Every three years, Carilion Clinic puts together community health assessments throughout southwest Virginia. The latest one found some new concerns.
The assessments are conducted in six communities in the southwestern portion of the state, including the Roanoke and New River Valleys. They incorporate several factors, including a survey that was sent out to residents in each area.
Aaron Boush is Carilion’s Community Health and Outreach Manager. When compared to the last assessment conducted in 2015, he says many communities could still benefit from access to certain types of care.
“We’re still seeing across all of our communities the need for mental health access, as well as the need for improved addiction and alcohol services.”
However, some new areas of concern did pop up:
“Some of the top needs that were identified that were a little different this year included a lot of social determinant of health issues. So, how transportation, poverty can affect your health and can be the underlying reason why some people may not be living health lifestyles.”
Officials at Carilion hope to partner with local businesses and non-profit organizations to address some of the issues that contribute to unhealthy lifestyles. Those efforts include expanding affordable housing options and helping community members get out from under predatory payday loans.
Centra Health also recently completed a survey of health needs in the Lynchburg area. Click here to read that report.
