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___________________________________________________
2016-2019
Community Health Needs Assessment and Implementation Plan
Adopted by Community Health Board: June 27, 2016
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 1
Table of Contents
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .......................................................................................................................... 2
II. OVERVIEW ............................................................................................................................................ 6
State, Regional and Community Partners ...................................................................................... 6
Community Health Framework ...................................................................................................... 8
III. 2013 CHNA REVIEW .............................................................................................................................. 9
IV. CLARK COUNTY DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC PROFILE ..................................................... 12
V. KEY HEALTH INDICATORS .................................................................................................................... 15
Method ......................................................................................................................................... 15
Healthy, Active Living ................................................................................................................... 16
Child & Family Wellbeing ............................................................................................................. 20
Health Delivery Systems ............................................................................................................... 24
Equity ............................................................................................................................................ 29
VI. COMMUNITY CONVENING .................................................................................................................. 31
Method ......................................................................................................................................... 31
VII. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN .................................................................................................................... 36
Selected Strategies ....................................................................................................................... 36
Significant Health Needs Not Addressed by Implementation Plan .............................................. 38
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 2
I. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Overview
PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center
PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center (PeaceHealth Southwest) is one of ten hospitals within
PeaceHealth, an integrated, not-for-profit health system in the Pacific Northwest. Located in Vancouver,
Washington, the primary service area for PeaceHealth Southwest is Clark County, Washington.
Community Health Needs Assessment
PeaceHealth Southwest and partners conducted a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA), a
systematic process involving the community to understand community health needs in order to
prioritize, plan and outline solutions.
The 2016 CHNA was carried out with community input, including public health and nonprofit community
groups representing minority and low-income residents. Both primary and secondary data were
collected and incorporated. We also interviewed key informants and held a community forum in which
needs were affirmed and possible strategies to address the needs were identified.
Data and local perspectives are presented and analyzed according to a four-pillar structure of
community health: 1) Healthy, Active Living; 2) Child & Family Wellbeing; 3) Integrated Health Delivery
Systems (including medical dental and behavioral health services); and 4) Equity.
PeaceHealth Southwest conducted this CHNA in conjunction with state, regional, and local community
health planning in Washington, Southwest Washington, the Columbia-Willamette area, and Clark
County.
2013 CHNA
The problem of health care access and lack of insurance coverage was identified in all PeaceHealth
communities in 2013 as a major need and was therefore chosen as a major focus area in our 2013 CHNA
implementation plans. PeaceHealth worked as part of the community coalitions that were formed
across the state for the purpose of helping people sign up for commercial health insurance and Apple
Health, i.e. Medicaid. By any measure these efforts were successful.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 3
Summary of the 2016 Community Health Needs Assessment
Demographic and Secondary Data
Clark County has about 440,000 residents. 28% are children 0-19 years old, 61.6% are adults age 18-64,
and the remaining 12.6% are seniors age 65+. Vancouver is the largest city in the county representing
nearly 37% of the county’s population. Approximately 33% of Clark County residents are either “Asset
Limited, Income Constrained, Employed” or live below the poverty line. 8.7% of the County’s population
is Hispanic.
Key health indicators were organized into the four community health pillars using primary data from
Robert Wood Johnson’s 2016 County Health Rankings and other state sources. Health outcomes gaps in
each area are summarized below.
HEALTHY, ACTIVE LIVING: Major issues identified include youth smoking and physical inactivity. The
county is below the state average for both these measures.
CHILD & FAMILY WELLBEING: Readiness to Learn among kindergarteners entering school and food
insecurity among children are major concerns for children in Clark County. While these measures are
similar to State of Washington rates, these are important factors to monitor to improve children’s lives.
HEALTH DELIVERY: Data show that there are significant differences in rates of being insured by
race/ethnicity, and racial/ethnic differences in the quality of preventive care received by Medicare
beneficiaries. Addressing these inequities is vital to the health of the community.
EQUITY: Affordable housing is a key component of financial wellbeing and stability, and forms the basis
of good health. There are many pockets of people in Clark County burdened by high housing
costs. Clark County has less income inequality than the majority of counties in Washington State, an
important marker of community health resilience.
Community Engagement and Local Perspectives
PeaceHealth Southwest interviewed 12 key informants from organizations throughout the County
representing public health and minority health to identify health gaps and possible health solutions.
The key informant interviews were conducted in advance of a convening that was held on May 11, 2016
wherein more than 50 community leaders from public health, health and social services, business,
schools, and government met to confirm, refine, and identify health needs/gaps and possible solutions.
Table 1 summarizes the results of the community stakeholder meeting. It should be noted that the lists
of gaps and strategies represented in the table were generated in two separate set of group
conversations, processes, i.e. the strategies were not necessarily identified as specific solutions to the
identified gaps.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 4
Table 1. Results of the Community Stakeholder Meeting
Major Health Problems/Gaps Prioritized Evidence-Based Strategies
Healthy,
Active
Living
Adult and teen chronic diseases
Social isolation
Community Health Worker
programs
School nutrition programs
Child &
Family
Wellbeing
Housing affordability for homeless
and low income families
Maternal/child health
Financial literacy/independence
Postpartum depression
Health care for women in recovery
Prenatal and early childhood home
visiting programs
Preschool programs with family
support services
Health
Delivery
Systems
Health care still unaffordable for
many despite insured status
Poor outcomes for people who
have chronic mental illness
Lack of health care access for
people who are undocumented
Integration of behavioral health
and primary care
Supported housing programs
Equity
Mass incarceration
Cost-burdened housing
Poverty disparities by
race/ethnicity
School-based health centers
Expanded Housing First programs
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 5
Implementation Plan
The Implementation Plan strategies summarized below were extrapolated from the data and from
community input. Our plan is comprehensive in the sense that there are strategies that impact the focus
areas within each of the community health pillars (and a number of strategies cross pillars). The display
of strategies is not intended to be a complete listing of all the activities that PeaceHealth will undertake
with its community partners to affect the health status of the community. Rather, it is a statement of
our community health priorities.
PeaceHealth Southwest CHNA 2016 Priorities
Ensure effective information exchange and care coordination for select populations (e.g.
PeaceHealth Medical Group patients with complex health and psychosocial conditions who are
served by multiple organizations) through the PeaceHealth Transforming Clinical Practice
Initiative (TCPI) and other community collaborations.
Increase participation in the PeaceHealth employee wellness program, particularly for
caregivers at the lower end of the compensation scale.
