POTSDAM — The Bridge to Wellness Coalition, representing local businesses including health care systems, local government, and many community-based organizations has submitted a Community Health Improvement Plan to the New York State Department of Health.

The Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) includes a Comprehensive Community Health Assessment which evaluates the health status and issues impacting St. Lawrence County’s population.  

Representatives from a variety of organizations throughout the county have been meeting since October of 2021 to select health priorities based on issues identified in previous Community Health Assessments.

Anne Marie Snell, St. Lawrence County Health Initiative shares “The Community Health Improvement Plan is a three-year community driven plan that outlines goals and strategies that will be used by the coalition to address the identified health priorities in our County. It is inspiring to see so many organizations work together to identify achievable steps to improve overall health.”

The 2019-2024 New York State Prevention Agenda[1] offers the blueprint for New York State and its local counties to develop objectives appropriate for their communities to improve health and reduce disparities. The vision of the Prevention Agenda for 2019-2024 is “that New York is the Healthiest State in the Nation for People of All Ages”.

Guidance from the New York State Department of Health requests that each county identify at least two health priorities in a health improvement plan. The two priorities, Prevent Chronic Disease and Promote Well-Being and Prevent Mental and Substance Use Disorders, and associated focus areas were selected and narrowed down by the Bridge to Wellness coalition considering relevant data and the capacity of its partners.

For the first time, the Bridge to Wellness Coalition added two new interventions – tobacco and suicide prevention. According to the 2020 Community Tobacco Survey of Adult Residents of St. Lawrence County, adult use of e-cigarettes or vaping daily has been increasing since 2017.  The Bridge to Wellness Coalition will partner with the Seaway Valley Prevention Council to support their tobacco advocacy efforts and to help raise community awareness.

St. Lawrence County has also included suicide prevention efforts in the new plan.  In recent years, the county has experienced an increase in suicides in the community. The Coalition will be working with the St. Lawrence County Suicide Awareness Coalition and will be supporting Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) trainings in the community to help identify and support those at risk for suicide.

Jolene Munger, St. Lawrence County Public Health Director states, “The Community Health Improvement Plan addresses public health concerns based on the specific needs of St. Lawrence County.  Ultimately, the goal of the plan is to promote health equity and reduce health disparities for racial, ethnic, disability, low socioeconomic groups, and other populations who experience them.  This is public health.”

Community members can view the plan by visiting any of the following websites:

• Claxton Hepburn Medical Center - https://www.claxtonhepburn.org/images/12.21.2022_CHIP_Final.pdf

• Clifton-Fine Hospital - https://samaritanhealth.com/location/clifton-fine-hospital/

• St. Lawrence County Public Health Department - https://stlawco.org/Departments/PublicHealth/PreventiveHealth

• St. Lawrence Health - https://stlawrencehealthsystem.org/-/media/slh/files/community-health-assessment-2022.pdf?la=en&hash=2960D3E30C7136A61EBCC1471AC2F68B531BEF98