The Health of Local Health Care:
Rural communities map health system improvements
By Joan Miles, Cascade Valley Hospital Foundation Coordinator
Sometimes the big problems of modern life just seem too complex and remote from our lives. Our nation's broken health system surely falls in that category. What can you and I do about the high cost of health insurance or rising rates of diabetes? Shouldn't we just leave such problems to the experts and spend our energies where we can see the difference we make?
The answer, at least when it comes to health, may surprise you. A lot of us believe there will be little progress toward a better health system until average people in communities across the nation decide they can make a difference.
Last year leaders from 80 rural communities met to take a different look at the problems of our health system. The Washington Health Foundation, a statewide non-profit organization addressing the gaps in our fragmented health system, hosted the meetings. We gathered in roundtable discussions with others in our own communities to identify local values and concerns that need to be addressed. Last October we joined with our urban counterparts and health system experts to share ideas.
While much of the talk related to policy and funding issues needing to be addressed in state legislatures and Congress, we all agreed significant improvements can result when individuals and communities take responsibility for acting on their own behalf on matters affecting their health.
With leaders from other rural communities and the support of the Washington Health Foundation, we are starting a local project to identify our greatest local health issues and then develop practical strategies each of us can do to combat the problem. We are asking our neighbors in North Snohomish County about cooperative actions they would be willing to take to improve community health. We encourage imaginative thinking both about factors affecting health in our community and what we might do if we work together to make things better.
There are many good examples how local action can affect health:
- In Omak, to address the problems of at-risk youth one group matched volunteer adults with youth to help them find creative activities and steer away from trouble.
- In the Spokane area, local strategies were adopted to address issues such as homelessness and substandard housing for low-income people.
Local health issue identification and problem solving activities can take many different paths.
Through 2004, as the representative of the Washington Health Foundation Rural Network for Cascade Valley Hospital and Clinics, I will be gathering ideas from you about the most important local health problems and the steps we might take together to implement local solutions. I will report to Washington Health Foundation. They will develop materials and other assistance for solutions most commonly reported throughout the statewide Rural Network.
Then, together we can make final decisions about our action plan and begin the process of implementation. Imagine the impact of eighty or more rural communities throughout the state working together on local health problems! While we won't all be working on the same thing or doing things the same way, we can achieve more this way than through a "top down" health improvement program decreed by experts in Olympia or Washington, D.C.
Please share your comments or concerns about local health issues, by phoning 360-435-2133, sending , or mailing to Community Relations, Cascade Valley Hospital and Clinics, 330 S. Stillaguamish Ave., Arlington, WA 98223. I look forward to hearing from you.
Disclaimer: This information is provided for educational purposes only. It should not replace a visit with your health care professional. Call your doctor if you need more information or have additional questions.