/ en Sat, 14 Jun 2025 21:00:10 -0500 Thu, 12 Jun 25 14:57:14 -0500 /role-hospitals-saint-francis-hospital-health-systems-community-investing-program-fosters-positive-changes <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-5"><p><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-06/ths-st-francis-hartford-chna-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt="St. Francis Hospital. A health worker holding a tablet speaks with a patient at an outdoors community event" width="700" height="532"></p></div><p>A recent <a href="https://www.trinityhealthofne.org/sites/default/files/hg_features/mercury_standard_layout/7e52445bbeb2d965c884391a63839d9f.pdf">community health needs assessment</a> conducted by Saint Francis Hospital and local organizations in Hartford, Conn., indicated that 26% of Hartford residents have difficulty paying for food and 17% have difficulty paying for housing. Those percentages are much higher than statewide numbers, which are 11% and 9%, respectively. The CHNA also revealed that obesity affects about a third of adults in Greater Hartford, and diabetes rates are elevated among older adults, Black adults and low-income adults in the region.</p><p>Saint Francis, part of Trinity Health of New England and Trinity Health, participates in the health system’s Community Investing Program. This program supports local initiatives that build infrastructure to address issues such as food and housing insecurity and foster positive change.</p><p>The Community Investing Program has committed $5 million in Hartford to improve health and quality-of-life outcomes. Trinity Health’s community investments serve priority communities, which are areas that have faced severe economic challenges, received significant Medicaid or financial assistance support, or experienced past divestment.</p><p>Carolyn Alessi, regional director, community health and well-being, at Trintiy Health of New England, said, “Because of the support of Trinity Health and our community partners, we are able to provide not just clinical medical care, but transformative, life-changing opportunities that address food insecurity, workforce development, housing, education and more. We are so grateful for the support and collaboration in providing impactful support to our neighbors in need.”</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://www.trinityhealthofne.org/newsroom/press-releases/saint-francis-hospital-collaborates-local-partners-lead-positive-change">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/community-benefit">Benefiting Communities</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Thu, 12 Jun 2025 14:57:14 -0500 Community Partnerships /care-delivery-transformation/community/community-based-partnership <div class="cdt-banner-wrap"><div class="community-banner-wrap"><div class="community-banner-wrap-content"><h1 class="text-align-center">Community-based Partnerships</h1><h2 class="text-align-center">Care Delivery Transformation Framework <br><span>Community Settings</span></h2></div></div></div> Wed, 11 Jun 2025 06:36:38 -0500 Community Partnerships /role-hospitals-keck-school-medicine-usc-makes-hearing-breakthrough-studying-mouse-inner-ear <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-5"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-06/ths-usc-keck-hearing-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt="USC Keck School of Medicine. Illustration of soundwaves entering an ear canal" width="700" height="532"></div><p>Researchers at the Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California, in collaboration with Baylor College of Medicine, made a major discovery in understanding how the brain may help regulate hearing. And they did it by adapting an imaging technique currently used in ophthalmology offices, called optical coherence tomography.</p><p>The team used OCT to capture real-time images of the cochlea — a part of the inner ear involved in hearing — in mice, revealing that the brain can send signals to the inner ear to enhance sound sensitivity. The study found that while the cochlea doesn’t respond to short-term brain state changes, it does increase activity in response to long-term hearing damage in mice with genetic hearing loss. The study suggests the brain compensates for hearing loss by boosting the function of remaining sensory cells.</p><p>The team is now preparing clinical trials to test whether blocking certain brain-to-ear signals could help reduce symptoms in patients with sound sensitivity disorders. Findings could lead to new treatments for conditions like tinnitus (ringing, buzzing or other phantom sounds) and hyperacusis (where everyday sounds become uncomfortably loud).</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://scitechdaily.com/new-brain-discovery-could-revolutionize-hearing-loss-treatment/" target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/topics/promoting-healthy-communities">Building Healthy Communities</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Thu, 05 Jun 2025 12:08:29 -0500 Community Partnerships /advancing-health-podcast/2025-06-04-how-duke-university-fighting-hypertension-through-community-collaboration <p>June 9 – June 13, 2025, is <a href="/center/community-health-improvement-week" title="Community Health Improvement Week">Community Health Improvement</a> (CHI) Week — a week that looks at the important work hospitals and health systems are doing to support the overall health of their patients and communities. In this conversation, Duke University's Anna Tharakan, lead project manager on Closing the Gap on Hypertension Disparities, and Bradi Granger, Ph.D., research professor at Duke University School of Nursing and director of the Duke Heart Center Nursing Research Program, discuss how Duke’s team is reducing hypertension disparities by integrating community health workers, student ambassadors and local clinics.