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Community Health Improvement Plans

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Last month we passed a significant milestone as public health agencies submitted their Community Health Improvement Plans (CHIPs) to the State using electronic Scorecards. Unlike a printed plan that gathers dust on a shelf, this format shares real-time information with stakeholders about how our health departments, hospitals, and other partners are working together to improve the health of our communities.
It has been a three-year journey to receive approval to submit electronic, interactive CHIPs using Scorecard. While our region is pilot testing the format this year, the State is currently making plans for the rest of NC to be able to submit CHIPs using Scorecards in the future.
We should all take pride in this demonstration that our region is continually innovating, striving for excellence, and is a leader in community health improvement for the rest of the state.
Each county’s CHIP will eventually be linked to on the “Local Priorities & Reports” section of our website.
Watch a 4-minute video created by WNC Health Network to help WNC Healthy Impact partners communicate with stakeholders about what their CHIP is, why they use an electronic Scorecard format, and how to navigate the Scorecard components:
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New Video about Community Health Assessment in Western North Carolina

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WNC Health Network is proud to have created a suite of materials to help our WNC Healthy Impact partners communicate with local stakeholders about their community health assessment process, including a short video about the CHA process and WNC Healthy Impact partnership in WNC:

Please feel free to share this video with others – whether in a community presentation or on your Facebook page. Community health assessment can feel complex, but this video helps break down the process and the partners that have helped make western North Carolina a leader in collaborative community health improvement.

 

Community Health Assessment in Western North Carolina (Script)

For more than twenty years, WNC Health Network has been the non-profit alliance of hospitals in Western North Carolina. Our hospitals have a long history of working together to create healthy, thriving communities throughout sixteen counties.

In 2011, our member hospitals joined together with all local public health agencies in the region to use data, relationships, and community voices to strengthen the health and wellbeing of all residents. We call this shared effort “WNC Healthy Impact,” and it has grown to become a nationally recognized model for community health improvement.

In western North Carolina, improving the community’s health is led locally by each unique hospital and public health partnership. WNC Healthy Impact leverages regional support to strengthen these local efforts. This drives measurable improvements to health.

How does an entire region work together like this? This cycle represents what we do at each step. Every three years, communities in western NC ask: How are we doing? What is the story behind the data? Who are the partners making a difference? What works to do better? And, what are we going to do now?

In the first phase, we focus on the facts by collecting and analyzing community data. We gather high-quality primary and secondary data that local communities can use for decision making. We then help communities dive deeper to listen and understand the story behind the numbers.With this data in hand, each local community decides what’s most important to act on. They engage a broad range of stakeholders to narrow their priority health issues.

Once priorities are set, local stakeholders decide what works to do better. Together, diverse partners lay out the right mix of solutions to make a measurable difference to community health. Throughout this process, peers join at a regional level through WNC Healthy Impact to ensure collaborative growth and excellence.

In the final phase of the cycle, communities take action on strategies they have chosen. As local leaders and residents work to make a collective impact, WNC Healthy Impact helps them measure the progress being made. This enables stakeholders to evaluate health improvement, hold themselves accountable, and be transparent about what’s working.

By working together, our hospitals and public health agencies are truly creating healthy and thriving communities in western North Carolina. Learn more and connect with us at www.wnchn.org.

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