Our Publications

Strategic communications is one of the tools the Foundation uses to advance its mission to improve community health. This includes producing publications that highlight the work of the Foundation and its nonprofit partners, as well as contributing to publications that highlight important shifts in the field of philanthropy and public health.

CHF Publications

Annual Reports provide a snapshot of the Foundation’s work over the course of a year.

Connections, our e-newsletter, provides an in-depth look at the impact the Foundation and our nonprofit partners are having in the local community.

Speaking Up and Speaking Out for Health:  A Community Call to Action to Improve Health and Health Care in the Washington, D.C. Metropolitan Region is a report on the findings from the community “speak outs” we hosted in 2004-2005. This report continues to guide our work.

Community Health Workers is a discussion paper which describes community health workers’ programs in the region and examples of models in other states. The paper also addresses challenges and opportunities in the field in the areas of education, financing, organizing and network building, and health care reform.

Terrance Keenan Leadership Award in Health Philanthropy: In her acceptance speech for the 2012 Terrance Keenan Leadership Award, CHF President/CEO Margaret O’Bryon highlights the critical role health philanthropy must play in advancing equity.

Charting a Path Toward Health Equity This essay, written for Grantmakers in Health’s annual meeting Health and Equity for All, charts the evolution of the Consumer Health Foundation’s work to address health equity in the DC metro region.

HIV/AIDS and Women of Color: Changing the Conversation A December 2009 Grantmakers in Health “Views from the Field” article on how CHF is working to apply a social determinants of health equity lens to HIV/AIDS prevention for women of color.

Featured Publications

Congratulations to Margaret O’Bryon and the Consumer Health Foundation for leading by example

A blog post from the National Committee on Responsive Philanthropy highlighting CHF President Margaret O’Bryon’s acceptance speech for the 2012 Terrance Keenan Leadership Award in Health Philanthropy.

Health and Equity for All

This article, written in preparation for Grantmakers in Health’s 2012 annual meeting Health and Equity for All, features the work of the Consumer Health Foundation and other health funders in advancing equity.

Philanthropy and Disparities: Progress, Challenges and Unfinished Business
by Faith Mitchell and Kathy Sessions

This article charts the evolution of foundations’ work in addressing racial and ethnic disparities. CHF’s efforts to address the social determinants of health and its focus on advocacy are highlighted in the article.

Do More Than Give:  The Six Practices of Donors Who Change the World
by Leslie Crutchfield, John Kania, and Mark Kramer

This book, published in 2011, highlights foundations that work in creative ways to address complex social challenges that go beyond the mechanics of effective grantmaking, reporting and evaluation.  CHF’s community engagement work, including its 2008 Annual Meeting and Community Health Speakouts, are featured in the chapter section Empower the People: Hear the People Speak on pages 122 – 125.

Toward Transformative Change in Health Care: High Impact Strategies in Philanthropy

In April 2011, The National Committee on Responsive Philanthropy released a report making the case for health grantmakers to focus on underserved communities and to increase their investments in advocacy and policy, community organizing and system reform. CHF’s health justice work is featured on pages 28-29.

Beyond Dollars: Investing in Big Change

In November 2009, the Washington Regional Association of Grantmakers released this report on how philanthropy can be a catalyst for change. CHF and the work of nonprofit partners DC Primary Care Association and DC Hunger Solutions work to create lasting social change are featured in the report.

Catalytic Change:  Lessons Learned from the Racial Justice Grantmaking Assessment

In May 2009, the Applied Research Center and the Philanthropic Initiative for Racial Equity released its report Catalytic Change:  Lessons Learned from the Racial Justice Grantmaking Assessment.  This report shares lessons learned from piloting its Racial Justice Grantmaking Assessment in which CHF participated in 2008.  The Assessment was created to help foundation staff and leaders understand the benefits of being explicit about racial equity, and to determine the degree to which their work is advancing racial justice.