</p><hr><div></div><div class="raw-html-embed"><details class="transcript"> <summary> <h2 title="Click here to open/close the transcript."> <span>View Transcript</span><br> </h2> </summary> <p> 00:00:01:04 - 00:00:30:12<br> Tom Haederle<br> Welcome to Advancing Health. Community health workers play a vital role in bridging the gap between health care systems and the communities they serve. As we celebrate the upcoming 2025’s Community Health Improvement Week, June 9th through June 13th, we learn more in today's podcast about how the team at Duke University's partnership with Community health workers led to stronger communities and measurable improvements in heart health outcomes. </p> <p> 00:00:30:14 - 00:00:55:24<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Hello again. I am Dr. Chris DeRienzo, the chief physician at the ���������� Association. On this week's podcast, we are celebrating CHI week and that stands for Community Health Improvement Week. And we could not have two better guests joining our podcast today to celebrate CHI week and talk about the wonderful work that they do, right in my home of North Carolina around their community health needs assessment. </p> <p> 00:00:55:26 - 00:01:18:21<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Joining me today is Anna Tharakan. She is the lead project manager on the Closing the Gap on Hypertension Disparities work at Duke. And Bradi Granger, who is a professor in the Duke University School of Nursing and a co-pi for that same project. Thank you both for joining us on the podcast today. I am so excited to get to welcome you here. </p> <p> 00:01:18:24 - 00:01:19:19<br> Anna Tharakan<br> Hi. Happy to be here. </p> <p> 00:01:20:05 - 00:01:21:27<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> Thanks for having us today. </p> <p> 00:01:21:29 - 00:01:45:09<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Well, let's jump right in. You know, the community health needs assessments is a really broad overview of both the assets and the needs within a community. I have known the community here in Durham, North Carolina, for nearly 25 years. When I started medical school in the early 2000’s. But I'm really curious, you know, Duke Health has excelled in doing its CHNAs for a long time. </p> <p> 00:01:45:14 - 00:01:52:17<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Talk to us about how do you approach this CHNA, and what kinds of things have you uncovered? Anna, we'll start with you. </p> <p> 00:01:52:19 - 00:02:21:20<br> Anna Tharakan<br> It's kind of kind of setting up what a hypertension is present within our community. We see that despite the proven interventions that are currently present, over 50% of patients that are diagnosed with hypertension kind of have their condition controlled. And kind of specifically within Durham, we see that there's a prevalence of hypertension of almost 42%. So I think for us, as are kind of really some baseline statistics of really motivating us to kind of get out into the neighborhood and communities and reduce these hypertension disparities and improve overall population health. </p> <p> 00:02:21:22 - 00:02:48:02<br> Anna Tharakan<br> So kind of our approach was taking a quality improvement intervention to target these hypertension disparities via a telephone outreach program. So we partnered with the local FQHC or Federally Qualified Health Center and students based out of Duke Health to kind of deliver this telephone outreach. We applied these functions essentially through student ambassadors, which were these students that conducted a structured telephone outreach to kind of help reach patients where they are. </p> <p> 00:02:48:03 - 00:03:11:06<br> Anna Tharakan<br> So over a series of three to four phone calls directly work with our patient cohort, which was around 300 patients, to help identify hypertension education. What are ways that we can help kind of work within their lifestyles to maybe attach hypertension care? We distributed free blood pressure cuffs. We helped them create Smart goals and accountability partners. And then lastly also conducted a social needs assessment. </p> <p> 00:03:11:08 - 00:03:16:24<br> Anna Tharakan<br> Which is really just trying to identify what are other things that are kind of getting in the way of your hypertension and health. </p> <p> 00:03:16:26 - 00:03:34:02<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Let's pause there for a second because wow! I mean, the level of depth that you all are able to go to, is, is truly impressive. But bring this up, you know, to the 30,000ft view level for a moment, because I don't know how many of our listeners are familiar with the Durham community