Emerson Hospital undertook a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) from January through September 2021 to better understand and address the health needs of the Emerson Hospital community and to meet all provisions of section 501(r) of the Affordable Care Act, which requires hospitals to conduct a community health needs assessment and adopt an implementation strategy at least once every three years.
The CHNA report contains secondary data from existing sources such as the U.S. Census, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the CDC Behavior Risk Factor Surveillance Survey, the Emerson Hospital Youth Risk Behavior Survey, and a community survey with more than 3,000 respondents.
This report includes input from key informant interviews with community residents and stakeholders, particularly those with special knowledge of local and state public health departments, representatives from councils on aging, housing authorities, local schools, and representatives of medically underserved, low-income, and minority populations. Additionally, four focus groups were conducted to gather input from seniors, caregivers, high school students and community members.
Utilizing the dominant themes gathered from the data collection, Emerson Hospital, in partnership with community members and partners, prioritized the following health needs:
- Mental Health
- Aging Health Concerns
- Economic Insecurity
- Transportation Options
The full report presents supporting data for each identified need, as well as additional indicators related to each area of focus. A strong community engagement process was used to utilize this report in developing a Strategic Implementation Plan (SIP) implementation strategies to work towards improving the community’s health over the next three years.
Questions or comments? Contact us at CommunityBenefits@emersonhosp.org.
Podcast
Hear from Senior Vice President of Planning & Chief Strategy Officer Christine Gallery and Community Benefits & Events Manager Kelsey Magnuson as they discuss the data and insights gleaned from Emerson Hospital's 2021 CHNA in this Health Works Here podcast.
Click here for a transcript of the conversation.
Visit our podcast page to find more episodes on a variety of topics or subscribe to the Health Works Here Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google Podcasts, and wherever podcasts can be heard.
