What do you know about the health programs in the community? It is impossible to undervalue the knowledge about the various health initiatives available in the community.
Community health is a significant area of research and practice within the clinical and medical sciences. Its primary objectives are the preservation, protection, and enhancement of the overall health status of neighborhoods and population groups. It is a different area of research that might be taught in a separate public or environmental health school if it were to ever be established as such.
Environmental, social, and economic resources are needed to maintain people’s mental and physical well-being in ways that promote their aspirations and satisfy their requirements within the context of their particular environment.
What Is Community Health?
The collective health and happiness of a community’s members are referred to as the community’s health. These communities frequently share health traits, ethnicities, and socioeconomic conditions; in addition to residing in the same area or region, this is typically the case.
For instance, the restricted availability of nutrient-dense meals in the grocery stores in some low-income communities may be a contributing factor to the high obesity rates seen in those places. Because of this, they are located in a region that is widely referred to as a food desert.
In addition, a community may be put in danger by the presence of toxins due to the proximity of a plant or waste facility.
Community health programs broaden residents’ access to preventative health care services, include them in care decision-making, and look for ways to reduce overall medical expenses.s.
What are the elements of community health in society?
Professionals in the field of public health who are interested in community health workers to determine how people are affected by socioeconomic factors, including levels of income, nutrition, crime, and the availability of transportation resources.
In addition to this, they evaluate how the community’s medical and educational facilities affect the lifestyles of its residents and identify areas in which enhancements are required. The following are important aspects of community health:
- Identification of major public health issues in a particular geographical location, such as environmental and social factors that influence healthy lifestyle choices.
- Establishing community health centers, mobile clinics, and outreach initiatives to fill in the gaps in the community’s resources.
- Preventive care and healthy habits are promoted through educating the community’s members.
- Giving patients access to vital resources like health tests, peer support, and psychological counseling when they need it most.
- Encouraging access to resources such as low-cost health, dental, and mental health care; cheap insurance (Medicare or Medicaid); translation and transportation services; or housing; food, and education.
- Hospitalizations and emergency care costs can be reduced by implementing preventative measures.
- Efforts to raise awareness of the need for better health care for vulnerable groups.
- Other community agencies will be working with them on issues such as nutrition and housing to better serve their community’s mental and physical well-being. n.
Why Community Health Is Important
Roughly half of all Americans are afflicted with some form of chronic illness. Because of socio-economic variables that are beyond their control, many may not receive the appropriate medical attention.
Both of these people are at high risk in the event of a medical emergency: an old diabetic who does not have a driver’s license and who does not have family nearby; and a pregnant lady with toxemia who lives more than 50 miles from a hospital. Because of this, the resources available for community health become even more vital.
Careers in Community Health
Workers in the public health sector participate in a diverse range of tasks, such as research, education, program development and management, medical care, and charitable help.
There is a wide variety of possible roles, from those in leadership to those providing direct patient care.
Professionals who are interested in community health may find employment in a variety of fields, including medicine, education, the public sector, private industry, or nonprofit organizations.
Community Health Worker
The Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) of the United States of America describes the role of a community health worker as that of an individual who aids communities and individuals in adopting healthy practices.
Outreach on behalf of medical organizations and the implementation of community health programs are two of the duties associated with this position. Community health professionals are also involved in the provision of primary medical screenings or care, as well as research, informal counseling, health education, and advocacy.
Community health workers live within the communities they serve to better facilitate communication between patients and the organizations that offer medical and social services. To encourage individuals to engage in healthy behaviors, a community health worker can concentrate on improving people’s access not only to medical resources but also to transportation, housing, and nutrition services to achieve this goal.
In addition, a community health worker cultivates cultural sensitivity and builds relationships with residents to earn their trust. This is done to promote healthier communities. Client advocacy, public education, and the provision of medical services are all activities that these employees need to strike a balance between.
According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), employment opportunities for health educators and community health professionals are anticipated to increase by 11 percent between the years 2018 and 2028. This is far quicker than the typical rate for all types of jobs.
Another statistic provided by the BLS, the median annual compensation of a community health worker is approximately $44,000.
According to the National Institutes of Health, this role may also be referred to as an outreach educator, peer health promoter, and community health representative, advisor, or advocate.
These are just some of the possible job titles;
- Program Director
In a community health program or community health center, the individual who serves in the role of program director or clinical director is charged with the overarching responsibility of the organization’s objectives and successes.
A director is responsible for increasing access to care in a community by locating areas where care services are lacking, filling those gaps, and lowering the need for emergency medical care through the implementation of preventive measures.
Program directors need to have the kinds of skills that make it easier to create rapport with people of the community. In addition to having a grounding in the subject of public health, program directors are required to have good talents in the areas of leadership, communication, and management.