As part of our ongoing efforts to create an inclusive organization that exercises cultural humility,
recruit for and support a workforce that reflects the changing ethnic, racial and cultural
diversity of the communities that we serve.
Develop a Community Health Worker initiative that empowers individuals within specific
communities to serve a liaison/linking/intermediary role between health/social services and the
community to facilitate access and improve the quality and cultural competence of service
delivery.
Partner with local agencies to ensure the ongoing availability and potential expansion of
prenatal and early childhood home visiting programs.
Advocate for and actively support the development of a comprehensive continuum of services
including integrated primary clinical and behavioral health, access to crisis stabilization,
transitional and long-term housing, substance abuse treatment and psychiatry services for all
ages.
Advocate for and actively support strategies that provide short and longer-term interventions
addressing homelessness and the affordable housing crisis in Vancouver.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 6
“ ”
II. OVERVIEW
Founded by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace in 1890, PeaceHealth is a Catholic Healthcare Ministry
serving in the communities of Alaska, Washington and Oregon. Today, PeaceHealth is a 10 hospital
integrated not-for-profit health system that offers a full continuum of health and wellness services.
PeaceHealth’s mission is to carry on the healing mission of Jesus Christ by promoting personal and
community health, relieving pain and suffering, and treating each person in a loving and caring way. The
fulfillment of our Mission is our shared purpose. It drives all that we are and all that we do. We have
embraced the Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) process as a means of engaging and
partnering with the community in identifying disparities and prioritizing health needs, and importantly,
in aligning our work to address prioritized needs.
Caring for those in our community is not new to PeaceHealth; it’s been in practice since the Sisters of St.
Joseph of Peace arrived in Fairhaven, Washington to serve the needs of the loggers, mill workers,
fishermen and their families more than 125 years ago. Even then, they knew that strong, healthy
communities benefit individuals and society, and that social and economic factors can make some
community members especially vulnerable. The Sisters believed they had a responsibility to care for
them, and that ultimately, healthier communities enable all of us to rise to a better life. This philosophy
inspires us today and guides us toward the future.
State, Regional and Community Partners
PeaceHealth’s 2016 CHNA process was undertaken in the context of other recent or concurrent planning
activities in the State, region and County related to community health:
The Washington State Health Improvement Plan (2014-2017 Creating a Culture of Health in
Washington) provides a statewide framework for health improvement efforts.
Clark County Public Health Department publishes a periodic Community Health Assessment
which is developed in partnership with the community. Its most recent 2015 Community Health
Assessment identifies three community priorities: chronic disease prevention related to physical
activity and healthy eating; access to health care; and behavioral health, including mental health
and substance abuse.
Wellness is something we nurture, something we build into our policies,
something we come together to create as public health professionals,
doctors, nurses, lawyers, transportation planners, neighborhood
advocates and PTAs, and others.
John Wiesman, DrPH, MPH Washington State Secretary of Health
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 7
Southwest Washington Regional Health Alliance for Clark, Skamania counties is a non-profit
with the dual role of governing the area Accountable Community of Health (ACH) and the Early
Adopter Behavioral Health activities.
An Accountable Community of Health
(ACH) is a regional coalition consisting of
leaders from a variety of different sectors
working together to improve health in their
region. As part of the Healthier Washington
Initiative, nine ACHs began formally organizing
across Washington in 2015. They are intended
to strengthen collaboration, develop regional
health improvement plans and projects, and
provide feedback to state agencies about their
regions’ health needs and priorities. The Health
Care Authority (HCA) is supporting ACH
development through guidance, technical assistance (TA), and funding.
Healthy Living Collaborative of Southwest Washington (HLC) is an organization that focuses on
upstream solutions that support community-based initiatives to improve health and wellness.
With a strong commitment to health equity, HLC supports the development of a network of
community health workers and improving the health and stability of all residents in Southwest
Washington by incorporating health considerations into decision making across all sectors,
systems, and policy areas to prevent and mitigate chronic disease and poverty.
Map 1. Accountable Community of Health Regions
Source: Washington Health Care Authority
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 8
Community Health Framework
Drawing from the CHNAs conducted by PeaceHealth hospitals in 2013, and after reviewing existing
community health improvement plans and collecting public data on health status and the social
determinants of health, a PeaceHealth Community Health Framework was developed. This four-pillar
framework, depicted below, was used to organize data and collect input from community stakeholders.
The subcategories, or “focus areas” were used as guideposts for considering community health
improvement strategies.
Figure 1. 2016 PeaceHealth Community Health Framework Pillars
Healthy,
Active Living
Child & Family
Wellbeing
Integrated Health
Delivery Systems Equity
Physical activity
Healthy Eating
Tobacco, alcohol
and other drug
prevention
Social engagement
Maternal-child
health
Adverse Childhood
Experiences (ACEs)
and family resiliency
Access to quality
and affordable
medical, behavioral
health and dental
services
Assistance for
people who are
homeless
Cultural humility
There are two terms that are used in the above table that perhaps need to be defined, and they are:
Adverse Childhood Experiences (or ACEs) are traumatic events that occur in childhood and
cause stress that changes a child’s brain development. Exposure to ACEs has been shown to
have a dose-response relationship with adverse health and social outcomes in adulthood,
including but not limited to depression, heart disease, COPD, risk for intimate partner violence,
and alcohol and drug abuse.
Cultural humility is a term used to describe a way of infusing multiculturalism into a workplace.
Replacing the idea of cultural competency, cultural humility is based on the idea of focusing on
self-reflection and lifelong learning.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 9
III. 2013 CHNA REVIEW
During the 2012-2013 timeframe, PeaceHealth Southwest, in collaboration with Clark County Public
Health, the Healthy Columbia Willamette Collaborative and other community partners in Southwest
Washington and the greater Portland, OR metro area, conducted a comprehensive CHNA. The CHNA
described the health status of the entire region and recommended areas for improvement. The
PeaceHealth Southwest CHNA focused on the Clark County, WA data. The table below summarizes our
2013-2016 CHNA and includes available metrics which summarize measurable progress to date.
