Prioritizing Equity: Anchor Strategy – A Place-Based Approach for Health Equity

Date of Review: January, 2025

This resource is a 50-minute video from by the American Medical Association (AMA) Center for Health Equity that describes the Anchor Strategy–a place-based approach to building community wealth and health through local hiring, purchasing, investing, and community engagement–and an example of its application in Chicago. The video is 1 episode within a larger Prioritizing Equity series, and presents a panel of leaders from a healthcare institution and nonprofits that collaborated to improve community services and health services in disinvested communities on Chicago’s West Side. At a high level, the panelists describe actions taken, and challenges overcome, by their respective organizations over time. The video’s strengths include its brief length, ease of viewing, and digestible overview of the overlapping activities of the panelists’ organizations. Weaknesses include a somewhat cursory overview of the Anchor Strategy, and a lack of data on outcomes achieved by this particular case study. Additionally, the resource did not include any accompanying written materials (such as slides or a formal evaluation) that viewers could download to learn more. Nevertheless, the resource’s strengths outweigh its weaknesses, particularly for learners with little or no pre-existing knowledge about the Anchor Strategy. — Eesha Singh, MD, NCEAS

Institution:

AMA Center for Health Equity

Where was the Curriculum Implemented:

Chicago, IL

Relevant Specialty:

Family and Community Medicine