COMMUNITY ASSESSMENTS FOR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT & COLLECTIVE ACTION February 25, th Annual Regional Care CollaborativeGulfport, MS

Objectives Together we will explore… 1.How to use community data with clinical data for clinical decision making and quality improvement 2.How to make your findings accessible to partners in the community and drive more coordinated planning DataActionResults

Presenters  Sandra Veronica Serna, MPH Manager, Gulf Coast Healthy Communities Louisiana Public Health Institute New Orleans, LA  George Hobor, Ph.D. Director, Healthy Communities Portfolio Louisiana Public Health Institute New Orleans, LA

HRSA Health Center Program Requirement 1  “Health center demonstrates and documents the needs of its target population, updating its service area, when appropriate. (Section 330(k)(2) and Section 330(k)(3)(J) of the PHS Act)”  How has your clinic or organization interpreted this language?  How do you document population needs?  What types of activities do you conduct to meet this requirement?

Community Assessments Basics  Both a process & a method  Done by a variety of organizations for (sometimes) different purposes: clinics, health departments, nonprofit hospitals, United Way, foundations and other interest groups Non profit hospitals are required to complete one every 3 years by the IRS Health departments do them when seeking accreditation through PHAB  Most successful when comprehensive – utilizing both primary & secondary data

The value of a comprehensive assessment  Health centers serve multiple roles in the community  Impossible to determine strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, & threats without: Meaningful involvement of community partners, patients, and others engaged with or a part of populations served Ongoing and extensive review of epidemiological health indicators and corresponding demographic data Considering the current social or political context

Comprehensive assessments require a lot! But assessments should not occur in isolation…

Weaving Primary & Secondary Data  Uses of secondary data Answer descriptive questions, such as, “What does X look like?” “What factors affect X?” Potential sources of secondary data = Census, BRFFS, ACS, BLS, Community Commons, County Health Rankings, Public Health Department data, etc.  Uses of primary data Answers causal or process questions at the community level, such as “Why is X so low compared to national average?” Answers descriptive questions at the organizational level, such as “What groups of patients (i.e., social demographics) manage their conditions better than others?” Potential sources of primary data = focus groups, in-person interviews, surveys, electronic health records, clinic charts, etc.  Most CHNAs are descriptive and rely upon secondary data.

Using Your Assessment  Data gathered for an assessment can be used in variety of ways: Priority setting and planning Performance evaluation Service delivery modeling and QI Resource allocation Fundraising and organizational development Issue advocacy Identifying additional partners & allies Photo credit, clockwise: Meeting Street & Durham Living Wage Project

Getting the Extra Mile from Your Assessment  Share your results! What is your dissemination strategy?  Develop an implementation plan.  Think multi-sectorally.  Monitor and adjust. Make the work continuous.

Using Data Outside of a Formal Assessment: The Story of BR City KeyBR City Key  Website showcasing local data, resources, community happenings on a broad range of topics affecting the health of our community---including point source data on a variety of community assets  Partners include the Mayor’s Healthy City Initiative, East Baton Rouge Parish Library, Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation of Louisiana, major hospitals, etc.  Currently used by various hospitals for decision making on the allocation & location of resources Our Lady of the Lake’s Adopt-A- School program New community clinic locations Where to expand asthma programing & locate mobile markets.

Supporting Assessment Activities into the Future  LPHI recently launched a project funded by the Baton Rouge Area Foundation to replicate this model in Biloxi, Mobile, and Pensacola Funded partners include a community foundation, an urban planning & design group, and a multi-system hospital created-501c3  Websites will serve as a tool for a larger purpose: Support coalition building efforts for local and/or regional planning – not just limited to those focused on health or health care Provide communities with the tools and resources to take action and accelerate positive community change  Requires integration of primary & secondary data from many partners

Your Assessment, Your Experience  What is one thing—be it a partnership, approach, or decision—from your assessment experience that you have found to be most valuable?  What are some ways your clinic and/ or community partners have used assessments?  What is one thing from your assessment experience you’d advise your tablemates to avoid?  Based off your table discussion, what are other ways you plan to get the most out of your assessment?

Thank You  Sandra Veronica Serna, MPH  George Hobor, Ph.D.