Table 2. 2013 CHNA Summary and Current Status
Objectives Strategies Outcomes
Baseline Current
Objective 1:
Increase Access
to Affordable
Care
Increase the number of children and adults with health insurance
Improve access to low-cost medical and dental services
Uninsured adults:
19%
Uninsured adults:
8%
Objective 2:
Improve Mental
Wellbeing
Increase screening for mental health
Increase awareness of mental health conditions
Increase access to mental health services
Suicide death rate:
17.7
(age-adjusted per
100,000 population,
2010)
Suicide death rate:
15.9
(age-adjusted per
100,000 population,
2012-2014)
Objective 3:
Reduce
Substance
Abuse
Early intervention for substance abuse
Social support for substance-free living
Increase access to substance abuse services
Screening and early detection
Adults who drink to
excess: 16%
Adults who drink to
excess*: 19%
Objective 4:
Improve Healthy
Habits
Increase physical activity
Increase consumption of healthy food
Increase the physical activity opportunities in neighborhoods
Increase access to healthy foods
Incorporate weight control into health care services
Enhance physical activity and nutrition promotion in the clinical setting
Adults who are
obese: 29%
Adults who report
no leisure time
physical activity:
19%
Adults who are
obese: 29%
Adults who report
no leisure time
physical activity:
19%
*data methods changed/can’t compare to prior years
Sources: Robert Wood Johnson County Health Rankings, Enroll America, Washington State Department of Health:
Center for Health Statistics, Washington State Behavioral Risk Factors Surveillance System
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 10
As we move forward in adopting the 2016 CHNA, we reflect on lessons learned and accomplishments of
our process, goals, and implementation of the previous (2013) CHNA:
Lessons Learned
While the 2013 PeaceHealth Southwest CHNA was a comprehensive assessment with extensive
community involvement and partnership, with the exception of increasing access to insurance,
our subsequent plan execution was not as robust as intended due to lack of sustained
leadership and funding. Going forward this has been addressed in a number of ways, including
with the hiring of a Community Benefit director (January 2016) who is charged with leading the
CHNA Implementation Plan in collaboration with our community partners.
The new PeaceHealth Director for Community Benefit will provide staff support for the newly
formed PeaceHealth Southwest Community Health Board. With a Community Collaboration
Committee that will include representatives from public health and other community-based
health and social services, it is expected that the Community Health Board will provide the
sustained community engagement at the leadership level necessary to advance the 2016 CHNA
implementation plan.
Accomplishments
The 2013 PeaceHealth Southwest CHNA identified the problem of health care access and lack of
insurance coverage as the one issue that we wanted to focus on across all of our communities.
PeaceHealth worked as part of the community coalitions that were formed across the state for
the purpose of helping people sign up for commercial health insurance and Apple Health, i.e.
Medicaid. By any measure these efforts were successful.
Between 2013 and 2014 there was nearly a 30% increase in Medicaid enrollment. Enrollment
continued to increase in 2015 but not at the pace of the initial increase. Adult enrollment rose
45% from 2013 to 2015 and child enrollment rose 44% over the same period. As a result,
uninsured adults in Clark County decreased from 14% in 2013 to 8% in 2015.
Figure 2. Medicaid Enrollment and Percent Uninsured, Clark County
80804 81617
105528
117992
2012 2013 2014 2015
14%
8%
2013 2015
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 11
Figure 3. Medicaid Enrollment by Adults and Children, Clark County, 2012-2015
Source: Health Care Authority, State of Washington. Children are defined as under age 19.
Access to behavioral health services was noted as a significant community need the 2013 CHNA.
As an early adapter of the State of Washington’s plan to fully integrate the delivery of primary
and behavioral health services by 2020, Clark County has taken significant steps to meet a
number of the behavioral health related issues in the CHNA. As of April 2016, Medicaid clients
now access a continuum of physical health, mental health and substance use disorder services
through a single integrated health plan, instead of navigating multiple systems to receive care.
While this step is significant, during our 2016 community convening, we heard that while
funding is now coordinated, more work needs to be done to assure that actual service provision
is coordinated.
43191 43051
5751262389
37613 38567
48016
55604
2012 2013 2014 2015Adults Children
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 12
IV. CLARK COUNTY DEMOGRAPHIC AND SOCIOECONOMIC PROFILE
PeaceHealth Southwest serves the Columbia-Willamette area of Oregon and
Washington, with Clark County being its primary service area, and the focus
of this CHNA1.
Map 2. Clark County
Current Profile
Clark County has about 440,000 residents
28,925 (6.6%) are preschoolers age 5 or younger
94,501 (21.5%) are 5-19 years old
269,859 (61.6%) are adults age 18-64
55,232 (12.6%) are seniors age 65+
39,617 (8.7%) are Hispanic, an 11.5% increase since 2010
1 All data in this section is from the American Community Survey (US Census Bureau) unless otherwise noted.
Of Note:
The 2015 United Ways of the Pacific Northwest ALICE report summarizes the status of ALICE families—an acronym that stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed. These are families that work hard and earn above the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), but do not earn enough to afford a basic household budget of housing, child care, food, transportation, and health care. Most do not qualify for Medicaid coverage.
In Clark County, 33% of all households are either in poverty or are ALICE households. This is similar to Washington State overall, wherein 32% of all households are either ALICE or in poverty.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 13
More than 37.8% of Clark County residents live in Vancouver proper. In terms of the socioeconomic
determinants, the County, as depicted in Table 3 is:
91% of adults have a high school diploma.
12% of individuals live below the Federal Poverty Level.
33% of all households are either in poverty or cannot afford basic household expenses
662 people are homeless in Clark County, both sheltered and unsheltered (Homelessness in
Washington State: 2015 Annual Report on the Homeless Grant Programs, Department of
Commerce).
In the Vancouver, WA school district, 830 children in grades k-12 are reported from homeless
families (248) or doubled up (living with other families) (582) (2014-2015 Homeless Student
Data Report, Office of Superintendent of Public Instruction).
Table 3. Clark County, WA Sociodemographic Profile
City High school diploma (%)
Individuals living below the FPL
(%)
Median Household Income
People over age 5 who are
linguistically isolated
Battle Ground 89.2% 12.2% $57,347 7.6%
Camas 95.4% 5.8% $84,643 3.1%
La Center 96.3% 5.2% $71,948 3.3%
Ridgefield 98.3% 5.8% $91,205 5.8%
Salmon Creek 91.7% 13.6% $68,231 4.5%
Vancouver 89.4% 15.7% $50,379 8.6%
Washougal 92.2% 10.9% $60,353 1.3%
Woodland 84.6% 23.4% $65,065 8.3%
Yacolt 89.6% 9.1% $58,462 1.0%
Clark County 91.2% 11.8% $59,551 6.0%
Washington State 90.2% 13.5% $60,294 7.8%
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 14
The Community Need Index, a tool created by Dignity Health, measures a community’s social and
economic health on five measures: income, cultural diversity, education level, unemployment and
health insurance, and housing. The CNI demonstrates that within Clark County, there are pockets of
higher and lower need:
Map 3. Clark County Community Need Index Map, 2015
Source: Dignity Health
Key Take-Aways
A third of all Clark County residents are either below the Federal Poverty Level (FPL), or do not earn
enough to afford a basic household budget of housing, child care, food, transportation, and health care.
