South Georgia Medical Center has finalized its 2013 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) Report and posted the full report on its website, www.sgmc.org/communityhealthoutreach.

The CHNA is a federal requirement for all not-for-profit hospitals under the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of March 2010.  It is a systematic, data-driven approach to determine the health status, behaviors and needs of residents in the areas served by South Georgia Medical Center and SGMC’s Smith Northview Campus. 

Begun last December, residents in five South Georgia counties and one county in North Florida were surveyed to identify the most pressing health needs of the community. The information gathered became the basis for SGMC’s action plan which serves to guide efforts to improve community health and wellness.

Randy Sauls, SGMC CEO states, “It is our responsibility as a healthcare provider to make every reasonable attempt to meet the needs of our population.  We will use this information to guide us in our decision making as we begin to plan and budget resources for the years ahead.”

Survey results indicate that residents in our region rank cancer prevention and screenings, healthcare access, childhood obesity and substance abuse/tobacco use as our major health concerns. Over the next three years, SGMC will work with other community agencies including the South Health District, Valdosta-Lowndes County YMCA, and the Lowndes County Partnership for Health to address these concerns.

SGMC contracted with Barlow-McCarthy, a national research firm, to conduct the CHNA. The assessment gathered information about the health status of residents by using three information gathering formats: discussion groups, area telephone surveys and local, state and national publicly reported data.

For more information on the CHNA, contact the SGMC Community Relations office at 229-259-4421 or go online at www.sgmc.org/communityhealthoutreach.