and specifically the role that Duke plays in that community. </p> <p> 00:03:34:03 - 00:03:46:05<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> So can you give the just sort of the brief snapshot of when you're talking about, you know, over 40% of the Durham population? How many people are we really talking about? And when you're saying going into the community, what does that look like? </p> <p> 00:03:46:07 - 00:04:24:03<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> I can pitch in here. Durham has about 300,000 people and roughly, as Anna pointed out, we have a prevalence of hypertension of about 42 to 48% of the people in this county have, hypertension. About half of those are uncontrolled or unaware. And so the third issue, I would say in Durham County, is the disparity in care that we've seen and the prevalence. That the higher prevalence in the higher mortality and comorbidity that is associated with this, chronic illness in the black population, which that statistic is true throughout the South. </p> <p> 00:04:24:09 - 00:04:53:03<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> And so we have a high proportion of minorities and underserved patients in Durham County. And we tend to focus on these first, as the risk in this group is much higher than the risk in the average population overall. So, given that we started there, the clinics and the specific areas in the community where we could be most effective in improving overall health for the community were those underserved, like safety net clinics. </p> <p> 00:04:53:03 - 00:05:25:25<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> And so across the county, we have our Federally Qualified Health Center, which Anna mentioned and our, my co-pi, Dr. Holly Biola, is there leading the effort there. And we've also worked together with the Duke Safety Net Clinic, the Duke Outpatient Clinic, as well as our broader population health clinics in the county. So though the work began at Lincoln, our Federally Qualified Health Center, we have reached out to try and scale the project across other areas in the community that represent underserved populations. </p> <p> 00:05:25:27 - 00:05:48:07<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Thank you so much for sharing that. You know, I moved to North Carolina 25 years ago, and in the other places I've lived, I never really had the level of appreciation that I have now for just how different a place like Durham County can look when you drive like eight minutes from the downtown core, because Durham, you know, with 300,000 people, there's definitely a downtown core and there's some high rises. </p> <p> 00:05:48:07 - 00:06:12:23<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> And I mean, it's not, you know, like New York City is downtown, but it's definitely an inner city environment. But eight minutes away, you are in farm country. And so when you're talking about reaching a community, that you are going from a very urban feel to a very rural feel quite quickly. And so I know that community health workers have played a huge role in how you all have addressed this work through the project around hypertension. </p> <p> 00:06:12:26 - 00:06:21:25<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Tell us a little bit more about the role that you all are finding community health workers playing and amplifying community outreach. </p> <p> 00:06:21:27 - 00:06:49:29<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> We have a cohort of community health workers. The intent for that workforce is to really expand and extend the work that's done in a clinic, during a clinic visit, with a primary care provider. The fact is that many of our people in the underserved area, especially, have so many social determinants, which Anna can expand on. That it's hard to fit the care that's needed within that short window of time of the visit. </p> <p> 00:06:50:02 - 00:07:13:05<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> So this project has served to really engage health professions students like Anna as patient navigators, to partner with these community health workers and literally give everyone more time to be able to provide the care, at the community level, that we want to do. So Anna can expand on exactly what that looks like. </p> <p> 00:07:13:07 - 00:07:34:09<br> Anna Tharakan<br> I think kind of as she pointed out, there was this huge, not gap that necessarily we realized, but kind of this, this system that patients weren't necessarily kind of getting the full time that they needed to just with the limitations of the system. And so I think what really community health workers, and in our case students, were able to really fill that gap was kind of being able to take that time with patients when they had it. </p> <p> 00:07:34:11 - 00:08:00:12<br> Anna Tharakan<br> Our first call with patients and students made was just sitting down with them being like, are you interested in kind of learning more about what hypertension means or how we can kind of implement some lifestyle changes, and can we do that on your time? I think that was just a really big portion of whether it was people that were working two to three jobs and only had availability at 8 p.m. or 9 p.m.. I think that was kind of the really