Hans for NPR

Attending the college of your dreams feels exciting. You worked so hard through all of K-12 to be afforded this opportunity. It often never truly crosses your mind the obstacles you should or would anticipate — almost like a case of tunnel vision whose consequences can only be seen later. (more…)

As a rising sophomore in college and a chronically indecisive person, I’ve changed my majors quite a few times: 3, to be exact. When I finally committed to nursing, however, people were hardly surprised. I grew up idolizing my grandmother, a retired nurse, so of course I would want to follow in her footsteps. In many ways, their assumptions are right: I aspire toward the level of compassion and knowledge she has cultivated as a nurse. However, hearing her stories nearly scared me from the profession entirely; she clearly touched and saved many lives, but her career was also filled with immense frustration at what seemed like a broken healthcare system. (more…)

The COVID-19 pandemic created a global shift affecting families worldwide and has caused immense consequences to children both mentally and physically. At its onset, much of the world was placed on a lockdown, which limited human interaction and replaced it with virtual forms of communication reliant on technology. An increased reliance on social platforms and the internet at-large have altered child development to the extent that their mental and physical health is at stake. (more…)

Today’s Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson, overturning the landmark cases Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey is not only devastating to women but to humanity. This court has turned back the clock on human rights that will have far reaching implications for years to come for the reproductive health, welfare, and freedoms for many. Those who will be most affected are BIPOC individuals living in marginalized and under-resourced communities. This once more illustrates the huge inequity in health and human rights in the United States of America. (more…)