
Salus Populi
Educating the Judiciary about the Social Determinants of Health
Judges at all levels frequently encounter legal issues that relate to social factors, including housing, racism, and poverty, that shape the health of individuals and communities. Salus Populi is the nation’s first judicial education program dedicated to helping judges understand these social determinants of health as well as their relationship to judicial decision-making. The program will enable judges to more fully understand and analyze the upstream influences on health and their relevance to judicial decision-making, while also helping judges to become more informed consumers of epidemiological research.
Since the Salus Populi judicial education program launched in the Fall of 2021, we have hosted over 400 judges both virtually and in person. Our courses have taught the social determinants of health (SDOH) and population health frameworks, poverty as a social determinant of health, racism as a social determinant of health, and housing.
We are grateful to our funders, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and W. K. Kellogg Foundation, whose support allows us to cover the cost of travel and accommodations for Salus Populi participants. Continuing legal education credits (CLE) are also available.