CFVH seeks feedback in county health survey

Clark Fork Valley Hospital (CFVH) is gearing up for their 2023 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and is asking community members to participate in a county wide survey focusing on healthcare.

“Living in a rural community has its challenges but we do our best at CFVH to address the ones specifically impacting our friends and neighbors here in Sanders County when it comes to healthcare,” explained Janie Hom, CFVH Health Improvement Specialist.

A CHNA is a requirement of compliance for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act and also allows the hospital an opportunity to gather data to determine: 1) what health issues community members are facing, 2) potential areas for improvement and 3) opportunities for growth and strategic partnership.

CHNAs require feedback from a variety of sources. Informational interviews and a public survey will be conducted with stakeholders and members of the Sanders County community. Generally, the interviewees include persons with special knowledge or expertise in public health and persons who represent the medically underserved and vulnerable populations in Sanders County, while the survey is available for all Sanders County residents to provide feedback.

The CFVH 2023 CHNA Survey is now open and available online at http://www.cfvh.org/news/releases/2023-chna and takes 10-15 minutes to complete. The survey is open to people who reside in Sanders County more than six months out of the year and are age 18 or older.

“After the CHNA is completed, we will develop an implementation plan including both short and long term goals where we feel we can make the most impact,” Hom shared.

Findings from past CHNAs identified several key issues facing local residents, including:

• Social determinants of health (transportation, housing and poverty)

• Access to care (underinsured, cost of care, lack of availability of services)

• Chronic conditions requiring specialists or treatments not available locally.

Deadline for the survey is November 18, 2022.

For more information, contact Hom at (406) 826-4669 or [email protected].