CHI St. Vincent, an Arkansas-based nonprofit health system with four hospitals and a network of clinics serving Central and Southwest Arkansas, has released its three year Community Health Needs Assessment. The report identifies significant healthcare needs in the Arkansas communities the faith-based health system serves as well as specific plans to help address those needs over the coming three years.

“This document and the areas of need we identified will serve as the foundation for our healing ministry’s strategic healthcare initiatives for the coming years, “said CHI St. Vincent CEO Chad Aduddell. “We have learned from experience that by prioritizing and planning evidence-based solutions to meet those needs, we can make the greatest possible impact on the communities we serve.”

Previous Community Health Needs Assessments identified significant health challenges in the state like substance abuse and treatment, allowing CHI St. Vincent to focus resources into projects like establishing the Addiction Recovery Program at CHI St. Vincent Infirmary in Little Rock in 2021. The latest Community Health Needs Assessment identifies the following healthcare needs that the healing ministry will focus resources into addressing over the coming three years:

• Access to Primary Care
• Access to Mental Health Care
• Basic Health Knowledge and Awareness
• Chronic Condition Education
• Domestic Violence and Human Trafficking
• Food and Nutrition Education
• Substance Abuse Treatment and Education

Some initiatives to help address these needs include the establishment of a Southwest Little Rock Mission Clinic to provide primary care and access to community care for a severely medically underserved area in Southwest Little Rock; a Connected Community Network of social, medical and behavioral health services to provide easier access to post acute care, especially for poor and homeless communities; and expanding partnerships with local law enforcement to improve public awareness and response to the growing threat of violence and trafficking in local communities.

“These are significant challenges faced by the communities we serve and while they are certainly not the only challenges, this effort allows us to focus not just our healthcare resources, but also focus on building strong partnerships to make a notable impact in these areas together over the next three years,” said Aduddell. “CHI St. Vincent is fortunate to have strong local relationships with government agencies and other groups that truly care about the people of Arkansas. Now with additional regional and national support, like the CommonSpirit Health-Human Trafficking Initiative, we can further amplify the good work already taking place.”

To identify the healthcare needs in the assessment through 2024, CHI St. Vincent solicited primary feedback from communities through Personalized Community Surveys, online surveys, public feedback forms and publicly available research like the United Health Foundation’s 2021 Report which ranked Arkansas 43rd in the nation for Access to Care. The complete Community Health Needs Assessment and correlating implementation strategies are available on the CHI St. Vincent website: chistvincent.com/health-wellness/community-needs-assessment