With
innovation and bold leadership, Portland
can become
the healthiest city in the country.
In this chapter, Portlanders take a comprehensive
view of health, addressing not just the
healthcare system, but all of the factors
that they believe contribute to healthy
individuals and communities. Portlanders
understand that the health of community
members depends on the individual making
good lifestyle choices and getting regular
preventative healthcare, but also emphasize
that government has a responsibility to
support and promote good health.
Many Portlanders understand the relationship
between the physical design of an urban
environment and how it can encourage and
lead to, or detract from, an individual’s
health. These people praise Portland for
being a clean, safe, user-friendly, walkable
and bikable city that has “healthy infrastructure”
in place. They feel that Portland “makes
it easy to be healthy.” Some of these
people also praise Portland’s compact
urban form and concerted efforts to lessen
our impacts on the environment – which
they likewise view as good for human health.
While Portland does much to promote community
health, much more can and should be done
to ensure that all Portlanders are as
healthy as they could be. Specifically,
respondents want Portland to lead the
nation by finding a way to provide healthcare
for all community members. They want to
see Portland become “the healthiest city
in America” and believe this can only
be accomplished if all community members
have access to healthy living amenities,
quality preventative care and medical
attention when it is needed.
-
Both the individual and the community
have a responsibility to promote health.
-
Portland is a city that values, supports
and promotes healthy living.
- Environmental
conditions directly impact people’s
health.
- Portland
should strive to become the “healthiest
city in the country.”
- How easy
is it to be healthy in Portland?
- Both
the individual and the community
have a responsibility to promote
health.
- When speaking about health,
Portlanders do not limit their
comments to the healthcare system,
but rather address all the ingredients
necessary for healthy living.
- Portlanders generally believe
that good health comes about
as a result of individual choices
as well as community and government
actions.
- Individual lifestyle choices
that contribute to good health
include:
- Eating a healthy, balanced
diet;
- Leading a low-stress,
balanced life; and
- Avoiding risky behaviors
such as smoking or substance
abuse.
- Government actions and decisions
that support good health include:
- Protecting the natural
environment;
- Reducing the presence
of toxins in public places;
- Providing access to parks,
walking trails, biking trails
and other places where community
members can exercise for
free;
- Regulating the food supply
to keep harmful substances
out of people’s diets; and
- Supporting alternate modes
of transportation, thereby
reducing dependence on automobiles.
- Portlanders also believe
that healthy individuals create
healthier, safer and more productive
communities, and that it is
critical to invest in people’s
health.
| "The
city of Portland is very
valuable in its beauty and
being very positive in helping
people. I’ve only lived
here for 2 ½ years. There
are so many opportunities
to advance yourself physically,
financially, and socially
and emotionally.” |
| "A
compassionate health care
system would actually make
our city safer because people
may engage in unsafe practices
and risky behaviors when
they feel disenfranchised,
when they have nothing to
lose. In other words, poor
or underemployed folks may
not feel invested in a community
that does not value them.
One way to prove we believe
in the worth of every individual
is to provide basic mental
and physical healthcare
for everyone.” |
| “[In
the future there will be]
increased numbers of people
out of their homes and interacting
– increased community involvement,
less people staying inside.
Natural environment has
improved – it’s healthy
and so are we. More outside
gathering places.” |
| “Also
a future commitment to less
obesity – there are too
many overweight people considering
our outlets to the outdoors,
fresh air, recreation, sports,
etc.” |
- Portland
is a city that values, supports
and promotes healthy living.
- People love being able to
easily access fresh, local,
healthy food through a variety
of different outlets, including:
- Neighborhood farmers
markets;
- Non-traditional, health-conscious
grocery stores such as New
Seasons and Whole Foods;
- Community gardens located
throughout the City; and
- Community Supported Agriculture
and farms near the city
limits.
- Portlanders emphasized the
importance of everyone being
able to access healthy, organic,
locally grown and/or pesticide
free food (for more on this
topic, see Urban Livability:
Urban Agriculture and Community
Gardens).
A Clean Environment:
- Portlanders recognize the
connection between a clean environment
and good individual and community
health.
- Portlanders value the efforts
the City makes to preserve and
protect the environment, including:
- Maintaining sources of
clean, pure drinking water;
- Managing stormwater and
preventing overflow into
the river;
- Planting trees and taking
other measures to improve
air quality; and
- Promoting cycling, walking
and other measures to reduce
air pollution. (for more
on preserving a clean environment,
see Environment:
Natural Environment and
Environment: Sustainability.)
Community
- Many Portlanders see the
city’s emphasis on community
as key to helping people start
and sustain healthy lifestyle
choices.
- Community gathering places
(such as parks and community
colleges) provide support for
people in exercise or sports
classes, helping Portlanders
stay connected while they improve
their health.
- Many feel that Portland’s
focus on community building
also helps reduce isolation,
stress and other factors that
contribute to mental and physical
illness.
| “I
can eat healthy here—it’s
accessible. Grassroots sensibility.
