Under the direction of its founder, Steve Whitman, PhD, the Sinai Urban Health Institute created a unique array of moral, intellectual, and community assets dedicated to improving health and reducing health disparities. This work began with SUHI’s commitment to engage ten Chicago communities in a landmark health survey in 2002-2003. When the data were in, Steve led his team in developing successful interventions to target poor health through education and hands-on case management in participants’ homes, a novel and intense methodology. Much of the success of these interventions can be attributed to these methods and the engagement of the community, as well as lessons learned through rigorous scientific evaluation of the programs. SUHI thus distinguished itself for over a decade winning important government, healthcare, and public health awards for its innovative methods and interventions.

SUHI is beginning again in 2014-2016 to survey the neighborhoods that Steve fought for all his life and to analyze the community health needs for a still wider service area embracing both the rich diversity of Chicago’s neighborhoods and the profound legacy of social, economic, and health challenges still faced daily by their residents. It is expected that this data collection effort will lead the next decade of SUHI’s work battling these newly identified challenges.
With Steve’s untimely death, it is up to all of us who shared his vision for SUHI and believed in its mission of service to these communities to continue this work. The Steve Whitman Memorial Fund will be dedicated to doing the following: