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Healthcare
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Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity
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Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity

A special issue of Healthcare (ISSN 2227-9032).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 August 2026 | Viewed by 5029

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Medicine for the Greater Good, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, 733 N Broadway, Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
Interests: health equity; community engagement; population health; mortality; morbidity
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear colleagues,

We invite you to submit your research to our Special Issue, entitled “Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity”. This Special Issue will promote health equity through the lens of effective, efficient, and generalizable strategies.

This Special Issue’s purpose is to draw attention to the great research being conducted regarding populations impacted by dire health issues that result in negative health outcomes. Submissions will be novel and sustainable, identifying key strategies that can be successful and significant on a general platform.

This Special Issue will promote strategies that impact diverse populations in order to promote health equity and population health. Though this Special Issue has a specific focus area, it lies within the scope of Healthcare, a journal aimed at promoting healthcare insights across the spectrum of diseases and patient population.

In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but are not limited to) the following: health equity, population health, longitudinal evaluations of lifestyles and health outcomes, community engagement efforts, and cost-effectiveness analyses, along with feasibility studies.

I look forward to receiving your contributions.

Dr. Panagis Galiatsatos
Guest Editor

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Healthcare is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2700 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • health equity
  • community engagement
  • population health
  • mortality
  • morbidity

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Further information on MDPI's Special Issue policies can be found here.

Published Papers (3 papers)

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23 pages, 1665 KB  
Article
Rural–Urban Suicide Mortality Disparities in High-Burden U.S. States: An Intersectional Analysis
by Bailey Smith, Kayli Moore, Markisha Sowards, Cathryn Caudill, Meg Wright Sidle and Damian Cole
Healthcare 2026, 14(4), 533; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14040533 - 21 Feb 2026
Viewed by 3314
Abstract
Background: Suicide remains a leading cause of death in the United States, with more than 49,000 fatalities in 2023. Rural counties consistently face higher suicide mortality rates than urban areas, reflecting deep-seated mental health inequities. Methods: This study analyzes 39 U.S. states with [...] Read more.
Background: Suicide remains a leading cause of death in the United States, with more than 49,000 fatalities in 2023. Rural counties consistently face higher suicide mortality rates than urban areas, reflecting deep-seated mental health inequities. Methods: This study analyzes 39 U.S. states with suicide mortality rates exceeding the national average, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (>14.1 per 100,000), to examine rural–urban disparities and their intersectional demographic factors. Age-adjusted mortality data (2019–2023) from HDPulse were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics, version 31.0. Counties were classified by USDA Rural–Urban Continuum Codes and stratified by region, sex, age, and race. Subgroup differences were tested using a two-way ANOVA (p < 0.01). Results: Rural suicide rates were significantly higher than urban rates (28.69 vs. 20.20 per 100,000; p < 0.001). The West reported the highest mortality and widest rural–urban gap (38.23 vs. 24.83), while the Northeast had the lowest. Men had higher rates than women, particularly in rural settings (37.12 vs. 11.77). The largest rural–urban gap occurred among young adults (20–39 years). American Indian/Alaska Native populations experienced the highest rates (rural: 58.73; urban: 35.15). The literature review highlighted limited healthcare access, social stigma, substance use, and economic hardship as variables commonly associated with rural–urban differences in suicide mortality. Conclusions: Suicide mortality is markedly elevated in rural America across all subgroups, with the greatest risks among young adults, men, and American Indian/Alaska Native populations. Tailored prevention strategies and expanded mental health infrastructure are critical for high-burden states. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity)
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14 pages, 502 KB  
Article
“It Can Hurt Your Heart”: A Co-Designed Cross-Sectional Survey Exploring Pacific People’s Understanding of Rheumatic Fever in Auckland, New Zealand
by Siobhan Tu’akoi, Malakai ‘Ofanoa, Samuela ‘Ofanoa, Melenaite Tohi, Maryann Heather, Hinamaha Lutui, Rose Lamont, Elizabeth Fanueli and Felicity Goodyear-Smith
Healthcare 2025, 13(22), 2924; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare13222924 - 15 Nov 2025
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Abstract
Background/Objectives: Rheumatic fever is preventable and can be treated successfully; however, a lack of understanding of the disease and barriers to timely healthcare can impact outcomes. Pacific people in Aotearoa New Zealand experience inequitable burdens, and a Pacific community group and health [...] Read more.
Background/Objectives: Rheumatic fever is preventable and can be treated successfully; however, a lack of understanding of the disease and barriers to timely healthcare can impact outcomes. Pacific people in Aotearoa New Zealand experience inequitable burdens, and a Pacific community group and health professional network are working together to co-design education initiatives. This descriptive, mixed-methods study aimed to (1) explore Pacific people’s awareness and understanding of rheumatic fever, (2) describe where Pacific people access health information. Methods: An online survey co-developed with Pacific community members was run from December 2024 to February 2025. Questions related to sore throats, rheumatic fever, medication adherence, long-term outcomes and where Pacific people access health information. Quantitative data was analyzed descriptively using SPSS version 28 and open-ended qualitative responses were analyzed using an inductive content analysis approach. Results: A total of 400 Pacific respondents were included: 34% were aged 16–24 years and 66% were female. Based on the analysis, 71% of Pacific participants knew that a sore throat should always be checked by a health professional and 65.3% had heard of rheumatic fever. Fever and sore throats were commonly identified as symptoms of rheumatic fever, with joint pain, body aches and chest pain mentioned less. Barriers to health services such as cost, long waiting times and cultural factors were discussed as reasons why many Pacific people often utilize social media and online forums for health information. Conclusions: This study highlights gaps in rheumatic fever knowledge and thus opportunities for health education initiatives for Pacific communities, potentially utilizing social media and online platforms. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity)
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Other

