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Abstract: In 2011, Morehouse School of Medicine convened a summit in San Juan, Puerto Rico, to discuss issues related to the health status of people and communities in the Caribbean region. The summit provided a forum for transparent dialog among researchers, policymakers, and advocates from the Caribbean region and the United States. The summit's theme-improving the region's health outcomes through the adoption of effective practices linking health promotion and primary care, within the context of social and cultural determinants-called for a comprehensive and integrative model or a triangulation of methodologies to improve health outcomes. This article summarizes the recommendations of two workgroup sessions examining the challenges to improving health outcomes in the region and the opportunities to meet those challenges. The recommendations seek to develop action-oriented agendas that integrate research, practice, and policy. Outcomes of the summit highlight the importance of (a) community participation in planning interventions, (b) policymakers' commitment to prioritizing health, and (c) Caribbean governments' commitment to addressing the underlying social factors responsible for poor health outcomes. (Global Health Promotion, 2014; 21(3): 19-28)
Keywords: health determinants, health care, policy
Introduction
In 2011, Morehouse School of Medicine convened a summit in San Juan, Puerto Rico, titled Triangulating on Health Equity: Best Practices in Integrating Health Promotion, Primary Care, and Social Determinants to Improve Community Health Outcomes. The primary goals of the summit were to (a) discuss health status and the underlying social determinants influencing health outcomes in the Caribbean; (b) produce recommendations that could effectively tackle complex interacting factors that hinder the improvement of health in the region; and (c) develop and cultivate formal networks of collaboration among regional minority institutions, investigators, and caregivers in the Caribbean, the United States, and Latin America.
This article summarizes the recommendations put forth at the summit. To that end, the article highlights the challenges and opportunities in the region as it moves to improve health outcomes with an integrative approach. To set the context of the summit, we begin with a brief background on the state of health in the Caribbean, highlighting health trends and the sociocultural factors, as related to, and having influence on, the region's health outcomes.
Health in the Caribbean
Chronic and communicable diseases are devastating to individuals and community, threatening quality of...