great gap that students could kind of fill is kind of making sure outside clinic hours, where can we sit in and really impact and make a change? </p> <p> 00:08:00:15 - 00:08:27:26<br> Anna Tharakan<br> And then on top of that, really kind of making it really personalized with that education that we gave them,. Learning about the different things that they were kind of experiencing. What kind of struggles were specifically relevant to their lives, whether that was I'm struggling or trying to get groceries when I have to make sure to pick up my kids from preschool, or whether it's I'm taking care of two of my parents that are, kind of based in the hospital and kind of making sure that we were able to insert little pieces of advice where I was, hey, like how about we try to get 30 minutes, you know, walk to your parent's house instead </p> <p> 00:08:27:26 - 00:08:39:21<br> Anna Tharakan<br> of necessarily being able to drive there and really kind of instill small changes that they can make. And really be their personal cheerleader and kind of instill in these small changes that can really make such a big difference in their blood pressure and hypertension. </p> <p> 00:08:39:23 - 00:08:56:27<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> I love that. Wouldn't we all benefit from having a personal cheerleader, especially when fighting, you know, a condition like hypertension, which is so seemingly innocuous because it's just a number on a machine. But we know that, that years and years and years of high blood pressure take its toll on nearly every organ system in the body. </p> <p> 00:08:57:00 - 00:09:14:28<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> And again, being good project leads, I imagine you all are measuring countless kinds of metrics through this work. What is one measurable impact that you can tell us about through this engagement of a community health workers and really extending their reach, and not only into patients homes, but into community based settings as well. </p> <p> 00:09:15:00 - 00:09:34:05<br> Anna Tharakan<br> I think the big one was just the impact that we had on their blood pressure. And then also just self-management. I think within our intervention this past year, we saw a average drop in the systolic blood pressure of those that participated of over 15mg mercury, which is just a really huge kind of drop when considering, this intervention that took place. </p> <p> 00:09:34:08 - 00:09:53:13<br> Speaker 3<br> I think another big one was this idea of self-monitoring, kind of bringing the power to the patient, kind of being able to track with the free blood pressure cuffs that they were able to be provided, as well as the social needs assessment. Was kind of really putting that power of health back in their hands and showing that community health intervention lead can produce really meaningful clinical outcomes. </p> <p> 00:09:53:15 - 00:09:56:03<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Spectacular. Bradi, anything you would add? </p> <p> 00:09:56:05 - 00:10:29:04<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> The one thing I would add to that is the idea of the system integration that this project brings. Whereby, to your point, hypertension really is a chronic illness, that the long term outcome is what we're after, reduction in stroke, reduction in chronic kidney disease and reduction in cardiovascular events. But those things happen so far from, you know, today's single measurement or even a couple of years worth of measurements of high blood pressure in an office visit, which is often mistakenly elevated anyway. </p> <p> 00:10:29:12 - 00:11:00:04<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> So our real achievement, I feel like in addition to what Anna said about bringing the power to the patient to set their goals and really be able to be aware and to be responsible for changes and improvements in their health. We also really are trying to effectively connect a patient to the primary care provider team, including the community health worker and the community business organizations that help us serve patients outside of the formal system of health care delivery. </p> <p> 00:11:00:07 - 00:11:50:05<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> These groups provide food, transportation, assistance with housing insecurity and all the things that are real barriers for patients managing long term, hypertension. So solving for those things and tracking it as we have, and making sure there's a closed loop on the referrals that happen, allows us to really measure the impact of this kind of project on some of our really important community outcomes, but also the policy implications for this project. Which we're working on now with our North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services, and trying to make sure that the opportunity for us to expand healthy opportunities. Pilots from our Medicaid expansion initiative, trying to make sure that we have the evidence and </p> <p> 00:11:50:05 - 00:11:56:27<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> the measurable outcomes to support new policies for expansion of those kinds of efforts in the community. </p> <p> 00:11:57:00 - 00:12:29:11<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Well, you