Within Clark County, there are pockets of high poverty and low educational attainment, with
highest need areas concentrated in and around Vancouver
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 15
V. KEY HEALTH INDICATORS
Method
Data for each of the four PeaceHealth pillars is detailed on the following pages. For each pillar, we
provide a description, how the community compares to other Washington counties, provide a profile of
the community, identify important indicators and provide key takeaways.
PeaceHealth selected the most currently available data from publically available sources. Data elements
were selected that align with the focus of the CHNA. The goal was to identify metrics that could be
consistently measured, monitored and benchmarked for all PeaceHealth communities throughout the
Pacific Northwest.
Data from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) was used as a primary source. RWJF’s county
health rankings data compare counties within each state on more than 30 factors. Counties in each of
the 50 states are ranked according to summaries of a variety of health measures. Counties are ranked
relative to the health of other counties in the same state. RWJF calculates and ranks four summary
composite scores used in this report:
Overall Health Outcomes
Overall Health Delivery Factors
Health Factors – Health behaviors
Health Factors – Social and economic factors
This is a nationally recognized data set for measuring key social determinates of health. RWJF is
committed to continually measuring these metrics.
Data in this evaluation is also supplemented with sources from state and local agencies in Washington.
Unless otherwise noted all data cited in this section is from RWJF or the following sources:
Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System; Washington Healthy Youth Survey; Washington Department
of Health, Vital Statistics; US Census Bureau; The University of Washington’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse
Institute; WA Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction; Feeding America; Enroll America;
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services; Community Commons.
Next to each local indicator we've shown whether the local rate (percentage) is less than, greater than,
or equal to the state rate (percentage). With any indicator, there is a range of possible 'true' values
because data collection always entails some error. Often, percentages that appear different are rated as
'equal.' This is because, statistically speaking, there is a large chance that the 'true' value of the data at
the state and county level is equal, rather than different, due to error inherent in the data collection
process.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 16
Healthy, Active Living: Clark County Health Indicators, 2016
What is Healthy, Active Living?
Healthy, Active Living is a key pillar of a healthy community. We envision a community where the
environment and resources of that community allow adults, teens, and children to be physically active,
to eat nutritious meals, to be free of the burdens of substance abuse and chronic disease, and to live
with an ample sense of wellbeing and connection to others.
How Does Clark County Compare to Other Counties?
Clark County is ranked 14 out of 39 Washington Counties for its food and physical activity environment,
as well as the adult behavioral health indicators like excessive drinking and smoking. This means we’re
doing well compared to over half of counties in the state.
Healthy, Active Living Profile
Adults:
Adult obesity: 30% (=WA: 27%)
Adult physical inactivity: 19% (=WA: 18%)
Adult diabetes: 8% (=WA: 9%)
Youth:
10th graders who are obese: 10.7% (=WA: 11.2%)
10th graders reporting physical inactivity: 13.4% of 10th graders (=WA: 12.0%)
Environment:
Reasonable access to exercise opportunities: 96% of residents (>WA: 88%)
Food environment index: 2016: 7.3 (=WA: 7.5)
Substance abuse:
Adult smoking: 14% (=WA: 15%)
10th graders smoking cigs in past 30 days: 10.2% (>WA: 7.9%)
Deaths attributed to any opiate: 7.9 per 100,000 population (=WA: 8.6 per 100,000 population)
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 17
Closer Look
Youth smoking
10th graders in Clark County are significantly more likely than 10th graders in
Washington State to report smoking cigarettes in the past 30 days. Cigarette
use leads to heart disease and cancer later in life, and is a major factor in
wellbeing.
Access to exercise opportunities and physical inactivity
Clark County has better access to exercise opportunities than the majority of
Washington counties, yet the percentage of adult and teen residents that
report not participating in any physical activity is equal to the average
Washington resident.
Figure 4. Percent of Residents That Have Access to Outdoor Physical
Activity Opportunities by County, Washington State, 2016
Growth in opiate use and abuse
The use and abuse of opiates in the form of heroin and prescription drugs has
increased dramatically in Washington state as a whole and Clark County in
particular. Deaths from any opiate have increased nearly 58% in Clark
County since 2002-2004, while increasing only 31% in Washington State
overall. The 2011-2013 rate of opiate-related deaths in Clark County was
similar to Washington State’s overall rate.
Of Note:
Caregiver Wellness As the largest employer in the community, PeaceHealth is working to support Active Healthy living in its workforce by offering an employee wellness program. Workplace wellness programs are evidence-based strategies to improve physical fitness and risk factors. At PeaceHealth, we can make an impact on community wellness by improving our employees’ wellness, but there are differences based on income levels:
63.8% of eligible PeaceHealth Southwest employees participate in a wellness program.
22.4% of eligible PeaceHealth Southwest employees earning $25,000 - $40,000 participate in a wellness program.
Participation by Income
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 18
Figure 5. Increase in Opiate-related Deaths by County, Washington State, 2002-2004 to 2011-2013
Source: Univ. of WA Alcohol & Drug Abuse Institute, “Opioid Trends Across Washington State,” April 2015)
Additional Indicators with Trend Data
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System is used to measure chronic diseases and health behaviors
among a population of adults in all 50 states at the county level. The Washington Healthy Youth Survey
measures health risk behaviors and outcomes among 6th, 8th, 10th, and 12th graders in Washington
State. The Washington Department of Vital Statistics measures causes of death and circumstances of
prenatality and birth. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation County Health Rankings aggregates BRFSS,
Vital Statistics, US Census, and business data to provide an overview of measures that matter for health.
The University of Washington’s Alcohol and Drug Abuse Institute measures markers of opiate abuse over
time in Washington counties.