People are resources—city
recycles. People are positive
and hopeful.” |
| “An
exciting place—people are
far more conscious about
many things including food,
food quality, and food access.
Health and healthy food
is part of everyday life.”
|
| “Being
a transplant, one of the
most valuable things about
the city is location to
natural areas. Being a year-round
outdoor activities person
the location is ideal. The
fact that the city supports
the healthy lifestyle is
refreshing.” |
- Invest in connecting
and improving bicycle and pedestrian
routes throughout the city.
- Locate public transit stops
near neighborhoods so people
get out of their cars and walk
to and from transit.
- Subsidize farmers markets
in lower-income neighborhoods
to bring high-quality produce
to people at affordable prices.
Note:
For many more strategies on promoting
active, healthy lifestyles, see:
- Environmental
conditions directly impact people’s
health.
- Respondents are very concerned
about the presence of environmental
toxins and pollutants in the
air, water, parks and other
places they frequent (for a
full description of their concerns,
see Environment:
Pollution, Environment:
Air and Environment:
Water).
- In particular, many respondents
complain about air pollution
from the following sources:
- Automobiles;
- Heavy industry in the
Northwest Portland (particularly
ESCO);
- Busses in downtown Portland
and the Pearl; and
- Smokers.
- Many Portlanders advocate
tightening restrictions on smoking,
so as not to expose workers,
customers and passing people
to highly harmful cigarette
smoke. Proposals include:
- Banning smoking in bars;
- Banning smoking around
the outside of office buildings;
and
- Banning smoking throughout
the entire city.
- A number of Portlanders also
call for toxic chemicals to
be banned from parks and for
the City to find organic or
non-toxic products for park
maintenance.
- Respondents are also concerned
that minorities and lower income
Portlanders tend to live in
or near the most polluted areas
of the city, while wealthier
Portlanders have access to cleaner
and safer environments.
| "[I
value Portland's] green
spaces, high degree of livability.
I also like Portland’s progressive
and forward thinking culture
(e.g. current low emissions
west coast corridor). I
value this for the health
of its citizens and its
future citizens.” |
| “Fifty
percent reduction in chemicals
used on our greenway and
in our air. We will breathe
better and healthier.” |
- Portland
should strive to become “the
healthiest city in the country.”
- With its focus on healthy
living, Portland has the opportunity
to lead the county in regards
to the health of its population.
- Many people want to see Portland
become a model city by meeting
the health needs of all of its
residents.
- In particular, respondents
call on the City to find a way
to provide healthcare and/or
health insurance to everyone.
They state their faith in Portland’s
ability to solve this challenge
long before it is solved nationally.
- Many Portlanders imagine a
future in which:
- Obesity and child obesity
are drastically reduced;
- All people lead active
lifestyles and walking and
cycling are the preferred
modes of transportation;
- Healthcare costs are low
because everyone receives
personalized, high-quality
preventative care; and
- No-one has to forgo necessary
medical care because of
income or ability to pay.
| "We
have the opportunity to
create a McCall like legacy
in building the components
of a healthy city.” |
|
“[In the future, Portland
will be]…balanced. Healthier.
An example for the rest
of the country. A livable
and happy place.” |
|
"If it contributes to health,
economic vitality, or a
clean environment, support
it. If it contributes to
some but not others, adjust
it. If it does not contribute,
[get] rid of it.” |
- Solicit input from
residents who have benefited
from excellent healthcare and
use their experiences to improve
services for everyone.
- Invest heavily in prevention
and alternate care.
- “Address root causes of the
city’s ailments (crime, drugs,
health issues, the break down
of families) not the symptoms.”
- Guarantee that all community
members have access to medical
care when they need it. This
could take the form of universal
health care, a single-payer
system or a local insurance
program that covers everyone.
|
- How
easy is it to be healthy in Portland?
Many respondents believe that Portland
is already doing an excellent job of
promoting the health of community members.
They point to the abundance of fresh,
healthy food, the parks located throughout
the city and the government’s investment
in bicycle lanes, walking trails and
other forms of “healthy infrastructure.”
They also note the abundance of alternative
healthcare options available in Portland,
including many forms of preventative
care that keep people from becoming
sick in the first place.
However, many other Portlanders have
a very different view of health in
the city. They are unable to access
the care that they need because they
don’t have insurance or they cannot
afford to purchase it on their own.
They experience pollution on a daily
basis because they live near sources
of pollution, suffer from asthma or
have other health complications as
a result of pollution. They lack access
to high-quality, organic produce because
it is not sold at the supermarkets
where they shop, or it is out of their
price range.
Many other Portlanders also feel
that the City is not doing enough
when they see people with mental health
issues living on the streets downtown.
They hold the view that much more
could be done to ensure that these
individuals receive the care they
need to prevent them from becoming
homeless in the first place. They
also find it morally unacceptable
that so many children are uninsured
and therefore unable to receive medical
care when they need it. They point
to high obesity rates and the mirroring
of other national health trends to
argue that Portland still has a long
way to go before it can be seen as
a healthy place for all its residents.
|
