News Releases

CHNA Presented to Lakewood Wellness Foundation Planning Task Force

The Center’s director of community outreach, Kirstin Craciun, MPP, MSW, presented community health needs assessment (CHNA) information at the Lakewood Wellness Foundation Planning Task Force Meeting on June 27. Tasked with determining the structure of the new foundation that will be formed, establishing the mission and criteria for selecting trustees, and creating and adopting its bylaws, 17 Lakewood residents have been appointed to serve on the Lakewood Wellness Foundation Planning Task Force.

Craciun’s presentation covered:

• The federal regulatory framework governing CHNAs
• Recent state-level population health planning work that will impact future CHNAs
• Local CHNA data regarding the health needs of Lakewood residents

Local data that was shared came from a special analysis of the health needs of Lakewood residents contained in the Cleveland Clinic Fairview 2016 CHNA. Craciun collaborated with Martha Halko, Deputy Director of Prevention and Wellness at the Cuyahoga County Board of Health, for this presentation. Halko presented information related to the root causes of poor health and health inequities.

The opportunity to present to the Lakewood Wellness Foundation Planning Task Force allowed The Center to showcase the work that Cleveland Clinic has done to understand the health needs of Lakewood residents. Healthcare services in the Lakewood community have undergone a transformation with the closing of Lakewood Hospital and the conversion of the hospital into a 24-hour emergency clinic and family health center.

The Center applauds the Lakewood Wellness Foundation Planning Task Force for seeking community health information, including CHNA findings, as they develop recommendations that can help inform planning related to the distribution of resources to improve the health of vulnerable populations.

For more information about community health needs assessments, please contact Kirstin Craciun, MPP, MSW, director of community outreach, at 216.255.3616 or via email.