Created by leaders from the ARIAH Foundation and Just Equity for Health, the Green Book for Health is a promise- to invest in the health and well-being of Black Americans who, for too long, have been left on the margins.
This is our guide towards wellness, created for and by us.
Learn more about this project
What is the Green Book for Health?
The Green Book for Health will involve two key components meant to offer healthcare guidance and community-sourced insights on safe healthcare resources:
Resource Guide
A Resource Guide with insights on healthcare navigation, written by a team of seasoned healthcare workers and those with lived experience.
Community Guide
A Community Guide with information on healthcare providers and health centers to use or not use, sourced through surveys and testimonials from community members.
Why Do We Need a Green Book for Health?
The Green Book for Health was co-created by community members invested in improving Black health outcomes.
- While Black Americans comprise approximately 14% of the population, they account for higher rates of new infectious diseases such as HIV, higher mortality from various cancers, and higher maternal mortality than their white counterparts. These are just a few of the harsh statistics that reflect the structural inequities underpinning Black health in America.
- Despite knowledge that health inequities can be addressed by racial and gender concordance between patients and physicians, the percentage of Black individuals in the physician workforce has not changed since the 1950s, standing at only 5%.
See here for references.
The Historical Inspiration for the Green Book for Health
While efforts are underway to address these realities, Black Americans continue to experience high morbidity, mortality and discrimination as they navigate the healthcare system, leading to generational trauma, distrust and underutilization. In this setting, individuals are becoming more and more invested in helping themselves safely navigate their healthcare journeys. The Green Book for Health arose from the desire to ensure Black people utilize the local health services that are most attuned and responsive to their needs.
This work was inspired by the original Negro Motorist Green-Book, a guide created at the height of the Jim Crow era to ensure Black people knew which cities and towns were safe for them as they traveled by increasingly available automobiles. In 2024, the reality is that some Black Americans feel that they need such a guide for healthcare. In addition to continuing to advocate for the structural policy changes that will make healthcare safe for all Americans and particularly for racial and ethnic minorities, this Green Book for Health returns some agency to individuals who feel marginalized, unheard and left behind. From this place of dissatisfaction with the healthcare system comes a desire to take back ownership for how to navigate and utilize the health services that best meet one’s health needs.
How Can You Get involved?
Fill and Share
Fill the Green Book for Health survey here, and share it with your network. Here’s a templated email and social media kit to share with your community.
Host
Host a virtual or in-person Green Book for Health educational session with your community by becoming a GBFH Ambassador. Ambassadors are trained to lead GBFH workshops which partner and educate community members on safe healthcare navigation and on filling the GBFH survey. Join today: Become a GBFH Ambassador.
Questions?
We welcome your questions or feedback. Reach out to us today to join paid focus groups or other events at GBHealth@justequityforhealth.com
