ABSTRACT
In its report The Future of the Public’s Health in the 21st Century , the Institute of Medicine calls for signifi cant movement in “building a new generation of intersectoral partnerships that also draw on the perspectives and resources of diverse communities and actively engage them in health action.” 1 Recognizing the large share of the U.S. gross domestic product that is going toward healthcare and the reality that investments in healthcare are not achieving the results desired by our communities and nation, there is an increasing demand to get greater value from the healthcare dollar. Given these realities as well as incentives created under the Affordable Care Act and other healthcare reforms, there is a growing recognition of the need for the healthcare, public health, and other sectors in individual communities and across the nation to collaborate and align their efforts to improve health outcomes.
