Government officials see the influx of workers as an economic stimulus and part of a broader effort to expand critical health infrastructure in a region where life expectancy and health outcomes lag behind neighboring regions to the west. There is. Although the department does not provide direct medical services on-site, DC Health leverages federal funds to benefit city residents and provides funding to nonprofits and community groups that work with people in need of public health resources. The focus is on that.
Local leaders said the real test of progress in health outcomes will be how school districts work with local organizations that residents already trust.
” [health] The current crisis is east of the river, so the fact that they're there will lend some credibility to their operations, but they still do the work and it's important for nonprofits to do their work. We must provide the necessary resources,” said Chairman Lamont Mitchell. The Anacostia Coordinating Council advocates for socio-economic improvements east of the river.
The Bowser administration issued an order in 2019 to begin the relocation process for DC Health as part of a broader shift of city employees to areas of the District in need of financial assistance. The following year, the Department of Housing and Community Development announced new leasing plans in the Southeast, and last summer the Department of General Services opened a new headquarters, hiring 500 employees in a $52 million project, according to the mayor's office. was hired by the 7th Ward.
The new hospital, Cedar Hill Regional Medical Center GW Health, is scheduled to open in 2025 on the St. Elizabeth East campus, where Whitman Walker Health opened a new seven-story primary care and research facility last year. The development is intended to replace the troubled United Medical Center with a robust network of primary and specialty care, as well as critical workforce and delivery services not available east of the river.
At the D.C. Health Department's new building Wednesday afternoon, Health Commissioner Ayanna Bennett looks out of her floor-to-ceiling office windows at the Frederick Douglass Memorial Bridge, which connects neighborhoods east of the Anacostia River to the seat of the federal government. I admired it. A framed, ready-to-hang degree was propped up on a shelf alongside art with a message reminding her of her impartial mission. we protect each other. ”
“I want to see this as a beginning rather than an on and off switch,” she said. “There's a process to joining a community, and I don't think just being physically here ends that process. So we need to get to know people. People need to get to know us.” No need.”
In a series of meetings, community groups and contractors in District 8 urged Bennett to share information about resources DC Health can use to increase participation in the program, hire local staff with lived experience, and increase regular He expressed his desire to publish the data and work to improve society. A Ministry of Health spokesperson said there are health determinants such as housing needs.
Unlike the older space at 899 North Capitol Street Northeast, the health department's seven-story space at 2201 Shannon Place Southeast is a modern workspace. There are light-filled hallways, a common area with sofas and chairs for impromptu meetings, an elevator with digital displays, and his seventh-floor terrace with views from the river to the monument.
The city is paying about $1 million a month to lease space in a 250,000-square-foot building owned by Four Points, according to the Department of Internal Affairs and Communications. The city will continue to pay $1.46 million a month for North Capitol Street, which will be renovated to create space for other D.C. government agencies, DGS said.
The portion of the building that is open to the public is located on the ground floor, where staff from the vital records and licensing office collect birth and death certificates for medical professionals such as nurses, pharmacists, dentists, barbers and beauty salons, etc. We will assist you with issuance of books and licenses. Tasks can be completed online.
The building reopened to the public on Tuesday, but equipment used to print birth certificates and other vital records malfunctioned, leaving employees abandoned. to triage the 30-person long line that snaked outside the building.
Many had already gone to the old location on North Capitol Street, frustrated only to find a handwritten sign warning of the new office “behind the big chairs.” This is named after the landmark southeast sculpture.
Jimira Lofland drove two hours from her home in Tenleytown to wait outside with her 13-month-old son when she learned the system was down and was turned away. She left without Zayden's birth certificate or the license documents for the bakery “Cakery Zivine.”
DC Health Director Ivan Ortiz Torres later apologized to everyone in line, saying:[ned] This is what it is, this is not how it should be, and this is not how it will be,” he told them.
Natricia Wilson, a Southeast resident who was also waiting for her birth certificate, said she appreciated the location's proximity to the metro. “It's actually convenient for me,” she said.
About 20% of health department employees (132 employees) live east of the river, and the majority have longer and more complicated commutes, a department spokesperson said. Bennett said some teams took part in their own carpool shuttles.
The district's government-wide once-a-week work-from-home policy goes into effect March 10 for most agencies, so space should fill up with employees at the same time contractors are putting the finishing touches on it. .
Ahead of the opening, officials visited local restaurants such as Mama's Pizza Kitchen and Busy Boys and Poets to warn of a rush of customers during lunchtime, and a representative from the D.C. Police Department said employees He explained the points to be noted in the future. One afternoon last week, a police car with flashing lights was stationed outside the building at clock-off time.
As district officials see it, employees will not only spend money at restaurants and use local eateries as vendors for meetings and events, but also become part of the communities they serve.
“We know that attracting D.C. government agencies to the neighborhood will have a positive impact and send a strong message that the District is invested and committed to the success of the location,” Bowser said in a statement. ” he said.
But some longtime observers of D.C. government say that unless funding for programs targeting chronic disease, diabetes and cancer is increased, the measure alone will have little impact on the health of local residents. I'm skeptical. Much of DC Health's work is aimed at making federal dollars work for city residents, by providing funding to nonprofits and community groups that live and work with people who need city services. means.
Ambrose Lane Jr., an 8th Ward resident and president of the DC Health Alliance Network, which advocates for better outcomes for communities of color, said the headquarters move will change health disparities and social determinants of health. He said there is no guarantee.
“This is a symbolically positive move in that it brings government agencies into communities that have been neglected for too long,” he said. “But will it make a difference? I don't think so.”
Mitchell, a third-generation Washington resident and founder of Imani Catering, takes a longer view. Bowser's administration builds on the work he and others did under Mayor Anthony A. Williams in the mid-2000s. He said he believes government buildings should anchor communities and government employees should work among the people they serve.
Mitchell said advances such as the relocation of the health department and the new hospital could mark a significant moment for Anacostia.
“That's progress,” he said. “Progress is slow, but progress is being made.”
