Number 131
Image source: Kat Goduco
Hawks & Kaiser Permanente Ignite
Men's Health Dialogue
Featured Focus:
Health + Wellness, Access / Inclusion / Equality,
Partnerships for Good
Scope of Impact: Local
Scouting Report: The Atlanta Hawks and Kaiser Permanente recently convened a pivotal health summit, directly addressing critical wellness disparities within their community. Here’s what you should know:
Targeted Engagement for Health Equity: The "Real Talk, Real Strength: Men of Color Health Summit" at State Farm Arena gathered nearly 100 attendees for candid conversations on mental and physical health. This initiative confronts the alarming statistic that over 63% of men of color do not seek routine medical check-ups.
Holistic Wellness & Expert Dialogue: The summit featured a diverse roster of speakers, including former Hawks center Kevin Willis, medical professionals from Kaiser Permanente, and influential leaders from entrepreneurs to chefs and entertainers.
Strategic Partnership for Community Impact: This event exemplifies the powerful synergy between a professional sports franchise and a leading healthcare provider. The collaboration leverages the Hawks' established community platform and Kaiser Permanente's deep, long-standing commitment to health equity, creating a vital space for dialogue and resource sharing where it's most needed.
The "Real Talk, Real Strength" summit is a powerful example of how sports franchises can leverage their unique cultural resonance to empower vital conversations within its community. This initiative directly confronts deeply entrenched disparities, particularly the alarming statistic of low routine check-up rates among this demographic. This intentional focus moves beyond generic health campaigns, acknowledging the unique cultural and historical factors that contribute to health disparities and low engagement.
The program is not just about awareness. The strategic inclusion of diverse community leaders alongside medical experts demonstrates a sophisticated understanding of holistic wellness and a way to reach out to a broader population. It recognizes that health extends beyond clinical settings and is deeply intertwined with lifestyle, culture, and social support networks.
The strategic alignment between the Hawks' community reach and Kaiser Permanente's deep expertise in health equity creates a compelling model for how sports can be a powerful vehicle for social justice and health equity. This initiative exemplifies what it means to know its community and meet its people where they are, with the language and platforms that resonate most effectively with them. WIN | WIN Approved!
Since the start of their partnership in 2024, the Hawks and Kaiser Permanente have collaborated on a number of initiatives across the Atlanta community. We wonder how this summit can be a foundation to do more of that over the next year.
The summit gathered nearly 100 attendees, and if all of them will share insights from the day, we’d love to see tangible follow up events in the community to ensure that men of color of all ages benefit from the summit’s takeaways.
Both organizations could partner to help boost the rate of routine check-ups scheduled and attended by men of color in the Atlanta area. Could Kaiser set up stations at Hawks preseason games to get check-ups done? Could the Hawks provide an incentive to do so? Or you can simply get discounted ticket rates, or a meet up with a player if you do get checked up.
We’re looking forward to seeing if this initiative can not only raise awareness for men of color but also increase the rate of check-ups performed.
How do you measure the success of your initiatives? Are you looking at vanity metrics or are you looking at impact metrics? This is what we take from this program. This first step is very promising but we want to check-in in a year to understand the true impact it had on the community.
