CRASH Disrupting Equity

Join us as we explore stories, interviews and journeys of the intersectionality between life and social determinants of health. CRASH is an acronym for Changing Racial Attitudes, Stereotypes and Hierarchies.

For those unfamiliar with the term social determinants of health, according to the World Health Organization (WHO), these are the conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work and age that shape health outcomes.  These circumstances are shaped by the distribution of money, power, and resources at global, national and local levels.

Social determinants of health (SDOH) include factors like socioeconomic status, governmental policies, education, early childhood experiences and development, access to healthy food options, cultural constructs, neighborhood, housing and physical environment, transportation, employment, and social support networks, as well as access to health care.

These social circumstances create societal stratification or classification and are responsible for health inequities among different groups of people based on social and economic class, gender, and ethnicity. 

SDOH Social determinants of health are an underlying cause of today’s major societal health dilemmas including obesity, heart disease, diabetes, and depression.  Moreover, complex interactions and feedback loops exist among the social determinants of health. For example, poor health or lack of education can impact employment opportunities which in turn constrain income. Low income reduces access to healthcare and nutritious food and increases hardship. These hardships causes stress, which in turn promotes unhealthy coping mechanisms such as substance abuse and overeating of unhealthy foods.

Our goal at CRASH is to disrupt equity and bridge the gap between these critical elements of life and the outcomes individuals share at a local, national and global level.