Table 4. Healthy, Active Living: Clark County Health Indicators vs. Washington State, 2016
Better Equal Worse Trend
Chronic Conditions
Adult diabetes ● **
Heart disease death rate ● **
Adult obesity ● **
Risk behaviors
Adult physical inactivity ● stasis
Excessive alcohol use ● **
Adult smoking ● **
Drug overdose death rate ● **
Deaths due to any opiate ● worsening
Suicide death rate ● **
Environment
Grocery availability & food insecurity ● worsening
Access to exercise opportunities ● improving
**can’t show trend over time due to change in data collection methods
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 19
Table 5. Healthy, Active Living: Clark County 10th Graders,
Health Indicators vs. Washington State, 2016 and Trend Since 2010
Better Equal Worse Trend
Chronic Conditions
Obesity ● stasis
Depression ● worsening
Risk behaviors
Smoking cigarettes ● improving
Drinking alcohol ● improving
Using marijuana/hashish ● stasis
Binge drinking ● improving
Eat 5+ fruits/vegetables per day* ● stasis
Consumed no sugar-sweetened beverages in past 7
days ● **
Reports no leisure-time physical activity for 60
min/day in past 7 days ● stasis
Reports ‘seriously considering suicide’ ● worsening
Environment
Bought sugar-sweetened beverages at school ● improving
*trend since 2012
**no trend data available due to methodology change
Key Take-Aways
The rate of deaths from opiate use in Clark County are similar to the Washington state rate
overall. The death rate from opiate use in Clark County has risen dramatically since 2002-2004
and calls for solutions to prescription drug and heroin abuse in Clark County.
Despite ample access to exercise opportunities and a food environment similar to Washington
overall, many Clark County adults and teens are physically inactive and obese.
Clark County teens are more likely to smoke cigarettes than Washington teens overall, but the
trend does not continue into adulthood.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 20
Child & Family Wellbeing: Clark County Health Indicators, 2016
What is Child & Family Wellbeing?
Child & Family Wellbeing is a key pillar of a healthy community. Circumstances in pregnancy through
early childhood are key predictors of health and wellbeing later in life. We envision a community where
all pregnant women and families with children are well-fed, safe, and equipped with resources and
knowledge to succeed in school, from kindergarten to high school graduation.
How Does Clark County Compare to Other Counties?
In social and economic factors, including the percentage of adults who have completed high school and
have some college education, as well as the percentage of babies born to single mothers, Clark County is
ranked 10th of 39 counties in Washington.
Child & Family Wellbeing Profile
Percent of students who demonstrate expected skills in 6 of 6 domains: 39.0% (=WA: 39.5%).
Childhood food insecurity: 22.1% (=WA: 21.0%)
Graduation rate: 78.6% (=WA: 77.2%)
Maternal smoking in third trimester of pregnancy: 7.9% (=WA: 7.3%)
Low birth weight: 6% (=WA: 6%)
Prenatal care beginning in first trimester: 76% (=WA: 74.7%)
19-35-month olds up-to-date with vaccinations: 57% (=WA: 56%)
Teens up-to-date with vaccines: 30% (=WA: 34%)
WIC infants fully or partially breastfed: 43.1% (Sea Mar CHC) (=WA: 38.4%)
Closer Look
Readiness to Learn
In the Vancouver School District, as in Washington State, children from low-income families and children
with limited English are significantly less ready for kindergarten than their peers as measured by skills in
six domains of ability of average 5-year olds. These domains include social/emotional functioning,
physical functioning, language ability, and cognitive, literacy, and math abilities. These kindergarten
deficits are difficult to make up over time and can lead to lower levels of high school completion and a
host of vulnerabilities later in life.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 21
Figure 6. Percentage of Entering Kindergarteners Demonstrating
Kindergarten-Level Skills in 6 of 6 Domains, 2014-2015
Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs)
Adverse Childhood Experiences, or ACEs, are traumatic events that occur in childhood and cause stress
that changes a child’s brain development. Exposure to ACEs has been shown to have a dose-response
relationship with adverse health and social outcomes in adulthood, including but not limited to
depression, heart disease, COPD, risk for intimate partner violence, and alcohol and drug abuse.
Adverse Childhood Experiences include emotional, physical, or sexual abuse, emotional or physical
neglect, seeing intimate partner violence inflicted on one’s parent, having mental illness or substance
abuse in a household, enduring a parental separation or divorce, or having an incarcerated member of
the household.
Figure 7. Association between ACEs and Negative Outcomes
Source: Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, "Association between ACEs and negative outcomes"
Of Note:
61% of kindergarteners entering school are not ready for kindergarten in at least one domain in Clark County.
70% of 10th graders in Clark County are not up-to-date with vaccinations.
Nearly a quarter of Clark County children lack access to adequate, nutritious food.
39%
26%
18%
40%
31%
21%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
45%
All Low Income Limited English
Vancouver School District Washington
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 22
We can examine ACEs reported by adults in Washington and see that many Clark County adults are
bearing childhood traumas that put them at risk for poor health and social outcomes in adulthood.
Figure 8. Adverse Childhood Experiences Reported by Adults
in Clark County and Washington State, 2011
Source: Washington State Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System
Child & Family Wellbeing Data Sources
The Washington Department of Vital Statistics measures causes of death and circumstances of
prenatally and birth. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation County Health Rankings aggregates BRFSS,
Vital Statistics, US Census, and business data to provide an overview of measures that matter for health.
The Office of the Superintendent for Public Instruction measures “Readiness to Learn” among entering
kindergarteners in Washington State in 6 domains: social-emotional, physical, language, cognitive,
literacy, and math. The USDA Women, Infant, and Children nutrition program measures breastfeeding
among its program recipients by individual WIC site—the numbers for Clark County come from the Clark
County Sea Mar WIC site. Low birth weight is compiled in a seven-year period by RWJF County Health
Rankings from WA State Vital Statistics data (2007-2013). Childhood food insecurity is measured by the
USDA, and is characterized by a lack of consistent, sufficient, and varied nutrition. The Food Research &
Action Center publishes analyses demonstrating the connections between food insecurity and
overweight/obesity.
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
1+ ACEs 2+ ACEs 3+ ACEs 4+ACEs
WA State Clark County
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 23
*Data aggregated from 2007-2013
**no trend data available
Key Take-Aways
There are children in Clark County who are hungry, lack access to a variety of nourishing,
balanced foods, and not prepared for kindergarten.
Toddler vaccination rates are similar to Washington overall but teenage vaccination rates are
lower than the State.
On the positive side, and contributing to an overall healthy community the rates of timely
prenatal care, and breastfeeding are strong.
Over half of in Clark County endured at least one Adverse Childhood Experience that puts them
at greater risk of poor health outcomes, negative health behaviors, and poor social outcomes.
