Putting Garrett County on the Map

For Immediate Release:  September 20, 2016

Contact Person: Diane Lee, PIO, 301-334-7689

The Garrett County Health Department was recently represented at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Conference on Health Communication, Marketing & Media in Atlanta, Georgia.

Shelley Argabrite, M.A., Health Planner was invited to speak based on an abstract she wrote highlighting the work of the County Health Planning Council and planning team in the process of developing a rural Appalachian engagement strategy for the Community Health Needs Assessment.  The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Public Health Information Coalition, and the Society for Health Communication brought together individuals representing academia, public health researchers and practitioners from federal and state government and the private sector.

“This was a unique opportunity for the work being accomplished in Garrett County to be showcased on a national platform demonstrating leadership in the field of Health Communications, an area we’ve just begun to expand,” said Rodney Glotfelty, Health Officer.

“Sharing strategies to enhance reaching underserved populations more effectively in order to reduce health disparities is a critical component to not only the field of health communications but to our own community,” said Argabrite. “It was an honor to represent Garrett County on a national platform and showcase the work of our County Health Planning Council and residents.”

Four major focus areas were identified by the data committee based on the Community Health Needs Assessment, which are:

1. Chronic Disease and Common Risk Factors: Nutrition, Physical Activity and Tobacco
2. Behavioral Health: Mental Health and Substance Abuse
3. Maternal, Child and Adolescent Health
4. Access to Care & Linkages to Community Resources

The recognition of social determinants, specifically economic inequities and poverty, are woven throughout the Community Health Needs Assessment and continue to be a priority as we address each focus area.

To access the full Community Health Needs Assessment document please go to garretthealth.org to download a digital copy, or visit the Garrett County Health Department at 1025 Memorial Drive for a condensed hard copy.

This month, the Community Needs Assessment will be distributed, and a presentation highlighting the findings will be given.  Putting Garrett County on the map,digitally is new hire, John Corbin, who will be exploring innovative communication tools and technologies to incorporate the data from the Community Health Needs Assessment into a planning tool to create a Community Health Improvement Plan.

Open meetings are held on the fourth Thursday of every month in the main conference room of the Garrett County Health Department at 8:00 a.m. The public is invited and encouraged to attend.