all have certainly covered the waterfront. I mean, clearly, it takes, it takes a team. And you've been able to connect not just the acute care clinical team, but the patient's family, community teams, all together in this web in supporting patients. I'm curious, we've only got a minute or two left. If you had to give one piece of advice for health care team members, in a community right now listening to this podcast who are just coming away from hearing your story and saying, I got to go do this tomorrow, what would your one piece of guidance be, </p> <p> 00:12:29:13 - 00:12:31:27<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> as they're preparing to take their first step? </p> <p> 00:12:31:29 - 00:12:42:29<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> Our guidance would be communicate with your primary health care provider and let them know you're interested in joining our team as a patient expert in the hypertension management program. </p> <p> 00:12:43:01 - 00:12:51:07<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> Outstanding. Anna, what if you were giving advice to a hospital who was hearing the story and they said, I want to be just like this project that they're doing at Duke? </p> <p> 00:12:51:07 - 00:13:06:29<br> Anna Tharakan<br> I think it's just showing that it's possible to kind of get an intervention like this off the ground, and it really can can make a real big difference in patients lives. And so kind of putting a focus on community health workers and kind of connecting back that primary care doctor as Dr. Granger said is a really important component. </p> <p> 00:13:07:01 - 00:13:25:09<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> You all have done tremendous work. Obviously connecting all the way back to the community health needs assessment. What it lifts it up, how you connect that to a project building in the the approach that brings community health workers into the fold and then obviously bringing patients and family members into the fold with you. We could not wish you more luck in the work that you're doing. </p> <p> 00:13:25:09 - 00:13:33:22<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> And again, couldn't think of a better story to tell this week during CHI week in 2025. Any closing thoughts before we say goodbye? </p> <p> 00:13:33:25 - 00:13:41:14<br> Bradi Granger, Ph.D.<br> I think thanks for your support and for the dissemination of efforts like this and the impact it has on our community. Thank you. </p> <p> 00:13:41:16 - 00:13:45:04<br> Chris DeRienzo, M.D.<br> I couldn't say it better myself. Thank you both so much. </p> <p> 00:13:45:07 - 00:13:53:17<br> Tom Haederle<br> Thanks for listening to Advancing Health. Please subscribe and rate us five stars on Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts. </p> </details></div> Wed, 04 Jun 2025 08:21:55 -0500 Community Partnerships /role-hospitals-keck-medicine-usc-wildfire-relief-medical-supplies <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-5"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-05/ths-USC-LAFireRelief-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt="USC Keck Shool of Medicine. Photo of palm tries and LA buildings against the backdrop of smokey has and the glow of fires in the distance" width="700" height="532"></div><p>When the Eaton and Palisades wildfires devastated areas of Los Angeles County earlier this year, they sparked a swift response from students at Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California. <br><br>In January, the student-run organization Blueprints for Pangea — a nonprofit that reallocates unused medical supplies from areas of surplus to those in need — coordinated a team of volunteers to collect personal protective equipment and other supplies. The Master of Science in Global Medicine program donated an array of medical supplies, as well.  <br>A total of 28 Keck School of Medicine of USC student volunteers convened Feb. 6 to process and deliver thousands of N95 masks, gloves and other supplies. They distributed them to Tapestry LA, a shelter connecting evacuees with resources; Share A Meal, a mobile kitchen providing food for those in need; Helping Hands Senior Foundation, which provides support for older adults; and Stray Cat Alliance, which helps pets affected by the fire.   <br><br>“Since the fires impacted large communities, there wasn’t just one organization that we could donate to,” said Emily Hsieh, a progressive degree student in the Master of Science in Global Medicine program and senior advisor of the operations branch of Blueprints for Pangaea USC. “So, we started the day early at 6 a.m. in preparation for distribution to multiple sites. There was a great sense of urgency to get supplies out because the wildfires impacted so many people and took long to contain. Many families had lost everything including their homes, which housed their supplies—whether that was personal possessions or even medical equipment.” </p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="#" target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/topics/promoting-healthy-communities">Building Healthy Communities</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Thu, 22 May 2025 15:51:50 -0500 Community Partnerships /role-hospitals-commonspirit-st-elizabeth-hospital-provides-toiletries-clothes-and-other-necessities-community-members-through <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-5"><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-05/ths-commonspirit-st-elizabeth-clothing-toiletries-700x532.jpg" data-entity-uuid data-entity-type="file" alt="CommonSpirit St. Elizabeth Hospital provides toiletries, clothes, and other necessities to community members through its Care Closet" width="700" height="532"></div><p>CommonSpirit St. Elizabeth Hospital's Care Closet is a compassionate initiative aimed at improving the health and well-being of vulnerable individuals and families in the community. By providing essential items such as clothing, toiletries, and feminine products, the Care Closet offers crucial support to those experiencing hardship.</p><p>St. Elizabeth President John Swanhorst emphasizes the importance of access to these basic needs, highlighting the hospital's commitment to extending a helping hand beyond its walls. “We believe access to these basic needs is crucial for overall health and well-being, and we are proud to offer this support to those who need it,” he said.</p><p>The Care Closet is accessible through St. Elizabeth staff members who identify a need in patients or community members. Although not open to the public, anyone who inquires can receive materials. The hospital provides toiletry bags, clothing, and other necessities for both children and adults. Generous community support has enabled the Care Closet to participate in local events, distributing items like coats and gloves.</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://www.mountain.commonspirit.org/news/commonspirit-st-elizabeth-hospital-provides-toiletries-clothes-and-other-necessities-community-members-through-its-care-closet" target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/topics/promoting-healthy-communities">Supporting Public Health</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Thu, 08 May 2025 13:10:46 -0500 Community Partnerships /role-hospitals-st-lukes-regional-medical-center-idahos-first-hospital-home-program-showing-promising-results <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-6"><img src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/TTHS-St-Lukes-Regional-Medical-Center-Hospital-at-Home.jpg" data-entity-uuid="870e9f8a-ba45-4d6b-b28f-0d2f38f63a58" data-entity-type="file" alt="Idaho’s First Hospital-at-Home Program Showing Promising Results. A paramedic listens to a women's heartbeat using a stethoscope as part of hospital-at-home care in Idaho." width="700" height="532"></div><p>The St. Luke’s Hospital at Home program, launched in late 2024, provides hospital-level care to patients in the comfort of their homes. This initiative is especially timely given Idaho's rapid population growth, which has increased the demand for health care services. The program allows patients with conditions such as heart failure, infections requiring IV antibiotics, pneumonia or asthma to receive necessary treatments at home, reducing the strain on emergency departments.</p><p>Patients in the program are equipped with medical devices like scales, tablets, blood pressure monitors and IV pumps. Paramedics visit patients twice daily and are connected to doctors and nurses through a tablet, ensuring continuous care. This setup not only provides medical support but also allows health care providers to understand the patient's living environment and involve social work if needed, enhancing overall care</p><p>The program is supported by Medically Home and offers a cost-effective alternative to traditional hospital stays. St. Luke’s is the first hospital in Idaho to start the program, which has been around since the 1960s. “We have a type of care that is very comparable to the outcomes of a brick-and-mortar hospital,” said the program’s Medical Director Adam Balinger.</p><p>It also provides a healing environment where patients can be with their families and pets, which can aid in recovery. With Medicare authorizing billing for hospital care at home since 2021, programs like St. Luke’s Hospital at Home are becoming more viable and beneficial, especially during times when hospitals are overwhelmed, such as during the pandemic.</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://www.idahopress.com/news/local/hospital-care-at-home-st-lukes-launches-hospital-at-home-program/article_e740f5ca-ea40-11ef-94d8-bbde4c8e5aba.html" target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/topics/promoting-healthy-communities">Supporting Public Health</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Mon, 24 Mar 2025 09:19:29 -0500 Community Partnerships /role-hospitals-ucf-healthcare-partners-equip-libraries-blood-pressure-monitors-aeds <div class="container"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-9"><div class="row"><div class="col-md-5"><p><img src="/sites/default/files/2025-03/ths-ufc-healthcare-library-blood-pressure-kits-700x532.jpg" alt="UCF Healthcare. A person's arm, wrapped in a blood pressure cuff, is outstretched on a table" width="700" height="532"></p></div><p>Libraries are so much more than a place to get books. Now, thanks to the Libraries with Heart program, libraries in Central Florida are places where community members can keep an eye on one aspect of their health. A partnership between HCA Florida Healthcare, the American Heart Association and the Orange County Library system lets patrons 18 and up check out blood pressure monitoring kits. In 2024, the kits were checked out 459 times.