This just in from the Centers for Disease Control: the much anticipated Community Health Improvement Navigator is now live. The following is from the new website:

Our health and well-being are products of not only the health care we receive and the choices we make, but also the places where we live, learn, work, and play. Community health improvement (CHI) is a process to identify and address the health needs of communities. Because working together has a greater impact on health and economic vitality than working alone, CHI brings together health care, public health, and other stakeholders to consider high-priority actions to improve community health.

The CDC Community Health Improvement Navigator (CHI Navigator) is a website for people who lead or participate in CHI work within hospitals and health systems, public health agencies, and other community organizations. It is a one-stop-shop that offers community stakeholders expert-vetted tools and resources for:

• Depicting visually the who, what, where, and how of improving community health
• Making the case for collaborative approaches to community health improvement
• Establishing and maintaining effective collaborations
• Finding interventions that work for the greatest impact on health and well-being for all

For comments or questions related to the CHI Navigator, email the team.

Who Can Benefit from Using the CHI Navigator?

The CHI Navigator is for people who lead or participate in CHI work within hospitals and health systems, public health agencies, and other community organizations. Key target audiences include hospitals complying with the IRS Final Rule and other organizations with community health assessment requirements, such as health departments seeking accreditation, especially as these groups work together to improve their community’s health.

Benefit to Hospitals and Health Systems

In this transformational time, the effectiveness of the health care sector is based more on value and patient outcomes than on the volume of services provided. To maximize impact on health, it is essential to address not only access to and provision of health care, but also the prevention of illness—including adequate nutrition—and a focus on the social, behavioral, and environmental factors affecting health and well-being.

Using the CHI Navigator, hospitals and other community stakeholders can find resources related to the CHI process and interventions that experts have reviewed and recommended for working collaboratively in four action areas: socioeconomic factors, physical environment, health behaviors, and clinical care. A balanced portfolio of interventions can lead to greater impact on patient and population health while reducing readmissions and cutting costs.2

Benefit to Other Organizations in the Community

Engaging in a collaborative CHI process, as described within the CHI Navigator, supports the mission of the organizations involved in using interventions that work—a strategic approach favored by many funders.

Click here for the CHI Infographic.

Click here for an earlier Stakeholder Health interview with Dr. Denise Koo who lead in the development of the Navigator.