Clatsop County Public Health presents draft health equity plan prioritizing family support, youth prevention and internal capacity

Jill Quackenbush, deputy director/administrator for Clatsop County Public Health, and Lisa Schuyler, health promotion supervisor, presented a draft health equity plan the department said was grounded in community input, data analysis and collaboration with partners.

"The Clatsop County Department of Public Health is committed to making sure that every resident of Clatsop County has a fair chance to live a healthy life," the department’s director, Kelly Broughton, wrote in a letter included in the draft, read by staff during the presentation.

Staff described three key focus areas in the draft: family support and child care; youth substance‑use prevention (with specific mention of vaping, cannabis and alcohol); and organizational capacity to embed equity across department operations. Proposed actions in scope for the health department include referrals and outreach, emergency planning, transportation and immunizations; the department also said it is conducting a separate community health needs assessment with local health systems that may identify additional system‑navigation needs.

Lisa Schuyler outlined proposed performance indicators the department will use to measure progress, including the number of service referrals made, the number of certified prevention specialists and the percentage of staff trained in culturally responsive care. The plan calls for quarterly internal coordination through a health equity work group, integration with quality‑assurance processes, and an annual public progress report.

Commissioners praised the plan’s community engagement and practical metrics. Commissioner Thompson offered to carry the county’s priorities into statewide meetings he attends with the Oregon Health Authority. Commissioner Webb called the draft "a terrific document" and offered to meet with staff to review line‑level edits and help produce a shorter public‑facing pamphlet to explain the plan to residents and to leverage school systems for outreach.

Jill and Lisa said staff are already coordinating with school districts on a youth prevention needs assessment, that staff are in schools conducting programming, and that the department intends to finalize the draft, submit it to the Oregon Health Authority and launch initial actions during the upcoming fiscal year.

Clarifying details: the plan’s three priority areas are family support/child care, youth substance use prevention, and organizational capacity; performance metrics include service referrals, number of certified prevention specialists, and percent of staff with cultural‑responsiveness training; next steps are finalization, OHA submission, formation of an internal health equity work group and public annual reporting.