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PNORWAY – Stakeholders from across the county will be given opportunities in October to shape priorities for community health at special forums aimed at providing input to the region’s healthcare organizations.
The forums will discuss the Oxford County health profile and are scheduled for:
* Wednesday, Oct. 10, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m., Telstar High School Library, 284 Walker Mills Road, Bethel.
* Tuesday, Oct. 16, 4 to 6 p.m. Mountain Valley High School, 799 Hancock St., Rumford.
* Monday, Oct. 22, 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the Paris Fire Station, 137 Western Ave., South Paris.
The Oxford County Health Profile contains almost 200 data points that describe health outcomes, health behaviors, healthcare access and quality, and the social, community, and physical environment that affect our health. Previous forums were held in 2011 and 2015.
Western Maine Health Vice President of Clinical Services, Margaret Burns, R.N., Ph.D., said “We want to share this data and get our neighbors’ input about what they see as our biggest health issues. New this year, the presentation will also include a list of past priorities and what our partners have been doing to address them. This is an exciting opportunity to discuss how we can improve the health of our community.”
These events are free and open to the public. To reserve a seat, please register at chna-forums.eventbrite.com.
In addition to collecting input on local health priorities, these forums will also collect information about local resources that could help to address those priorities. Forums and other community feedback will be used as guidance to create new, county-specific health improvement plans in the spring of 2019. As in the past, these forums are an important step in the Maine Shared Community Health Needs Assessment .
For more information, go to the Maine Shared CHNA website, www.mainechna.org. The site contains forum schedules, local contacts, county health profiles, and a portal for users to create their own data reports to suit their needs. The website will also host the final CHNA reports due out in March, 2019. Check back often for updates.
These forums are a collaborative effort among Stephens Memorial Hospital, Oxford County Wellness Collaborative, the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention, and Rumford Hospital.
