Research into Action

Black History Month has evolved over the years from a vehicle to highlight the achievements of Black Americans, into a time for fostering a deeper understanding of the country’s history and having conversations around questions of racial equity.

This comprehensive report unveils the systemic challenges and aspirations of Asheville's Black community through participatory research. It emphasizes the community's perspectives on systemic racism affecting various sectors such as housing, education, employment, healthcare, and the criminal justice system.

A deeper, more complex story lies in the picturesque city of Asheville, North Carolina, known for its vibrant arts scene and historic architecture. It's the story of the Black community - a narrative woven with challenges, resilience, and hope. The "Every Black Voice" report, a comprehensive study conducted by the Racial Justice Coalition, reveals Black residents' lived experiences, struggles, and aspirations in Asheville, particularly in light of the city's reparations journey.

As part of Policies for Action’s (P4A’s) recent call for proposals to investigate policies to reduce the racial wealth gap, we recognized the opportunity to center the people and places most distant from privilege and power.

Now entering its third year, the COVID-19 pandemic continues to alter the lives of people everywhere and exacerbate racial and ethnic disparities in income, wealth and access to resources and care. The nation is also grappling with the perpetuation and consequences of hundreds of years of systemic racism.

Severe maternal morbidity (SMM)—defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention as unintended outcomes of labor and delivery that result in significant short- or long-term consequences to a woman’s health—is a major determinant of maternal mortality. Each year 15 of every 1,000 people hospitalized for a delivery experience SMM. In addition to adverse health outcomes, SMM can lead to disruptions in mother-infant bonding, which can compromise children’s social and emotional development, and confers substantial economic costs to families, communities, and insurers including Medicaid.

What could we gain if we committed to increasing diversity in research? P4A National Advisory Committee member Jewel Mullen, the associate dean for health equity at the Dell Medical School of the University of Texas at Austin, helps us explore this question.

Policies for Action grantees recently gathered for an exclusive training on sharing and promoting research, hosted by communications experts at the Urban Institute. That day, we were also joined by a group of seasoned policymakers and staffers for a conversation about elevating evidence to inform policy debates. Here’s what we learned.

Kacie Dragan of our NYU Wagner School Research Hub writes about collaborating with local criminal justice and public health agencies to better understand the health needs of justice-involved New Yorkers.

The recent P4A conference at NYU's Robert F. Wagner School of Public Service highlighted the power of partnerships with policymakers and practitioners to make research relevant and actionable.

Sherry Glied writes on the importance of researchers to anticipate the needs of policymakers when designing their research studies to account for the "unpredictable and sometimes messy world of politics."

To advance a Culture of Health in our country, we must engage all sectors to work collaboratively. At the core of this effort should be a commitment to rigorous, engaged research that reflects people’s true conditions and realities, generates quick feedback on what is working and what is not, and feeds into policy and practice to drive continuous real-time improvements.