Nearly 500 of St. Louis’ nonprofit organization and foundation leaders, board members, staff and volunteers gathered at the Edison Theatre on the Wash U campus last week to be among the first to learn the results of an annual survey on philanthropic giving in the region. This was the first time I attended this annual event presented by the Rome Group.
Prevention may be the silver bullet that helps get the nation’s $2 trillion healthcare costs under control, but implementing and sustaining it feels more like eating just one potato chip: nearly impossible. It requires a collective paradigm shift from a culture of excessive consumption and reactive healthcare to one of moderation and prevention.
This cultural change starts with changing how we perceive and value prevention in businesses, schools, places of worship, community facilities – everywhere we live, work and play. But change is hard, and most of us resist it even when we know it’s in our best interest. So what is it that will move us to take the first steps? Not too surprising to the marketing-types, it starts with creating the right message, delivering it in the right place at the right time to stir the emotions of business leaders, government officials, religious leaders, or community organizations and moving them to act. In business, that message is often about how much of the operating budget is being eaten up by healthcare benefits.
