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Connecting in Communities

by Traci Angel on 05/08/2018
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Kim Donoghue
Communications Specialist
kim.donoghue@slu.edu
314-977-4033

05/08/2018

Research in rural southern Missouri seeks to improve health services.

Residents of urban areas usually have access to multiple agencies and networks to assist people in finding health or medical options.

However, rural and other sparsely populated areas  face challenges when it comes to connecting people to such services.

Understanding the social and organizational factors that influence access to care for in these areas is the focus of a collaborative project involving Heart to Heart International, Saint Louis University College for Public Health and Social Justice, and community organizations in four Missouri counties: Dunklin, Mississippi, New Madrid and Pemiscot.

“The rationale for what we are doing is because there is limited access to care and limited health care services,” says Janice Ballard, executive director for rural health at Heart to Heart International, a nonprofit humanitarian organization based in Kansas.

Social and economic factors contribute to the challenges so the collaborative effort has involved talking with community members to identify what they need. The gathered data can then help direct changes and make improvements so that those who need health care receive it. Information includes a mix of previously collected and publicly available data as well primary data for the project, collaborators said.

“We saw this project as a vehicle to document the community’s perception about what contributes to a poor health program,” says Ballard.

Building relationships within the community with citizens and the agencies that provide services is important, says Elizabeth Baker, Ph.D., who is working with the project along with Katie Stamatakis, Ph.D, both faculty members at the College for Public Health and Social Justice. Taking the unique factors of the community into consideration is key.

“We look at the adverse living conditions, poverty, the schools, quality jobs,” she says. “We want to better understand social determinants and the inter-organizational networks in these communities and how these influence access to health care.”

The hope is that relevant and feasible strategies that are tailored to serve communities and residents will lay the groundwork for Heart to Heart’s programs give valuable information for community service providers.

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