— Information from Donna Young, Maria Parham Health Market Coordinator, Marketing & Communications
Maria Parham Health, in collaboration with local health professionals and community stakeholders, has launched a comprehensive Community Health Needs Assessment to identify public health priorities, goals and objectives in Vance County. This initiative is part of the hospital’s ongoing commitment to improving and promoting the health of every community member.
The assessment is a structured approach to gathering, analyzing and disseminating information about the community’s overall health. It is designed to identify the factors negatively affecting public health and to determine the availability of resources to address those identified issues.
Maria Parham Health conducted its previous community health needs assessment three years ago, according to information from Donna Young, MPH market coordinator for Marketing & Communications. The new assessment will evaluate the progress made since then and outline what still needs to be done. The current assessment is expected to be completed by the end of October, with results to be shared publicly in a comprehensive report.
“Guided by the results of this important community assessment and the progress we’ve made since the last CHNA, we will soon have a more comprehensive understanding of the health needs of our community,” said Bert Beard, CEO of Maria Parham Health. “This will help us focus our resources as we work towards making communities healthier.”
The CHNA will draw from both existing and newly collected data to evaluate local health needs and recommend potential solutions. Some of the data sources include previous assessments conducted by local, state and federal public health organizations.
A key element of the assessment is community engagement. A focus group will be conducted and community members, physicians and hospital staff will be surveyed to gather perspectives on local health concerns and needed changes. This qualitative insight will be combined with quantitative data to shape health improvement priorities.
“The survey will be looking at concerns as seen through the eyes of the residents of Vance County,” Beard said.
Data for the CHNA is being collected and analyzed by Strata, Maria Parham Health’s research partner. Strata will interpret the findings and present them to the hospital’s board of directors and to administrative leadership, helping to guide the refinement of programs and services to better meet community health needs.
Following the completion of data collection, a Community Health Summit will be held to present the findings and further engage the public in health improvement planning. Maria Parham Health will also align its findings with the Granville Vance Public Health CHNA to ensure a coordinated and effective response.
“As we demonstrated with our last CHNA, our community assessment is not just about producing a report—it’s about creating a sustained action plan that truly improves the lives of the people in our community,” said Beard.
