Imagine a health care provider inquiring, “How prepared are you to vote?” This is exactly what health care providers across the country are asking their patients. The reason is simple: Voting is prevention, treatment, and cure for so much of what ails us all. In other words, being well-prepared to vote is a positive sign of civic health.
Last month, I completed a six-month leadership development program taught by some of the best faculty in community organizing. The Civic Health Fellowship is part of Vot-ER, and its goal is to support, teach, and train a learning community of health care providers across the country.
Vot-ER is the brainchild of Dr. Alister Martin, now the CEO of A Healthier Democracy. Dr. Martin is a product of the Harvard Medical School and Harvard Kennedy School. He is clearly a visionary leader, and his Massachusetts ties do not end in Cambridge.
Vot-ER was born in October 2019 at Mass General Hospital, before it became Mass General Brigham. In collaboration with TurboVote and a New York City consulting firm, Dr. Martin unveiled Vot-ER by introducing something never seen before in any hospital: a voter registration kiosk.
Fast forward three years later: After completing Vot-ER’s Civic Health Fellowship, here is what I have learned, just in time for Election Day.
First, the practice of public storytelling is paramount. “Those who tell the stories rule the world” is a Native American proverb that resonates even more strongly in the age of misinformation.
Hospitals and clinics tell stories of life and death every day. These stories reflect the policies our elected officials implement. And every voter can use the ballot box to shape the health of their community. For example, if you think there are better ways to deal with COVID, monkeypox, and/or RSV, vote for the candidates who support clear policies to make such positive change.
Second, 80 percent of health outcomes are determined by non-medical factors. Think food insecurity, lack of affordable housing, and transportation challenges, to name just a few. These non-medical factors are also known as social determinants of health. Essentially, they represent the conditions in which we are born, live, work, grow, and age.
As an emergency department social worker in western Massachusetts, I know all too well that social determinants of health matter a great deal to access and the quality of medical care.
Third, the American Medical Association now views voting as a social determinant of health. We should all welcome this revelation. It suggests doctors appreciate that how prepared you are to vote directly relates to your personal health as well as your civic health.
In a clip from PBS News Hour that aired last weekend, a family nurse practitioner and Vot-ER colleague from Athens, Ga. ties all three points together.
How prepared you are to vote is a sign of civic health, no question. As Vot-ER and other civic engagement groups know, health is always on the ballot. Fortunately, there are many resources at our fingertips that make voting easy.
While I do not know precisely how I’ll vote on all four ballot questions this year, I will use the extra hour when we “fall back” this weekend to prepare to vote. For the sake of everyone’s civic health, I hope you’ll vote on November 8 too, if you haven’t already. And to election workers everywhere, from the bottom of my heart, thank you for all that you do.