</p><p>"We meet people where they are, and so we try to bring our community work to life in settings like the library,”<a href="https://www.orangeobserver.com/news/2025/jan/30/aeds-blood-pressure-cuffs-available-at-local-libraries/" target="_blank"> said  Jimmy Clarity</a>, vice president of community impact for the American Heart Association. “It’s a place where people gather and spend a lot of their time and can access resources. It’s not just about checking out library books anymore.”</p><p>Each branch of the library has at least two staff members who have been trained to teach patrons how to use the kits; the system also has outreach teams that go into the community to get the kits into the hands of those who might not be able to go to the library, or who are unaware that the program exists.</p><p>Libraries with Heart has also provided automated external defibrillators (AEDs) to every library in the system; a donation from UCF Lake Nona Hospital covered those, as well as the cost of training library staffers in CPR and AED use.</p><p><a class="btn btn-primary" href="https://newsroom.heart.org/local-news/libraries-with-heart-program-grows-to-include-more-libraries-and-more-services#:~:text=In%202022%2C%20the%20American%20Heart,two%20Osceola%20County%20Library%20branches." target="_blank">LEARN MORE</a></p></div></div><div class="col-md-3"><div><h4>Resources on the Role of Hospitals</h4><ul><li><a href="/center/population-health">Improving Health and Wellness</a></li><li><a href="/roleofhospitals">All Case Studies</a></li></ul></div></div></div></div> Thu, 06 Mar 2025 15:33:29 -0600 Community Partnerships /news/chairpersons-file/2025-02-11-chair-file-building-trust-todays-environment <p>Edelman recently released its <a href="https://www.edelman.com/trust/2025/trust-barometer" target="_blank" title="2025 Trust Barometer">2025 Trust Barometer</a> titled “Trust and the Crisis of Grievance,” and it couldn’t be more timely. Trust — in one another, our hospitals and health systems, our communities and our government — feels more important than ever.</p><p>The AHA knows how important public trust and confidence are to advancing the health of all individuals and communities. In fact, we included it as one of the principles in our 2025-2027 Strategic Plan, which was built on listening to feedback from our members. The plan is designed to tackle trust and other key issues so hospitals and health systems can continue to be places where our communities can go for healing, no matter what.</p><p>The Edelman report explored how fear has turned into polarization and, in turn, into grievance. Many people feel a sense of grievance, not just with health care but with the government, media and other fields. However, rebuilding trust isn’t impossible. It starts by listening and taking action.</p><p>The foundation of listening is seeking to understand. Our communities and patients want to feel seen and heard. Our teams want to feel valued and supported in the extraordinary care they provide.</p><p>However, listening on its own isn’t enough. We need to take that feedback on what’s working and what isn’t and create better experiences for those providing and receiving care. We can also help proactively build trust by sharing stories of our incredible work and the people we serve with the AHA team and with legislators.</p><p>We need our local and national leaders to understand how critical our work is to our communities. Equipping the AHA with stories empowers them to better advocate for our hospitals and health systems so we can serve our neighbors who are our stakeholders.</p><p>Every one of our hospitals and health systems is here for their community despite the challenges they face, making sure that everyone has access to the care they need. And we’re not going anywhere.</p><p>Now is the time to listen. Now is the time to act. And now is the time to rebuild trust in one another. Our neighbors are counting on us.</p><p><strong>Helping You Help Communities: Key AHA Resources</strong></p><ul><li><a href="/ahas-2025-2027-strategic-plan" target="_blank" title="AHA's 2025-2027 Strategic Plan">AHA’s 2025-2027 Strategic Plan</a></li><li><a href="/tellingthehospitalstory" target="_blank" title="Telling the Hospital Story">Telling the Hospital Story</a> </li></ul> Tue, 11 Feb 2025 08:37:07 -0600 Community Partnerships /news/headline/2025-01-23-coalition-extends-deadline-apply-grants-supporting-community-health-workers <p>The Common Health Coalition today <a href="https://commonhealthcoalition.org/challenge/#nominate" title="grant deadline">announced</a> it has extended the deadline to Feb. 3 to apply for the Common Health Challenge Catalyst Award program grant. Each of 10 recipients will be awarded a $30,000 grant for efforts integrating community health workers to strengthen partnerships between health care and public health organizations across communities. The AHA is a founding member of the Coalition.</p> Thu, 23 Jan 2025 15:07:08 -0600 Community Partnerships