Community Impact

Community Focused

Our commitment to improving community health is based on a simple principle - love your neighbor. The love we give is easily accessible, quality healthcare services that meets individuals where they are. Through community engagement, we eliminate all barriers to accessing quality healthcare. Being community focused:

Improves Population Health
Strengthens Communities
Reduces Health Inequities

Mission and Vision

Our mission is to reduce the imact of diabetes and other cardiometabolic diseases. Our vision is to elevate the standard of care for diabetes and cardiometabolic disease in Mississippi making it comprehensive, high quality, and easily accessible. We strive to address any barriers Mississippians face in accessing quality, comprehensive healthcare services.

What is cardiometabolic disease?

Cardiometabolic disease best describes diseases related to energy metabolism that affect the cardiovascular system. Diseases like diabetes, obesity, high blood pressure, and high cholesterol can lead to more serious conditions like heart attacks and stroke. The exact causes of cardiometabolic diseases are complex and involve multiple factors.
What are current cardiometabolic disease rates?

DIABETES:
Almost 2 of every 10 people in Mississippi have diabetes. If untreated, diabetes can lead to numerous other health complications. Prevalence rate: 17%
OBESITY:
Obesity is a main risk factor of diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, heart attack and stroke. Prevalence rate: 40%.
HIGH BLOOD PRESSURE:
Mississippi has the highest rate of high blood pressure in the U.S. at 46%. High blood pressure is known as the silent killer.
HIGH CHOLESTEROL:
4 out of 10 people in Mississippi have high cholesterol and more the 50% of adults 25 and older with an annual income of less than $25k/year.
PREDIABETES:
An estimated 814k individuals in Mississippi have prediabetes. If prediabetes goes unaddressed, it can lead to type 2 diabetes.
How do we impact and improve community cardiometabolic health?

We practice public health primary care through merging population-level health improvement with individual care, focusing on prevention, health education, and addressing health inequities at the community level.

Our Purpose

God created us to be whole and healthy. It’s our job as healthcare professionals to ensure you are receiving God’s provisions related to your health and healing.
God’s provisions are available to everyone regardless of their social status, education level, income level, race, ethnicity, gender, familial environment, background or upbringing. God honors His promises to us all the same and at H.E.A.L. Mississippi, we operate in the same heart.

Cardiometabolic Disease Impact

Mississippi has some of the highest national prevalence of cardiometabolic diseases. The economic impact of these conditions are substantial and costs are projected to quadruple by 2050. Everyone shares the burden of healthcare costs, especially for the uninsured and underinsured.

Individuals with one or more cardiometabolic disease requires access to more healthcare services on a more frequent basis which causes direct and indirect financial increases on the individual and the community. Our goal is to build:

Healthier Individuals
Healthier Communities
Healthier Mississippians

Financial Impact

$5bn Total Annual Costs

Direct medical costs: $3.4 billion (for medical expenses), Indirect costs: $1.7 billion (for reduced productivity). Costs for Mississippi's Medicaid program alone are nearly $1 billion annually.

Our Impact

Our work in diabetes helps reduce the state economic burden by roughly $15mil per year. We have a primary care patient population of over 600 individuals, 85% of them have diabetes. 100% have improved diabetes related health outcomes. Our Diabetes Management and Prevention Network annually serves over 1500 individuals.

$4.3bn Total Annual Costs

People with obesity face higher medical costs resulting from obesity related chronic diseases. The economic impact is compounded by lower workforce productivity.

Our Impact

100% of the people we serve in our primary care setting have obesity. 100% of these individuals have improved their obesity related health outcomes. Our childhood obesity program can help reduce state economic burden by $907k per year.

$2.8bn Total Annual Costs

Adults with high blood pressure have approximately $2,926 more in total annual expenditures and $328 more in out-of-pocket costs compared to those without hypertension.

Our Impact

We host and participate in upwards of 30 community events per year with the intent of improving community blood pressure levels. Through our community engagement efforts, we have been able to counsel over 10k individuals on ways to improve blood pressure.

$120m Total Annual Costs

High prevalence of high cholesterol and related conditions lead to significant overall healthcare spending and high mortality rates from associated diseases.

Our Impact

We organize and host 8 to 12 cholesterol screening events per year where individuals in underserved communities can receive necessary cholesterol screenings. Early detection of high cholesterol can significantly reduce heart attack and stroke rates.

$407m Total Annual Costs

If prediabetes goes unaddressed, it can lead to type 2 diabetes and further compound the economic burden. The estimated cost of prediabetes per person is $500.00.

Our Impact

We are a CDC recognized National Diabetes Prevention Program, a program that serves individuals with prediabetes, helping them prevent type 2 diabetes. 100% of our program participants have prevented type 2 diabetes.