Team Showcase:
2008 Team Showcase Competition: Region 2
February 21, 2008
Region 2 Coordinator
| 2008 Region 2 Winner | ||
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Region
Two |
The Westside WILDflower project was selected as part of the St. Johns County Health Department’s (SJCHD) Strategic Plan for 2005-2008. One of the four strategic priorities of the SJCHD is commitment to promoting healthy behaviors, preventing undesirable health outcomes, and preparing the residents for any adverse community events. After performing a SWOT analysis, and using a prioritization matrix, a strategic objective was developed to address the infant mortality rate in St. Johns County. In addressing the infant mortality rate, SJCHD was also able to provide excellent customer service by improving accessibility to health services.
The project objective of reducing the infant mortality rate by providing accessible preconception health care aligns with the first SJCHD Organizational Priority – Prevent, Promote and Prepare. This further aligns with the annual target Infant mortality rate at or below 4.5 per 1000. Using current data as a baseline, the team focused its efforts on reducing the infant mortality rate, which was directly related to accessibility to preventive and educational health services.
The root cause for the high infant mortality rates is identified as the
health of the mother prior to pregnancy. Issues prior to pregnancy
included: pre-existing medical conditions, obesity, history of loss,
incompetent cervix, and sexually transmitted diseases. The mother’s
condition during pregnancy and labor ranked second. The issues during
pregnancy included: infection other than sexually transmitted diseases,
Anemia, Preterm labor, and substance abuse.
Social issues ranked third. The social issues included: poverty,
transportation, housing, inconsistent Pre-Natal Care, maternal age, and
life course risk factors. Provider Issues ranked fourth to include no Healthy
Start screening, and no referral for substance abuse. All four contributed
to the high infant mortality rates during the five year period from 2000-2005. However
the lack of care and conditions before pregnancy accounted for 71% of the
problem.
The Westside WILDflower provided onsite services in a community where no services had been previously provided. The clinic received 508 visits (138 new and 370 returns). Approximately $60,000 of free services has been provided to the West Augustine Community. The team assured linkage to appropriate services in the community, 60 referrals made. The overall client satisfaction for chronic disease monitoring is 93.5%, Immunization is 100 %, and Health education is 98.5%.
Counties in Region 2: Alachua, Baker, Bradford, Clay, Columbia, Dixie, Duval, Flagler, Gilchrist, Hamilton, Lafayette, Levy, Madison, Marion, Nassau, Putnam, St. Johns, Suwannee, Taylor, Union