What is "Debate and Dialogue"?

The goal of Debate and Dialogue format is to examine differing, often conflicting aspects of an issue. These sessions are designed to encourage panelists to react thoughtfully and concisely to a set of critical questions posed by the moderator; relying less on prepared reflections and more on immediate critical engagement with the core of the substantive issues raised, and to encourage audience members to participate by reacting to the flow of the debate and dialogue and pose their own critical questions to the panelists.

The four sessions are:

Monday, February 23, 2009, 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

Health Reform: Act Now and Make a Difference

Moderator:	Corrine Husten, Partnership for Prevention
Panelists:	Paul Jarris, Executive Director, Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) Georges C. Benjamin, Executive Director, American Public Health Association Paul Speranza, Immediate Past Chairman of the Board of Directors, U.S. Chamber of Commerce; Vice Chairman, General Counsel, and Secretary, Wegmans Food Markets, Inc.

In the health reform dialogue, which involves both health care and health systems, the focus is almost entirely on the issue of insurance payment for services, leaving the issue of prevention largely out of the conversation. This session will focus on the issue of prevention in the context of health reform, including how to raise the priority of prevention among competing interests, and the role that public health should play in shaping health reform opportunities. Panelists will address potential roles for a variety of sectors and levels in public health, as well as discuss some of the untapped opportunities for practitioners and the business sector to connect around health reform for community-wide improvements and worksite health promotion.

Monday, February 23, 2009, 4:00 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.

What Can We Do about the Effects of Food Advertising on Childhood Obesity?

Moderator:	Bill Dietz, Director, Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, CDC
Panelists:	Margot Wootan, Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) Elaine Kolish, Children’s Food and Beverage Advertising Initiative, Better Business Bureau Gary Knell, President and CEO Sesame Street Workshop Mary K. Engle, Associate Director for Advertising Practices, Bureau of Consumer Protection, Federal Trade Commission

The relationship between television viewing and childhood obesity has been reasonably well established, and may be mediated by the effect of television advertising on children’s diets. High caloric density foods are heavily advertised during children’s programs, and the more television that children watch, the more likely they are to consume the foods advertised on television. This Debate and Dialogue will consider innovative approaches to programming to promote healthy foods, the effectiveness of voluntary approaches to the control of food advertisements aimed at children, and potential regulatory alternatives.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009, 3:30 p.m.– 5:00 p.m.

Health care delivery in the 21st century: Is the medical home model ready for primetime?

Moderator:	James S. Marks, Senior Vice President and Director, Health Group, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation
Panelists:	Larry Green, Program Director, Prescription for Health, University of Colorado Health Sciences Center Richard C. Wender, Chairman, Department of Family Medicine, Jefferson Medical College Carol Callaghan, Coordinator, Michigan Primary Care Consortium, Michigan Department of Community Health

The health care system is faced with a mounting set of challenges in the 21st century most notably skyrocketing costs; uncoordinated care and barriers to access; inefficiencies and errors care in delivery; a growing shortage of primary care clinicians due to adverse practice conditions; and the increasing prevalence of chronic diseases among the U.S. population. These issues are at the heart of the patient-centered medical home model. The Institute of Medicine defines patient-centeredness as a health care partnership among practitioners, patients, and their families (when appropriate) to ensure that decisions respect patients’ wants, needs, and preferences and that patients have the education and support they require to make decisions and participate in their own care. But is the medical home ready for primetime? The medical home is based on a set of joint principles adopted in 2007 by the American Academy of Family Practice, the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Physicians, and the American Osteopathic Association with the basic premise that care managed and coordinated by a personal physician with the right tools will lead to better health outcomes. The vision has yet to be put into full scale practice and there is a lack of consensus on exactly what and where it is, who operates it, and how is it paid for. This debate and dialogue session will examine the structure and functions of a medical home model; what medical homes are expected to deliver; opportunities for coordination with public health, providers, business, insurers, and community organizations; and what is the role and opportunity for prevention in the model.

Tuesday, February 24, 2009, 3:30 p.m.– 5:00 p.m.

Addressing the Social Determinants of Health and Achieving Health Equity

Moderator:	Rachel Poulain, Director of Outreach, California Newsreel
Panelists:	Fiona Adshead, Director of Noncommunicable Diseases and Health Promotion, World Health Organization John Auerbach, Commissioner, Massachusetts Department of Public Health Brian D. Smedley, Vice President and Director, Health Policy Institute, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies

The conditions in which people are born, grow, live, work, and age as well as access to quality health care have a direct influence on their opportunity for a healthy and long life. Generally referred to as the social determinants of health, we are witnessing a global movement in public health to address the social conditions that shape health outcomes. In this session, we will debate what public health’s role should be in addressing the social determinants of health, and dialogue about what is needed in the U.S. to build a system of public health practice that integrates the social determinants in its programs, policies, and administrative structures.  This session will also explore how to work with sectors closely tied to the social determinants (e.g., the housing and food industries, major employers and small businesses, and public safety and transportation, to name a few) and debate issues of measurement and surveillance that are key components of public health practice.

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Page last reviewed: January 9, 2009
Page last modified: January 9, 2009
Content source: National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion