Every three years, GBMC HealthCare, along with other not-for-profit health providers, participates in a comprehensive Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) to identify and address the health needs of our community. This process involves looking beyond the patients who come into our health system to understand the broader social drivers of health and the barriers faced by those who, for various reasons, cannot access care.
 |
| A health resource fair was held as part of this year's Community Benefit Annual Meeting. |
- Behavioral Health: Addressing mental health and substance use disorders.
- Physical Health: Tackling issues such as obesity, chronic conditions like diabetes and high blood pressure, and cancer.
- Access to Care: Removing barriers that prevent people from meeting their health needs.
Given that these themes persist, it is time for more healthcare organizations to take stronger actions.
I’m extremely proud to say that at GBMC HealthCare, we’ve been listening to the needs of the community and have been proactive in addressing these needs for many years. For the past decade, we have built and refined our advanced primary care model. This model seeks to build patient-provider relationships, manage chronic disease, detect health problems early, keep patients well and out of the hospital, and integrate behavioral health interventions, thanks to our partnership with Sheppard Pratt.
Over the past two years, we have expanded advanced primary care and elder medical care into underserved communities in Baltimore City through our Pathways grant from the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission (CHRC). The grant supports our primary care practice in Jonestown and Gilchrist’s Elder Medical Care services, which offer care in the comfort of patients' homes. It allows us to partner with other organizations in the community to address barriers by providing transportation to and from medical appointments and connecting patients to food and housing resources.
I’m excited to share that the CHRC has just awarded GBMC another $3.5 million over the next five years to become a Health Equity Resource Community (HERC). This grant funding allows us to continue expanding our efforts to provide equitable care and reduce health disparities in these underserved communities.
These are only a couple of examples of how we have responded to our community’s needs. We have also developed offerings such as the Sexual Assault Forensic Examination (SAFE) & Domestic Violence (DV) Program and Gilchrist’s Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE). The list goes on.
I’d like to thank Karen Thompkins, Director of Community Partnerships at GBMC HealthCare; D’Ambra Anderson, Population Health and Community Benefits Project Manager; and Diane Sancilio, Director of Counseling and Support at Gilchrist, for facilitating our Community Benefit discussion this week. Additionally, I extend my gratitude to Emily McCallum from Ascendient, the company that conducted the survey, and to the following panelists who led a robust discussion on behavioral health: Ari Blum, MSW, LCSW-C, Director of the Bureau of Behavioral Health in the Baltimore County Department of Health; Gwen Brown, Associate Director of Community Engagement for Behavioral Health System Baltimore; and Jaime Clark, Senior Director of Programs and Community Engagement at the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Metropolitan Baltimore.
In 2020, GBMC HealthCare became the first healthcare system in Maryland to receive the Malcolm
Baldrige National Quality Award, the nation’s highest presidential honor for performance excellence. The Baldrige criteria are accepted around the world across all industries as the gold standard of quality. Of course, we continue to be very proud of this accomplishment and are excited that this week, a long-awaited display in recognition of the award was installed in our new Louis and Phyllis Friedman Building. Thank you to all staff across the health system who worked so hard to help us achieve the award and to all who continue to follow the Baldrige criteria and systems that allow us to provide the very best care to our patients and a positive experience for our staff.
A Note about Memorial Day
This coming weekend is the “unofficial” start to the summer travel season. While many of us are heading to see family, to the beaches or to the pool, let us not forget the true meaning behind Memorial Day on Monday. This special day gives us the opportunity to honor those who have given their lives in service to our country. On Memorial Day, please take a moment to honor our veterans for their commitment to safeguarding our security.
No comments:
Post a Comment
Thank you for taking time to read "A Healthy Dialogue" and for commenting on the blog. Comments are an important part of the public dialogue and help facilitate conversation. All comments are reviewed before posting to ensure posts are not off-topic, do not violate patient confidentiality, and are civil. Differing opinions are welcome as long as the tone is respectful.