Human Health & Well-Being

Look to the Leaders helping people and communities thrive.

Health and well-being is a fundamental human right. With this principle in mind, U-M aspires to become a model of excellence for meeting the public health challenges facing our society, as well as addressing the needs within our U-M campus communities.

Issues such as health disparities, high cost and restricted access to care — including mental health support — all raise questions regarding the future models for traditional healthcare delivery institutions. We will rise to these challenges using innovative approaches that are both multidisciplinary and holistic.

Our work on campus will continue to emphasize health equity and making care accessible to our broad community. As an early signatory in the United States on the Okanagan Charter, we are committed to continuing to embed health into all aspects of our culture. We will continue to lead health promotion, action, and collaboration both locally and globally. Further, we will challenge the status quo and envision a future where health and wellness are an organic part of every individual’s life as societal norms and healthcare structures evolve.

U-M will shift the focus from disease management to illness prevention and wellness promotion. We will continue to prepare healthcare providers to deliver a comprehensive, holistic, multidisciplinary approach on a global scale to yield the best patient outcomes.

U-M will lead the charge by fostering mental health and well-being support and creating healthy communities through prevention action. In the next 10 years, we will lead in the transformation of healthcare delivery to become the innovation destination for translational research, future technologies and the use of artificial intelligence.

By combining the breadth of disciplines across the university with our academic excellence in health education and our inherent collaboration that supports our interdisciplinary strength, we will create the ideal conditions for pioneering approaches in healthcare delivery and education.

Points of Impact:

• Promote a vibrant and health-conscious campus culture by integrating wellbeing into every facet of the U-M experience, comprehensively addressing the mental, physical and emotional wellness of our community.
• Transform public health by leading the way to make breakthroughs in improving patient care, advocating for preventive health, and cultivating strategic collaborations to confront and overcome critical health challenges both locally and globally.
• Close the health equity gap by directing research and clinical breakthroughs toward the needs of the underserved, making a lasting and positive difference in the lives of those most in need.
• Become the leaders and best of healthcare delivery innovation by setting the national benchmark for safety, quality, and patient outcomes through groundbreaking research and clinical excellence.
• Generate innovative discoveries that enhance health outcomes and propel scientific progress by fostering a world-leading research ecosystem that encourages scholarly excellence and translates findings into real-world applications.

As we look forward to what’s next, let us Look to Michigan. With your support, Michigan can broaden access to quality health care and transform lives.