Table 6. Child & Family Wellbeing: Clark County Health Indicators vs. Washington State, 2016
Better Equal Worse Trend
Social Indicators
High school graduation rate ● worsening
Childhood food insecurity ● improving
Entering kindergarteners demonstrating Readiness
to Learn in 6 of 6 domains* ● worsening
Health Indicators
Prenatal care in 1st tri. of pregnancy ● worsening
Maternal smoking in 3rd tri. of pregnancy ● stasis
Low birth weight* ● *
WIC infants partially or fully breastfed ● **
Toddlers up-to-date with vaccines ● **
Teenagers up-to-date with vaccines ● **
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 24
Health Delivery Systems: Clark County Health Indicators, 2016
What are Health Delivery Systems?
Health Delivery Systems are a key pillar of a healthy community. Access to quality, affordable,
comprehensive care throughout the life course is an important facet of community wellness. We
envision a community where all people have access to quality, affordable preventive and acute care,
including mental health and dentistry, throughout the life course.
How Does Clark County Compare to Other Counties?
In health delivery factors including the ratio of physicians, dentists, and mental health providers to the
population, as well as certain measures of quality of care like the percentage of Medicare recipients that
receive mammograms and diabetic monitoring, Clark County ranks 24th out of 39 counties in
Washington—lower than the majority of Washington Counties.
Health Delivery Systems Profile
Ratio of residents to medical, dental, and mental health providers:
Primary care: 1,510:1 (>WA)
Dentists: 1,500:1 (>WA)
Mental health: 410:1 (>WA)
Uninsured rate among adults below age 65: 8% (=WA: 8%)
10th graders who saw a doctor for a physical in the past year: 62.7% (=WA: 66.1%)
10th graders who saw a dentist for a checkup, exam, teeth cleaning, or other dental work:
76.1% of 10th graders in 2014 (=WA: 79.0%)
Closer Look
Health Insurance Inequities
Though Clark County’s overall insurance rate is improving, there are significant inequities in health
insurance rate by race/ethnicity.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 25
Figure 9. Uninsured Rate among Adults <65 years, 2015
Preventive Hospital Stays
Preventable Hospital Stays is the hospital discharge rate for ambulatory care-sensitive conditions per
1,000 fee-for-service Medicare enrollees. Ambulatory care-sensitive conditions include: convulsions,
chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, bacterial pneumonia, asthma, congestive heart failure,
hypertension, angina, cellulitis, diabetes, gastroenteritis, kidney/urinary infection, and dehydration. This
measure is age-adjusted.
Hospitalization for diagnoses treatable in outpatient services suggests that the quality of care provided
in the outpatient setting was less than ideal. The measure may also represent a tendency to overuse
hospitals as a main source of care.
Lower number on this measure are the goal. Clark County ranks below the nation, but above the State
of Washington average, and near the bottom of all Washington counties. The data suggest that there
are opportunities to better serve populations with improved primary care delivery.
Of Note:
Clark County Medicare beneficiaries have a rate of 51 preventable hospital stays per 1000 beneficiaries per year, higher than WA State (36 preventable hospital stays).
Racial/ethnic disparities in access to insurance and preventive care exist in Clark County.
8%7% 7%
12%
8%8% 8%7%
13%
8%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
All Black White Hispanic orLatino
Asian
Clark County Washington State
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 26
Figure 10. Preventable Hospital Stays, Clark County, WA
Preventive care inequities among Medicare beneficiaries
The preventive care received by Black Medicare beneficiaries in Clark County is worse than the
preventive care received by White Medicare beneficiaries in Clark County.
High-quality preventive care, like seeing a primary care doctor frequently and monitoring one’s blood
sugar and blood pressure, can improve health outcomes. One way to look at possible differences in the
quality of care is to examine Medicare beneficiaries (people aged 65 years and older that have access to
government-sponsored health insurance) of different races and ethnicities, since they have the same
source of health insurance.
In order to understand if differences in quality of preventive care exist, we can look at the rate of short-
term complications from diabetes using a composite measurement called Prevention Quality Indicators
(PQI) among Hispanic and White Medicare beneficiaries by county in Washington State. Short-term
complications are adverse events that could be avoided with proper preventive care. The data in the
map below show that Clark County White Medicare beneficiaries have 93 PQIs per 100,000
beneficiaries, while Clark County Hispanic Medicare beneficiaries have 0 PQIs per 100,000 beneficiaries.
In Clark County, Hispanic Medicare beneficiaries are more likely to have short-term complications from
diabetes than White Medicare beneficiaries, despite having the same source of health insurance.
The preventive care received by Hispanic Medicare beneficiaries in Clark County is worse than the
preventive care received by White Medicare beneficiaries in Clark County and leads to higher rates of
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 27
short-term diabetes complications among Hispanic adults. Greater access to quality primary care
among minority communities is an important strategy to mitigate these unequal health outcomes.
Figure 11. Short-term Diabetes Complications,
Hispanic Vs. White Medicare Beneficiaries, Washington State, 2014
Source: Center for Medicare & Medicaid Office of Minority Health, “Disparities Mapping Tool”
Emergency Room Use
Treating patients with low-acuity conditions in the ED is an issue because it is not the best care setting
for those conditions, and it contributes to unnecessary overcrowding and cost. Approximately 8.3% of
emergency room visits to Southwest Medical Center could be considered avoidable given their low
acuity. When viewed by payer, Medicare patients have the lowest rate of these visits, representing
nearly 2.5% of all Medicare ED encounters. Medicaid patients have the highest rates, and in 2015
showed a large increase in visits that were considered low acuity (14.6%).
Figure 12. Low-Acuity ED Visits by Payer, Southwest Medical Center, 2013-2015
Source: PeaceHealth Internal Data
1.80%
2.00%2.50%
6.90%
7.10%
8.60%
6.40%
7.60%
14.60%
2013 2014 2015
Medicare Medicaid Commercial/All Other
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 28
Health Delivery Systems Data Sources:
The Washington Healthy Youth Survey measures health risk behaviors and outcomes among 6th, 8th,
10th, and 12th graders in Washington State, including health care access. The Robert Wood Johnson
Foundation County Health Rankings aggregates provider and US Census data to provide an overview
provider to resident ratios and overall clinical care relative measures. Enroll America aggregates
measures of insurance across all 50 states at the county and state level. The Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services Office of Minority Health Disparities Mapping Tool shows measures of health
inequities at the county level across the US for different health delivery indicators.
Table 7. Health Delivery Systems: Clark County Health Indicators vs. Washington State,
2016 and Local Trend since 2010
Better Equal Worse Trend
Primary Care Provider to resident ratio ● stasis
Dentists to resident ratio ● stasis
Mental Health Providers to resident ratio ● improving
Uninsured adults below age 65 ● improving
Saw a doctor for a physical in the past year (10th
graders) ● improving
Saw a dentist for checkup, cleaning, or other work
in past year (10th graders) ● stasis
Key Take-Aways
Poor access to primary care, dental care, and mental health care is a contributor to poor health
in Clark County.
