Health Department receives grant to focus on community health improvement

The Norwalk Health Department was selected by the National Association of County and City Health Officials to receive grant funding to initiate and complete a comprehensive community health improvement process in preparation for the new national accreditation process for public health departments.

NHD is among 12 local health departments across the nation to receive this award. There were 127 applicants for this grant.

This funding will help the NHD develop a community health assessment and a community health improvement plan, two of the three prerequisites that every health department must complete before applying for accreditation.

"We are proud to be selected by NACCHO as one of the 12 demonstration sites to receive the funding. This grant is evidence of our long-standing commitment to improving the health of our community and to ensuring quality programs and services for residents," said Tim Callahan, director of health.

"Through this project we will learn more about the health status of the Norwalk community and address opportunities for improvement."

Norwalk Health Department will co-lead the development of the community health assessment and improvement plan with Norwalk Hospital.

"We are thrilled to once again partner with the Norwalk Health Department and to model meaningful collaboration between a nonprofit hospital and local health department for others across the country," said Mary Franco, vice president of public affairs of Norwalk Hospital and president of Norwalk Hospital Foundation.

Norwalk Health Department and Norwalk Hospital will engage community members and local partners to improve the overall health of residents. Partners will include nonprofit organizations, local businesses and other city departments that represent a wide range of sectors, including health, education, housing, economic development, community planning, transportation and social services.

"The City of Norwalk and the many for-profit and nonprofit organizations located here have a well earned reputation for working together to make our community a desirable place to work and live," said Mayor Richard A. Moccia.

"This grant will provide our community with a sound basis for decision-making on setting priorities, directing the use of resources, and implementing policies, programs and services that meet the needs of local residents."

The assessment will include analyzing health outcome data, as well as data on the factors that influence health such as education, employment, economic security, housing, community safety, civic involvement and environmental quality.

Incorporating these broader factors will provide Norwalk with a more complete assessment of the community's health.

The health department will utilize the Connecticut Health Equity Index, a community-based assessment tool developed by the Connecticut Association of Directors of Health, to identify the conditions at a neighborhood level that are most strongly correlated with specific health outcomes.

NACCHO will use lessons learned from the 12 grantees' experiences to create a public resource center, complete with examples of high-quality community health assessments and community health improvement plans, to help other local health departments complete the community health improvement process after the formal accreditation rollout.

The National Association of County and City Health Officials represent the nation's 2,800 local governmental health departments. This city, county, metropolitan, district and tribal departments work every day to protect and promote health and well-being for all people in their communities.