Joining forces to improve community health: Fourteen hospitals and four local public health departments partnering to meet federal community health needs assessment requirements

In 2010, local health care and public health leaders in the Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington region began to discuss the upcoming need for several community health assessments and health improvement plans within our region. They recognized that the most effective approach would be to create a regional work group to address these needs. With start-up assistance from the Oregon Association of Hospitals and Health Systems, the Healthy Columbia Willamette Needs Group (HCW) was created. The HCW is a large, self-organized, public-private collaborative of 14 hospitals and four public health departments within Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington Counties in Oregon and Clark County, Washington. This presentation will describe how the HCW conducted their community health assessment; including how the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) model was modified to meet the local needs, how the community was engaged, how data were used, and how hospitals and public health contributed to the prioritization of community health needs and plans to address strategic issues. Also discussed will be how the process and documentation met hospitals' Affordable Care Act requirements as well informed planning requirements for local public health accreditation. Specific attention will be paid to benefits and challenges encountered as a result of the number and nature of partners, (i.e., four jurisdictions, private and public sector partners, small and large health departments, and different hospital systems). The end product will be shared along with next steps and lessons learned.