History

The Red Hook Initiative (RHI) began in 2002 as a project of Long Island College Hospital (LICH) in an effort to reduce the growing health disparities that exist in Red Hook, Brooklyn. The Red Hook Houses are home to nearly 10,000 people; it is a community that has struggled with intergenerational poverty, unemployment and low levels of high school completion. In addition, health statistics show that there are disproportionate rates of teenage pregnancy, drug abuse, STIs, HIV, obesity, diabetes, and heart disease. These challenges made it clear that in order to create change a non-traditional approach was needed that could work at the deepest level, starting at the root of the community.

Philosophy

RHI works from the belief that it is the people within a community who have the power to uplift and change their own environment. We employ adults and adolescents as Community Health Educators (CHEs) and Peer Health Educators (PHEs) to help their neighbors and friends live healthier lives. Each of these staff have been through a training to be health educators, break down barriers to receiving health care, and to organize and encourage participation in local health-related activities. The CHEs and PHEs are the key to RHI’s success and are the underlying support for all of our programs. Through these means we are creating community change from within the neighborhood.

Our Model

After three years serving adults and youth in the Red Hook community we have developed a comprehensive model for health and wellness. We believe that for individuals and a community to establish and maintain health, balance and stability are needed in four areas: education and work, physical health, social and emotional health, and community development. Using this lens, we have created a network of services to stabilize and strengthen the health of each person we see. In addition, we do not believe in duplicating local services; we refer our clients to other social service organizations whenever possible. Using our "four pillar model" we have seen the impact of our work and the changes that people make within themselves with the strength of our support. This is the action that can truly eliminate disparities in health.