Nearly half of Clark County 10th graders did not have a physical in the past year, and nearly a
quarter did not see the dentist.
Racial/ethnic minorities in Clark County have worse access to quality preventive care than white
residents of Clark County, even when controlling for health insurance access.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 29
Equity: Clark County Health Indicators, 2016
What is Equity?
Equity is a key pillar of a healthy community. Health equity will be achieved when everyone is
given the opportunity to reach their full health potential. Affordable, safe housing, and employment
that allows sufficient resources to meet a household budget are important facets of equity.
How Does Clark County Compare to Other Counties?
In social and economic factors, including the percentage of children in poverty, violent crime, and
income inequality, Clark County is ranked 10th of 39 counties in Washington.
Equity Profile
Individuals living below FPG: 11.8% (=WA: 13.5%)
Linguistic isolation: 6.0% (=WA: 7.8%)
Households with ‘severe housing problems,’ including cost-burdened housing: 17% (=WA: 18%)
Unemployment rate: 10% (=WA: 8.8%)
Veteran population: 11% (=WA: 11%)
Income inequality (ratio of income at the 80th percentile to income at the 20th percentile): 3.9
(<WA: 4.5)
Closer Look
Cost-burdened housing
Affordable housing is a key component of financial wellbeing and stability, and forms the basis of good
health. There are many pockets of people in Clark County burdened by high housing costs that
undermine their health and wellbeing, particularly in the Vancouver area.
Figure 13. Percentage Households Where Housing Costs Exceed
30% Of Household Income, Clark County, 2010-2014
Source: Community Commons
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 30
Equity Data Sources
The US Census measures the percentages of individuals living in poverty, in
linguistic isolation, and adults who are unemployed. The Robert Wood
Johnson County Health Rankings provide estimates of individuals who have
‘severe housing problems,’ meaning individuals who live with at least 1 of 4
conditions: overcrowding, high housing costs relative to income, or lack of
kitchen or plumbing, as well as a measure of income inequality at the county
and state level, which is the ratio of household income at the 80th percentile
to income at the 20th percentile. Community Commons provides maps of
census-tract level data, including housing cost burden.
Key Take-Aways
Clark County is doing well on most measures of social equity and
wellbeing relative to Washington State.
Low levels of income inequality are a particular area of resilience and
should be maintained.
A high percentage of cost-burdened housing in certain areas of Clark
County imperils the wellbeing of affected households and the
community as a whole.
Table 8. Equity: Clark County Health Indicators vs. Washington State,
2016 and Local Trend since 2012
Better Equal Worse Trend
Individuals living below the poverty line ● stasis
Individuals over age 5 in linguistic isolation ● stasis
Households with ‘severe housing problems’ ● stasis*
Unemployment rate ● improving
Income inequality ● **
*baseline trend data aggregated from 2006-2010
**no trend data available
Of Note:
Changing demographics call for employers to monitor their workforce so that it reflects the composition and diversity of the community.
Increasing racial and ethnic diversity among licensed health professionals is particularly important because evidence indicates that among other benefits, it is associated with improved access for non-majority patient groups, increased patient satisfaction and an overall decrease in health care disparities.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 31
VI. COMMUNITY CONVENING
Method
Key informant Interviews
PeaceHealth Southwest interviewed key informants from organizations throughout the County
representing perspectives from public health and medically underserved and vulnerable groups. The
interviews were conducted to elicit perspectives on the health needs and gaps of the community, to get
feedback on the continuing relevance of the 2013 CHNA priorities and health priorities found through
the secondary data gathering of the 2016 CHNA, and to understand possible solutions that local experts
support.
Table 9. Organizations to which key informants belong, 2016 CHNA
Organization Population Served
Clark County Public Health Department
All Clark County residents; 0-25 ages for individual services, medically underserved
Free Clinic of SW Washington
Medically underserved, homeless, immigrant, early childhood to senior groups
DSHS SW Area Agency on Aging and Disabilities
Seniors, disabled
Vancouver School District Children K-12, low-income families
Healthy Living Collaborative
Medically underserved, homeless, immigrant, children, families, and seniors
Community Convening
The key informant interviews were conducted in preparation for a community convening session that
was held on May 11, 2016. More than 50 community leaders from local and regional public health,
health and social services, business, schools, and government were convened for approximately three
hours.
Community convening participants were led through a two-part process to identify gaps and needs and
then to rank community health improvement strategies that were organized into the community health
pillars. The process was designed to build on the considerable amount of time and effort that the
County Health Department, PeaceHealth and others have put into health assessments over the last
several years and to focus more on what we can actually do together to address the problems.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 32
Following an update regarding secondary data and key informant perspectives for each of the
community health pillars, participants were asked to identify health and social needs /gaps, and strategy
opportunities. There was repetition and overlap between the key informant and group process input,
with the community convening participants adding infill to the key informant perspectives.
