Schenectady County Public Health Services (SCPHS) is proud to be one of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Strategic Alliance for Health (SAH) communities. These communities seek to improve community health through sustainable, innovative, and evidence-based community health promotion and chronic disease prevention interventions that promote policy, systems, and environmental changes.
This initiative will serve to:
- Promote physical activity and nutrition; Reduce tobacco use and exposure;
- Build capacity for communities to be able to institute systems, environmental, organizational and policy changes related to these health risk factors;
- Foster improved and increased access to quality care;
- Help eliminate racial and ethnic health disparities;
- Reduce complications from and incidence of cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and obesity
A Schenectady County coalition of community stakeholders has identified the following as the SAH strategies for year 2:
Strategy 1: Increase availability and visibility of affordable healthier food and beverage choices in public and/or private venues
Strategy 2: Restrict availability of less healthy foods and beverages in public and/or private venues
Strategy 3: Increase the amount of physical activity in physical education classes, within the school day outside of physical education class or in extracurricular and community opportunities.
Strategy 4: Increase access to outdoor recreational facilities and/or enhance infrastructure supporting walking, biking and/or other forms of physical activity for community residents of all ages and abilities
For more information please contact Natalie Schubel at 518-386-2824 ext. 252 or via email the information request form..
Project Partners Schenectady ARC Due to high rates of obesity, diabetes and cardiovascular disease amongst persons with developmental disabilities, Schenectady ARC has been awarded grants to increase nutritional awareness for individuals that attend their programs. The program will increase access to healthy foods by encouraging participation in plant selection and cultivation, healthy meal preparation training and vegetable harvesting. Engagement in the garden will be facilitated by the construction of raised garden beds that are wheelchair accessible. As part of this project, Schenectady County and Schenectady ARC created an in-depth implementation guide that shows how to replicate this project.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention created a video highlighting the Schenectady County Partnership.