Welltopia, a new website launched today by the California Department of Health Care Services (DHCS) and the UC Davis Institute for Population Health Improvement (IPHI), offers a wide range of essential resources to help Californians, especially those on limited incomes, build healthier lives and communities.
Designed to complement the popular Welltopia by DHCS Facebook page, the new website serves as a comprehensive resource connecting individuals, families and communities to credible information that addresses the social determinants of health and other leading causes of preventable death.
Many studies have shown that access to health care, education, employment, housing, nutritious foods and physical activity are among the fundamental drivers of health for individuals and their communities. Making reliable information and resources available for people of all ages is key to creating healthy environments.
“We developed Welltopia to be a convenient and trusted source of information covering all three aspects of health — physical, mental, and well-being,” said Neal Kohatsu, DHCS medical director. “We’ve made every effort to ensure that the resources are both accurate and accessible to consumers.”
The Welltopia site organizes information into five categories — Well Body, Well Mind, Jobs & Training, Health Insurance, and Basic Needs. It includes information on nutrition, physical activity, smoking cessation, alcohol- and drug-abuse prevention, stress management, health insurance, residency, and social services, among others. The site also contains videos, photos, and graphics with information about health-related programs. There are free applications, such as fitness trackers, women’s health information, recipes, and food journals to track daily calorie intake, and links to CalFresh, education, job placement resources, and other social services.
“Welltopia should be the first stop for persons seeking reliable information about the many determinants of health,” said Kenneth W. Kizer, IPHI director. “Its friendly format quickly guides users to practical and trustworthy sources.”
The Department of Health Care Services manages California’s form of Medicaid, known as Medi-Cal, which helps millions of low-income Californians obtain access to affordable, high-quality health care, including medical, dental, mental health, substance use disorder services, and long-term services and supports. DHCS aims to preserve and improve the health of all Californians.
The UC Davis Institute for Population Health Improvement fosters population health within the UC Davis Health System and communities throughout the state. IPHI's mission is to create, apply, and disseminate knowledge about the many determinants of health to improve health and health security, and to support activities that improve health equity and eliminate health disparities.
This media release is from the UCDavis Health System: http://www.ucdmc.ucdavis.edu/p...h/news/newsroom/9761
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