Better health for a better community.
Health care is changing—for the better. And Hancock Health and Hancock Regional Hospital Foundation are at the forefront of the changes. We’re working to make our entire community healthier—to actually spend less on health care—and improve the quality of life for all of us.
It’s all about an idea called “population health.” And it’s how we’re going to help Hancock County and the entire area we serve become an even better place to live, work, and play.
What is Population Health?
Population health is an approach to health care that aims to improve not only the health of individual patients, but of entire communities. It’s all about making the community we serve a healthier, better, more attractive place to live.
Why? Studies show that healthier communities offer a better quality of life for people who live there—and a better environment for employers. A healthier workforce is happier and more productive than a less-healthy workforce. Better health sets the stage for a growing, more prosperous community.
And excellent clinical medical care is only one element of a community’s overall health—in fact, it’s only 20% of the total. Healthy behaviors, a healthy physical environment, and cultural and social factors account for the other 80%.
Population health means providing our community with great health information people can use—making it easy to adopt and stick with healthful lifestyle choices. It means working to create healthier surroundings. It means decreasing the prevalence of chronic disease, which will lead to lower overall healthcare costs—which allows more investment in the other things that make our community special.
And all of that helps us attract more people and businesses to this great place to live and work—a healthier, happier, smarter, more productive place for all of us.
Our Commitment to Our Community
At Hancock Regional Hospital Foundation, we’re helping Hancock Health provide the quality clinical care our community expects and deserves. But we’re also deeply invested in that 80%: helping everyone in our community improve and protect their health and overall wellness.
That’s why we’re determined to lead and support our community’s population health initiative. Here are just a few of the ways we’re getting involved:
Community Education
We believe that good health for our community starts with good information and access to resources. Hancock Health offers a wide range of health education classes and health screenings to help people get the information and the support they need to live more healthful lives. Many, including our smoking cessation classes, are focused on health concerns that lead to chronic or serious conditions that, if they can be avoided or reversed, help reduce or eliminate healthcare costs while improving the quality of life for our community.
We’re also committed to providing good information via this website and our social media channels. To stay up to date with the latest in health news, please follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram—and check out the most current stories on our blog.
Community Benefit
Part of being a good community partner is being a good neighbor. Our Community Benefit initiatives provide resources and address needs that would otherwise go unfilled. View our latest Community Benefit report here. To learn more about how we’re working to help the community, view our most recent Community Health Needs Assessment, and Implementation Strategy, a wide-ranging report that details the most pressing health issues currently facing the Hancock County population.
healthy365
Over time, little changes can make a big difference. healthy365 helps Hancock County residents form healthy habits and find healthy choices. All on the way to making Hancock the healthiest county in Indiana.
With healthy habits in mind, healthy365 starts with these five strategies:
- Healthier Choices
- Mental Fitness
- Workplace Wellness
- System of Care
- Congregational Network
System of Care
System of Care is a network of agencies and organizations that are working together to increase access to mental health and substance abuse care for youth, young adults, and young families. If you’re interested in learning more, or if want to learn about the referral process, contact us today by email at aeveridge@hancockregional.org.
Congregational Health Network
The Congregational Health Network is a partnership between congregations, hospitals, and the community aimed at developing person-centered care pathways. The purpose of the partnership is to connect congregations with healthcare providers to improve education and create better healthcare outcomes for members of the community. If you would like to learn more, please contact us today by email at aeveridge@hancockregional.org.