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Health staff review Bladen County community health assessment, highlight priorities
Summary
Public-health officials gave an update on the county's community health assessment, noting more than 400 survey respondents, continuing high rankings on chronic disease and substance misuse, and an approved 2022 Community Health Improvement Plan supported by HRSA.
Bladen County health staff presented the county’s recent Community Health Assessment and state of the county health report on Aug. 5, describing persistent health challenges and the county’s improvement priorities.
Isabella Faison summarized the assessment work, noting over 400 survey respondents and secondary data showing the county ranks in the lower percentile on health outcomes and factors. She listed the community’s five health priorities and said the county has focused the last three years on top priorities: diet, exercise and nutrition, substance misuse and mental health.
Staff reviewed programs tied to the county’s Community Health Improvement Plan, including a worksite-wellness program, mobile mental-health clinics (Coastal Horizons and RHA vans), a local brick-and-mortar RHA clinic in Bladenboro, and a planned peer-support specialist in the emergency department through cooperation with the local hospital. Faison said the county obtained a HRSA grant and received a no-cost extension to continue work under that grant.
Commissioners asked whether food-delivery or healthy-opportunity programs serve seniors and schoolchildren; staff identified the county’s participation in the Healthy Opportunities initiative and offered to provide county-specific data. A prioritization meeting to set the next round of health improvement work was scheduled in the coming weeks and commissioners were encouraged to participate.
