2019 - Lowell General Hospital

2019

Greater Lowell Community Health Needs Assessment

in partnership with

295 Varnum Avenue, Lowell, MA 01854-2193 978-937-6000 ? TTY:978-937-6889 ?

2019

Greater Lowell Community Health Needs Assessment

Conducted on behalf of: Lowell General Hospital Greater Lowell Health Alliance

Authors: David Turcotte, ScD Kelechi Adejumo, MSc Casey Le?n, MPH Kim-Judy You, BSc University of Massachusetts Lowell September 17, 2019

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We would like to acknowledge and thank the following individuals and organizations for their assistance with the 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment and this report:

Krysta Brugger, UMass Lowell graduate student for her help with scheduling listening sessions, participant recruitment, and project management;

Hannah Tello, a University of Massachusetts Lowell doctoral student who designed the Greater Lowell Community Needs Assessment survey, compiled the results, and wrote the summary section for this report. UMass Lowell students Mollie McDonah, Jared Socolow, Shirley Archambault, and Larissa Medeiros, and Lowell High student Andrew Nguyen and Innovation Charter School student Joshua Cho for assistance with conducting survey outreach and inputting survey data.

Listening session facilitators and note takers listed in Appendix D.

Paul Oppedisano, MassCHIP Director from the Massachusetts Department of Public Health for providing public health data.

UMass Lowell Professor Leland Ackerson and his undergraduate Community Needs Assessment students who conducted key informant interviews with first responders.

UMass Lowell undergraduate students Naike SaintPierre, Veronica Mukundi, and William Hanlon for assisting with data gathering and analysis of secondary public health data.

Members of the 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment Advisory Committee (see Appendix E) and Greater Lowell Health Alliance, for their advice and guidance. . The Cambodian Mutual Assistance Association (CMAA), Center of Hope and Healing, Elder Services of Merrimack Valley, Greater Lowell Interfaith Leadership Alliance, Hunger and Homeless Commission, Lowell's Early Childhood Council, Lowell Community Health Center, Lowell House, Lowell Housing Authority, Lowell Senior Center, Non-Profit Alliance of Greater Lowell (NPA), Portuguese Senior Center, RISE Coalition (Refugee and Immigrant Support & Engagement), Youth Violence Prevention Coalition, Upper Merrimack Valley Public Health Coalition for hosting listening sessions.

Natalia Melo from the UMass Lowell Saab Center for Portuguese Studies who connected us to members of the Portuguese Senior Center and Frank Sousa and Patricia Martinho Ferreira from the Saab Center for Portuguese Studies for editing the Portuguese translations of listening session questions and consent form and Luz Vasudevan from the Latinx Community Center for Empowerment (LCCE) for assistance with organizing and hosting the listening session with members of the Spanish speaking community.

We also thank all individuals who participated in the listening sessions and interviews and all who provided assistance with the community health needs assessment.

CONTENTS

Acknowledgements

Executive Summary

1

Process and Methods

3

Introduction3

Population7

Determinants of Health

11

Built Environment

12

Social Environment

16

Housing

20

Violence

23

Education

24

Employment26

Greater Lowell CHNA Survey Results Summary

29

Findings about Community Health and Needs from Listening Sessions and Interviews

32

Overall Perception About Community Health

32

Top Health Problems in the Community

33

Types of Residents at Greatest Risk

34

Major Strengths of the Health System

37

Major Unmet Needs in the Health System

38

Barriers to Obtaining Health Services

39

Analysis of Public Health Data

40

Figures ? Death

40

Figures ? Cardiovascular Disease

41

Figures ? Diet/Obesity

44

Figures ? Diabetes

47

Figures ?Smoking

49

Figures ? Respiratory Diseases

50

Figures ? Mental Health

53

Figures ? Substance Use Disorder

55

Figures ? Cancer

59

Figures ? Infectious Diseases

61

Recommendations to Improve the Health System

65

Next Steps: Identifying Top Priorities and Action Plans

66

References68

Appendix A ? P otentially Available Community Resources

71

Appendix B ? Evaluation of Impact of Preceding CHNA

77

Appendix C ? Focus Group and Interview Questions

79

Appendix D ? F ocus Group and Interview Note Takers and Facilitators

88

Appendix E ? 2016 Community Health Needs Assessment Advisory Committee

89

Appendix F ? C ommunity Health Needs Assessment Advisory Committee

90

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