1702-12973

Michigan: Support to Health Net of West Michigan to act as a lead convener, in partnership with the Kent County Oral Health Coalition (KCOHC), in the Kent County (Grand Rapids) community as part of the Grassroots Engagement Strategy. Health Net of West Michigan works to increase the depth and breadth of community dialogue on a range of issues related to the oral health systems that impact Kent County residents. The KCOHC serves as the convener of the oral health network for Kent County. Originally composed of providers (medical and dental), the coalition has expanded representation to community based organizations, community members and stakeholders, resulting in a strong, interconnected Coalition of members from the community and different professional backgrounds. Health Net’s strategy for 2017-2018 will increasingly include oral health in health dialogue and public policy through the implementation of their Oral Health 2020 Community-Driven Oral Health Plan. The plan includes three primary categories of activity. First, Health Net will equip the community to sit on the Kent County Oral Health Coalition through utilization of a community engagement toolkit to ensure the voice of the community is driving the local coalitions work. Second, Health Net will engage other community organizations not yet involved in oral health work through a mini-grant project and distribution/training of an oral health educational toolkit. Health Net staff and community campions will educate the dental workforce and the broader advocacy community on oral health equity by offering oral health equity and social justice workshops. Third, to change policy in the state of Michigan that create systemic barriers in obtaining oral health care, Health Net will partner with the Michigan Oral Health Coalition and other Michigan grassroots grantee, Voices of Detroit Initiative to strategize on a coordinated, statewide set of priorities to change policy and streamline oral health messaging when advocating to policy makers. $100,800 will be used to support Health Net of West Michigan’s personnel time to oversee network development, travel and meeting expenses, support in-person and remote convenings, contracted services for meeting facilitation, and sub-grants to community grassroots organizations. This proposal aligns with the Oral Health 2020 Goal 6 of improving the public perception of the value of oral health to overall health and the target that oral health is increasingly included in health dialogue and public policy.