San Mateo County Health recently received funding from CA’s Health Equitable Recovery Initiative (CERI) to increase equity infrastructure and capacity within local health jurisdictions to address COVID – 19 disparities among populations at higher risk and that have been historically underserved. This funding will enable our local health department to achieve the following program aims:

1. Expand and develop COVID-19 mitigation and prevention resource and services
2. Improve data collection and reporting in useful ways to drive shared decision-making that is responsive to community needs and input
3. Leverage and expand internal and external infrastructure support by building collaborative mechanisms for shared input, decision-making, and accountability
4. Implement targeted local equity activities through multisector efforts

 We are using these funds to develop and expand the Health Equity Team with the addition of two new Community Health Planners, Deandra Lee and Nupoor Kulkarni (introduced above). We are also implementing and expanding offerings of our Race, Equity, and Health Training session for all Health staff, updating, implementing, and monitoring our Racial Equity Action Plan, establishing a framework for community engagement within the County Health, and further building cross-sectoral collaborations across Health System agencies.

Additionally, to support CERI grant activities, the County of San Mateo is looking for qualified Consultant Trainers for Race Health and Equity Trainings. Consultant Trainers will work collaboratively with SMC Health’s Health Equity Team and GARE Training Committee to deliver co-facilitation of and integrate learnings from the county-developed 4-hour web-based Race Health and Equity Training, support the development and delivery of Train-the-Trainer sessions for SMC Health staff, and meet regularly to provide consultation expertise to the Health Equity Team and GARE Training Committee in incorporating racial and health equity into learning on individual, organizational, and structural levels. For more information on how to apply, please contact Nupoor Kulkarni, Community Health Planner, nkulkarni@smcgov.org