Centering and Celebrating Culture in Public Health
Your Guide to National Public Health Week 2023
Culture is the set of attitudes, values, conventions, goals, social practices, and beliefs of a racial, religious or social group, and their social forms and material traits. In other words, culture is our way of life. When it comes to health, culture shapes our health behaviors, our beliefs and norms about health, and how we organize to advance health and well-being. Further, practicing our own culture is vital to community health and well-being. Centering and celebrating culture in health is the theme of National Public Health Week 2023. We invite you to explore the below resources as you prepare for National Public Health Week.
National Public Health Week is Coming Up!
For over twenty-five years, the American Public Health Association has organized National Public Health Week. Taking place during the first full week of April every year, National Public Health Week is an occasion to recognize the contributions of public health and highlight issues that are important to improving the nation’s health. This year’s focus on centering and celebrating cultures in health is an opportunity for those in the public health community to deepen our knowledge about the connection between culture and health, center stories from different cultural groups, and take action to promote culture and health.
National Public Health Week is April 3 – 9, 2023
Explore
Get Involved
Shareables
Learn more about how you can engage across the following objectives.
1. Deepen our shared knowledge
about the connection between culture and health. This NPHW, we challenge you to learn more about culture, health, cultural competence, and humility.
How Culture Influences Health
Belonging and Civic Muscle
2. Center stories
from different cultural groups. This NPHW, we invite you to listen and learn from each others’ stories with humility and openness.
The Spirit Catches You and You Fall Down: A Hmong Child, Her American Doctors, and the Collision of Two Cultures
The Storytelling Project Curriculum: Learning About Race and Racism through Storytelling and the Arts
3. Reflect
on culture and how it intersects with race, ethnicity, language, health literacy, and other factors to produce health and well-being. Invite others into the conversation and think together about how to promote cultural well-being.
Imagining a New America
Helping People Talk about Race and Racism: An Open Dialogue Guide
Cultural Competence Self-Assessment Checklist
4. Take action
to promote culture and health.
Indigenous Knowledge Library
The Toolkit for Health, Arts, Parks, and Equity
Community Tool Box: Enhancing Cultural Competence
PHERN is a collaborative effort, lifting up the work of partners and inviting others to share in curation.
Its content will be shaped by members and stakeholders.
Brought to you by
The Public Health & Equity Resource Navigator (PHERN) is an initiative of
The American Public Health Association & The Alliance for Disease Prevention and Response
Contact
American Public Health Association
800 I Street, NW
Washington, DC 20001
202-777-2742