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Orlando, Fla. (February 10, 2020) -- On Saturday, February 8,  at Nemours Children's Hospital, approximately 150 clinicians from across the Nemours Children's Health System enterprise attended a daylong event for credit on “Attacking the 70 Percent- Understanding the Social Determinants of Children’s Health.” Kicking off the event was Nemours CEO, Dr. R. Lawrence Moss, who introduced the keynote speaker, Adam Foss, J.D., the founder of Prosecutor Impact, a nonprofit built around the mission of improving community safety through a better understanding of the role of the criminal prosecutor. Foss, the 2017 Nelson Mandela Changemaker of the Year, empowered attendees to do what they can to make a difference in the communities we practice medicine in.

Afterward, attendees participated in The Cost of Poverty Experience (COPE), an interactive simulation that portrayed real stories of families impacted by poverty. Practitioners at Nemours role-played families dealing with low-income situations from not being able to afford food and electricity at home, to being arrested and going to jail. The experience gave participants insights that some of our patients in the communities we serve are dealing with outside of their medical needs.

The event also included a presentation on making lawyers part of the health care team, and Jonathan Miller, medical director of Value-Based Care at Nemours in Delaware Valley, explaining the strategy to incentivize health instead of value. Additionally, Debbie Chang, MPH, Nemours Senior VP and Chief Policy and Prevention Officer,  educated the crowd on how Nemours is addressing the Social Determinants of Health, the factors that influence the health of populations, through the work at the National Office of Policy and Prevention, and beyond.

The event was organized by Dr. Adela Casas-Melley, Chair of the Department of Surgery.

Editor's Note: Downloadable interviews and video B-roll from the event is available.