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Community Health Improvement Partnerships (CHIPs)
Because three of Samaritan Health Services’ five affiliated hospitals are designated as rural facilities, SHS partnered with the Office of Rural Health in 2002 and 2003 to conduct comprehensive needs assessments in Lincoln County (where Samaritan North Lincoln and Samaritan Pacific Communities hospitals are located) and east Linn County (where Samaritan Lebanon Community Hospital is located).
In each case, a Community Health Improvement Partnership (CHIP) was formed. The partnerships worked to formally gather input from nearly 100 community leaders and stakeholders to identify — and discuss ways to close — local health care gaps.
In Lincoln County, the identified CHIP priorities were:
- Children’s health
- School-based health clinics
- Chronic disease management
- Affordable health insurance
- Healthy communities promotion
- Access/referral to health services
In east Linn County, the identified CHIP priorities were:
- Teen health
- Mental health
- Transportation
- Affordable health care
- Health education
- Prevention/healthy communities promotion
- Urgent care
Here are some of the ways CHIP mobilized energy and resources to address these priorities:
- The four school-based health clinics in Lincoln County had lost state funding and were in danger of closing their doors. By using data from their assessment, the CHIP partners were able to leverage initial CHIP seed money for bridge funding and other grants to keep all four centers operational.
- The Lincoln County CHIP, established in September 2002, sponsored a children’s health fair that provided free immunizations. It also applied for and was selected (as was east Linn County) to be one of Oregon’s pilot-site counties for the “Healthy Community” initiative, a designation that already has provided the partnership with training in ways to make their community more walking- and bicycle-friendly. The partnership also purchased videos and books to help people learn about diabetes. It is working with the Kellogg Foundation to look at school-based clinics and with Lincoln County businesses to promote a national walking program called “America on the Move.”
- The east Linn County CHIP is working to enhance and coordinate mental health resources and to support Linn County’s Healthy Active Oregon Partnership. It is collaborating with the YMCA to encourage healthy adult-teen relationships through mentoring projects, such as the lunch buddy program; and it is helping educate local employers about lower cost insurance options for local workers.
- The lack of commercial health plans in these rural communities leaves many residents with few choices for health insurance. SHS applied to Medicare for permission to launch a new Medicare Advantage health plan, which began in Spring 2005. The plan offers enhanced services, as well as the lowest monthly premiums available in the area.
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