NEWS RELEASE: A community working together for a Healthy Ottawa

June 2, 2020  I  Identifying Ottawa County's Health Needs

Media Contact
Kristina Wieghmink, Ottawa County Department of Public Health, 616-494-5597

Public health challenges and individual health outcomes are too great for a person, organization or sector to solve alone. Community members and stakeholders who’ve been a part of previous assessments and planning are joining forces again to identify and remedy current health needs in Ottawa County.

"A person’s health is affected by so many areas in their life,” said Health Officer Lisa Stefanovsky with the Ottawa County Department of Public Health. “We as a community must work together to address these factors to truly create a Healthy Ottawa."

This work identifies key health problems and engages the community in developing and implementing strategic solutions. This collaborative process is being recognized as the Healthy Ottawa initiative and has the following items scheduled as a part of its work plan:

• Early Spring 2020: Survey health care professionals and nonprofit leaders - Completed
  
  

• Summer 2020: Distribute the Behavioral Risk Factor Survey to community members 
  *If called, please answer your phone to participate in the survey.*
  
  
• Summer 2020: Conduct interviews with policymakers and partner with local agencies to survey special populations at risk of being medically underserved
  
  
• Summer-Fall 2020: Develop the Ottawa County Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA)
  
  
• Winter 2021: Publish and present the CHNA results to the public
  
  
• Spring 2021: Develop the next version of the Ottawa County Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)

Previous assessments identified three health priority areas; access to care, mental health, and healthy behaviors. These priorities guided the strategies developed in previous improvement plans. Funding from numerous agencies, such as those from the Healthy Ottawa advisory council, and grants from the Grand Haven Area Community Foundation and the Community Foundation for the Holland/Zeeland Area have enabled the continued progress of these strategies.

To find more information about community assessments and planning, visit www.miOttawa.org/healthdata.

HEALTHY OTTAWA ADVISORY COUNCIL: Community Mental Health of Ottawa County, Community SPOKE, Greater Ottawa County United Way, Holland Hospital, North Ottawa Community Hospital, Ottawa County Department of Public Health, Spectrum Health Zeeland Community Hospital

Healthy Ottawa

VISION: Healthy people living in healthy communities.
MISSION: To achieve positive health outcomes for Ottawa County community members by partnering to identify health needs, develop sustainable plans, and implement strategic actions.
VALUES: Equity I Collaboration I Excellence I Best Practice