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12 pages, 1232 KB  
Brief Report
Community Health Workers in School Systems: Social Prescribing for Healthcare Access and Resource Allocation
by Marcie Johnson, Kendra Summers, LaShawn McClary, Mindi B. Levin, Catherine Ling, Natalie Exum, Kimberly Hailey-Fair, Elisabeth Vanderpool, Rebecca Chen, Anthony Rivetti, Ursula E. Gately, Amanda Toohey, Jacqueline Bryan, Jordyn Gunville-Pourier, Z. Thomasina Watts, Meghan Brown, Olivia Banks, Brittany Martin, Annette Anderson and Panagis Galiatsatos
Healthcare 2026, 14(9), 1217; https://doi.org/10.3390/healthcare14091217 - 1 May 2026
Viewed by 392
Abstract
Background: During the early years of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many schools found their staff, specifically teachers, adapting their roles to address social and health challenges, such as food insecurity and health literacy. Given the challenges these school-based communities faced, and [...] Read more.
Background: During the early years of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, many schools found their staff, specifically teachers, adapting their roles to address social and health challenges, such as food insecurity and health literacy. Given the challenges these school-based communities faced, and continue to face, a clear gap was exposed during these early years of the public health crisis: a lack of community-centered professionals who can assist with social health factors impacting health and well-being. Methods: In this descriptive report, we examine the process and implementation of training two teachers to become community-centered professionals, specifically community health workers (CHWs), to serve schools located in socioeconomically challenged neighborhoods of urban regions. We explore their training and how these CHW–teachers prescribed social health interventions across four major domains: (a) access to medical and environmental equipment, (b) mental health challenges, (c) food insecurity, and (d) health literacy. We describe the specific interventions they implemented and the potential economic value and practicality of the overall initiative. Outputs: In less than one year, two teachers were successfully trained as CHWs in and for underserved communities. These CHW–teachers conducted informal surveys based on objectives of health themes that aligned with absenteeism. Both the process and implementation of the CHW training and CHW-led school-based interventions proved cost-effective and practical. Conclusions: Having CHW–teachers in schools is practical, may offer economic value, and is likely to complement additional health initiatives at schools (e.g., school nurses). As a small-scale pilot initiative, further studies should evaluate CHW–teacher impact on school-based goals, such as attendance rates, while this report focuses on early implementation processes. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Community-Based Strategies to Tackle Health Disparities and Promote Equity)
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