,About Us

Mission, Vision & Values

Mission

IPHI mobilizes stakeholders, catalyzes partnerships and leads action to improve public health systems to maximize health, health equity and quality of life for people and communities.

Vision

All people and communities, especially those that experience health, social and racial inequities, are able to achieve their optimal health, supported by an effective multi-sectoral public health system.

  • Optimal health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.
  • The public health system is comprised of all the public, private, non-profit and community stakeholders that contribute to the health of a community or population, including but not limited to governmental public health, policy-makers, and sectors like health care providers, social and human services, employers, transportation, education, and agriculture.

Values

IPHI staff and board organize and conduct our work, implement programs and execute our mission in accordance with the following values:

  • Optimal health and well-being are basic to the attainment of human potential and a just society; therefore, society must foster everyone’s ability to achieve their optimal health.
  • Health disparities resulting from social inequities are unjust and must be eliminated by addressing social conditions, structural racism and other systemic inequities.
  • Individuals and communities have the right to have choices and information that support active engagement in their own health and build on existing assets, including each community’s unique social, human and cultural capital and expertise
  • Preventing disease and debilitating conditions and promoting well-being are more effective and efficient approaches to having a healthy population than treating poor health after it occurs.
  • The greatest health improvement is achieved by working for community-driven collective impact across the public health system.
  • Communities must be supported to develop their capacity to create systems and interventions that address health and social challenges and inequities.
  • Public health system improvements and innovations should be rooted in meaningful engagement of communities and people with lived experience, data, evidence-based best practices, and continuous quality improvement.
  • Advancing health-supporting policies, including incorporating health considerations in social and economic policies and removing or preventing social and structural policy barriers to health, is critical for achieving better health for people and communities.