Gaps and opportunities
Table 10. Summary of health and social gaps/needs and strategy opportunities according to key
informants and community convening participants, by community health pillar, May 2016
Healthy, Active Living Child & Family Wellbeing
Needs/Gaps Chronic disease prevention
Social isolation
Low graduation rates, particularly
among homeless and low-income
families
Maternal/child health, including
postpartum depression and women
in recovery
Financial literacy/independence
Strategic
Opportunities
Mental health and substance
abuse care for teens and adults
School & community programs
for mental health and nutrition
access
Improved care coordination and
follow-up for high-risk and/or
linguistically isolated women and
infants/children through home
visiting programs
Better understanding of ACEs
among providers; compassion
fatigue relief for providers
Affordable childcare
Support for same-sex couples
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 33
Table 11. Summary of health and social gaps/needs and strategy opportunities according to key
informants and community convening participants, by community health pillar, May 2016
Health Delivery Systems Equity
Needs/Gaps
Health care still unaffordable for
many despite insured status
Disorganization and lack of
integration between services
Cost-burdened housing
Poor outcomes for undocumented
and chronically mentally ill
Strategic
Opportunities
Access to health care:
More primary care providers
that accept Medicaid and
Medicare
Transportation to care, mobile
clinics, FQHCs for low-
income/immigrant groups
More culturally adapted health
care for immigrant groups
Care coordination:
In-home care and chronic
disease care coordination and
follow-up
Integration of primary, mental
health, and dental care,
accessible dental care
Community Health Workers
Elderly
Better dementia, end-of-life care
education
Home safety evaluations
Dental care for residents over 65
years of age
Substance Abuse
Medical detox, crisis stabilization
Chronic pain:
Non-opiate pain relief strategies
Housing:
Housing as Medicaid benefit
Continuum of supportive
housing
County housing policies;
Housing First policies
Homeless/Day Center one-stop shop
Criminal justice & health system
collaboration; interface with
Medicaid system
Mass incarceration & low-
income/mental health connection
Services for undocumented
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 34
Strategies for Consideration in Implementation Plan
In the third part of the Community Convening, participants were provided with a packet of evidence-
based intervention strategies for each of the four community health pillars. Given their understanding
of community needs, participants were asked to collectively discuss strategies and then individually
select up to three evidence-based strategies within each pillar or write in a preferred strategy based on
the following criteria:
Magnitude of need
Organizational capacity in the community to address
Realistic to implement
Personal interest and passion
Table 12. Top Evidence-based Strategy Solutions Identified at the Community Convening
Strategy Needs Addressed
Healthy,
Active
Living
Community Health Worker
programs
Social isolation, chronic diseases, poor health
outcomes for undocumented/vulnerable
groups, transportation to health care
appointments, chronic disease management
School nutrition programs Chronic disease, access to healthy foods
School-based early
intervention
Teen mental health and substance abuse
care
Child &
Family
Wellbeing
Prenatal and early childhood
home visiting programs
Care coordination for prenatal/postpartum
vulnerable mothers, infants, and children
Preschool programs with family
support services
Affordable childcare, follow-up for high-risk
mothers and children
‘Early Pathways’/home-based
mental health
Mental health services for families and
children, affordable childcare, follow-up for
high-risk mothers and children
Health
Delivery
Systems
Integration of behavioral
health and primary care
Behavioral health services for families and
children; interface between criminal justice
and Behavioral health systems
Supported housing programs Housing for homeless, integration between
primary care and mental health care
Substance abuse treatment Alternative chronic pain treatment,
residential substance abuse care
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 35
Strategy Needs Addressed
Equity
School based health centers
Access to health care for low-income teens,
care coordination for linguistically isolated
and vulnerable populations
Expanded Housing First
programs
Care for the chronically mentally ill and
homeless, interface between criminal justice
and health care systems
Patient navigators
Poor access to social and health services for
the undocumented, chronic disease care
coordination and follow-up
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 36
VII. IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
Selected Strategies
Adopted by our authorized body, the statement of strategies below will serve as the basis for a more
detailed CHNA implementation plan which will be published no later than November 30, 20162. The
Implementation Plan strategies summarized below were extrapolated from the data and from
community input. Our plan is comprehensive in the sense that there are strategies that impact the focus
areas within each of the community health pillars (and a number of strategies cross pillars). The display
of strategies is not intended to be a complete listing of all the activities that PeaceHealth will undertake
with its community partners to affect the health status of the community. Rather, it is a statement of
our community health priorities.
The PeaceHealth Southwest Community Health Board will approve an annual CHNA implementation
plan that includes tactics, timelines and metrics.
Table 13. 2016 PeaceHealth Southwest Implementation Plan Summary
Aims/ Strategies Target population Primary partners
1. Ensure effective information exchange
and care coordination for select
populations (e.g. PeaceHealth Medical
Group patients with complex health and
psychosocial conditions who are served
by multiple organizations) through the
PeaceHealth Transforming Clinical
Practice Initiative (TCPI) and other
community collaborations.
Children and adults who
receive Medicaid and have
particularly complex health
psychosocial conditions.
Local Community Health
Centers, behavioral health
organizations, Tribal health
clinics and others.
2. Increase participation in the PeaceHealth
employee wellness program, particularly
for caregivers at the lower end of the
compensation scale.
PeaceHealth Caregivers
PeaceHealth HR; potential
partners could include union
representatives
2The final IRS regulations (published in the Federal Register on December 31, 2014) provide hospital facilities
with an additional four and a half months to adopt the implementation strategy, specifically requiring an
authorized body of the hospital facility to adopt an implementation strategy to meet the health needs identified
through a CHNA on or before the 15th day of the fifth month after the end of the taxable year in which the
hospital facility finishes conducting the CHNA.
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 37
Aims/ Strategies Target population Primary partners
3. As part of our ongoing efforts to create
an inclusive organization that exercises
cultural humility, recruit for and support
a workforce that reflects the changing
ethnic, racial and cultural diversity of
the communities that we serve.
Patients and users of health
and social services
Workforce development
Council; community and
Technical colleges; Tribal
health Centers and others
4. Develop a Community Health Worker
initiative that empowers individuals
within specific communities to serve a
liaison/linking/intermediary role
between health/social services and the
community to facilitate access and
improve the quality and cultural
competence of service delivery.
Specific target populations
to be determined Healthy Living Collaborative
5. Partner with local agencies to ensure the
ongoing availability and potential
expansion of prenatal and early
childhood home visiting programs.
Pregnant women, infants
and children
Nurse Family Partnership
Program with the Clark
County Public Health
Department
6. Advocate for and actively support the
development of a comprehensive
continuum of services including
integrated primary clinical and
behavioral health, access to crisis
stabilization, transitional and long-term
housing, substance abuse treatment and
psychiatry services for all ages.
Children and adults
experiencing mental health
conditions and/or
substance use disorders
particularly those who do
not have coordinated or
integrated primary and
behavioral health care.
PeaceHealth Medical Group
SW WA Regional Health
Alliance
7. Advocate for and actively support
strategies to that provide short and
longer-term interventions addressing
homelessness and the affordable
housing crisis in Vancouver.
Children and adults
experiencing homelessness
or families without
adequate long-term
housing.
Council for the Homeless
Bring Vancouver Home
Campaign
Community Health Needs Assessment | PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center 38
Significant Health Needs Not Addressed by Implementation Plan
PeaceHealth Southwest has expertise in providing primary, specialty and tertiary care for Clark County
residents. We are able to address care access and coordinaiton challenges for specific popualtions, as
well as employee wellness and cultural competnecy within our own organization. We look forward to
partnering with public health, local non-profit organizations and others to address the broader issues of
population and community health that are outlined in our preliminary plan.
The issues that we have prioritized with input from the community leverage our resources and expertise
and address signigicant community needs. In prioritizing some issues however, others are not directly
addressed. These include financial literacy, immunization rates, low graduation rates, mass
incarceration, and poverty disparities.