- Research Analyst
To work as a researcher on the subject of community health, one’s primary responsibility is to collect data concerning the health problems and dangers faced by certain groups or geographic areas.
Researchers acquire vital information on the socioeconomic situations, health inequities, and the efficiency of community health resources through the review of data and direct engagement with local populations.
A researcher may look at the dangers posed by infectious diseases, environmental hazards, or other area problems.
Research analysts in the community give administrators data reports and evaluations of the surrounding environment to assist administrators in developing creative health advocacy and improvement programs.
- Medical Professional
An education or early career in community health sciences can build a solid foundation for a career in medicine as a physician, psychiatrist, or nurse practitioner, and it may even drive the health professional to practice in an at-risk geographic location.
A person who works in community health has the potential to advance their career and become a hospital administrator or an official in the public sector of the health sector.
What kinds of activities define CHPs?
According to the report Healthy People 2010, CHPs are responsible for working through the following types of activities: “instituting new programs, policies and practices; modifying components of the physical or organizational infrastructure; and influencing community attitudes, beliefs, or social norms.”
CDC-funded communities
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provided funding to fifty different areas to reduce the incidence of three major chronic health problems that are prevalent in the United States: tobacco use, exposure to second-hand smoke, and obesity (Bunnell et al. 2012).
Also, the settlements ranged from rural counties with a low population to metropolitan neighborhoods to tribal territory and everything in between. These CHPs featured a regulatory component, such as requiring restaurants to label their food with nutritional information or designating certain locations as smoke-free zones.
These CHPs stood out because the CDC offered to aid in the form of evaluation services, in addition to media support and technical assistance.s
Federally-funded community health centers
Millions of people in the United States receive direct patient treatment through community health clinics that are supported by the federal government, regardless of their ability to pay.
The services provided include medical and dental checkups, care for behavioral and mental health, assistance with substance misuse, as well as coordination of social services for people and families. The War on Poverty, which was initiated by the Johnson administration in the 1960s, included the establishment of community health centers.
To the extent that the centers offer preventive care, it is possible to classify them as community health programs.
School-based programs
School-based programs aim to avoid illnesses that are widespread in childhood and adolescence, such as aggression and injury, tobacco and alcohol addiction, pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STI), and healthy diet and exercise.
The majority of mental health services for children are provided at their respective schools (Langley et al. 2010). Workplace programs typically concentrate on the prevention of chronic illnesses such as diabetes as well as screening for and management of those conditions.
Hallmarks of effective programs
Effective programs are sensitive to the health needs of a community and engage members of that community. The participation of members of the community helps to guarantee that a program is both acceptable to the community and sustainable.
Assessments of a community’s continuing and evolving needs are also essential to the program’s effectiveness. The CHP can maintain its alignment with the community thanks to the needs assessments, which monitor shifting demographics as well as changes in the epidemiological profile of a neighborhood.
Conclusion on the Health programs in the community
Evaluation is the process of analyzing the implementation of a program, determining the extent to which the program is successful in achieving its goals, and measuring the degree to which participants in the target population experience changes in their health behaviors and outcomes.
Furthermore, evaluation of a program is a technique that can create accountability not just to the community that is being served by the program but also to the founders of the program.
Frequently Asked Questions about the Health programs in the community
See below for the answers to the most asked questions about the Health programs in the community;
- Where does Community Health Care get its income?
1) Costs associated with treating patients (83 percent ). These are the fees paid by insurance companies, Medicare, Medicaid, and the patients themselves, respectively.
There is a sliding pricing schedule for patients without or with inadequate health insurance, which is determined by factors such as family size, income, and what services are rendered. Patients who are uninsured or under-insured receive 10% of their care through government funding. Non-grant and non-donation funds are also available (7 percent )
- Is Community Health Care a government agency?
Communities in Pierce County can turn to Community Health Care for all of their healthcare needs because it is a 501(c)3 non-profit network of community-based Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHC). The HRSA FTCA deems Community Health Care a facility.
- Is Community Health Care a walk-in facility?
Community Health Care offers primary medical and dental care for their patients and their families. Their goal is to become their patient’s primary care physicians.
Their Immediate Care facility is located on the ground floor of the Hilltop Regional Health Center building to suit the urgent requirements of new patients. Even if you can not get an appointment during the day, the Urgent Care facility is open late and on weekends for their convenience.
Walk-in Appointments are available to treat Dental Emergencies at all of their Dental Clinics. Using this service does not need you to be a current Community Health Care patient. I
n the early hours of the morning, their dental clinics welcome walk-in patients in need of emergency dental care. Despite their best efforts, we cannot guarantee that you will receive treatment as a “walk-in.”
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Chibueze Uchegbu is a certified medical physiologist with a great passion for healthy living.