Garrett County Population Health Update – Year 5, Episode 1

Welcome to the first Population Health Update of 2021!  There are many things to celebrate as we lift up the work being accomplished in Garrett County by numerous collaborators.

It’s vital to remain hopeful and look for the good around us, keep what works, and quickly pass more goodness on to those in need. Critical COVID-19 updates and our county’s response have been highlighted, and we will continue to keep the community informed and engaged. 

We all know the health of our county population depends on many important factors. COVID-19 continues to hold center stage as it ushers in loss of all kinds, but we must also focus our energies on staying healthy and supporting each other. I want to give a shout out to those that kept us up to date by utilizing the transparency of the Garrett County Planning Tool in the last few weeks – it really does take a community of collaboration to keep us all going!

Garrett County Population Health Updates

MyGarrettCounty.com is celebrating five years! We developed this open source software to create a pathway for residents and partner organizations to contribute to the planning decisions that affect them! We are always blown away by how many people use the tool, both by contributing to the information on it, and also by reading about what’s happening in Garrett County!

Here’s just a few of the key updates we’ve shared over the last two weeks as we closed out 2020:

• Mark Boucot, President and CEO of Garrett Regional Medical Center, delivered his video message encouraging all to consider the vaccine and provided an update on GRMC’s response to COVID-19.
• School nurses have also been highlighted as Jennifer & Jessica vlog about the COVID 19 vaccination process. https://mygarrettcounty.com/category/jennifer-jessica-explain-it-all/.
• Gillian Shreve and Dr. Schwalm posted the new Behavioral Health Provider Guide – it’s in several locations to help people find it:  https://garretthealth.org/updated-garrett-county-behavioral-health-provider-guide-available-december-2020/ and https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/increase-adolescent-well-child-checks/
• Another vital contributor is Maria Frantz, RN Quality Improvement Coordinator from Mountain Laurel Medical Center, who since her arrival has consistently provided current data on adolescent well child checks.  (Working collaboratively with providers to improve our unfortunate statistics on adolescent well child checks continues to be a priority focus of the Child and Adolescent Workgroup as Garrett County lags behind other counties in the state.) Mountain Laurel was also the first and continues to be a key partner in reporting HPV vaccinations for youth.
• Karen Keefer updated data on early care immunizations, https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/early-care-immunizations/
• The grant development portal is FULL of new opportunities that John Corbin continues to post – those looking for funding shouldn’t miss these updates! https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/grant-development/
• Kathy Skipper updated data in an action group specifically designed to report about a program where medically qualified individuals are assisted to be able to stay in their homes longer. https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/community-first-choicecommunity-options-waiver/
• Chelsie Dever updated data in an action group called Opioid Intervention Team. This group is charged with developing a unified local strategy, conducting operational coordination with all stakeholders, and to work toward conducting holistic intervention and response operations to reduce the number of fatal and non-fatal opioid overdoses. https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/opioid-intervention-team/
• Sadie Liller manages a vital service in drug prevention efforts in our community as many people don’t fully understand the risk associated with prescription opioids. Her work focuses on reducing easy access to prescription opioids from relatives and friends and ensuring people properly store and dispose of prescriptions. You can learn more about this work by visiting the website called AddictionHappens.org and then look at all her progress reported in the action group, under raw data-  https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/opioid-intervention-team/addictionhappens-org-it-can-happen-to-anyone/
• Julie Sanders updated multiple groups on behalf of the Behavioral Health Authority Local Management Board Office
  • https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/local-management-board/
  • https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/local-management-board/local-care-team/
  • https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/local-management-board/youth-employment-initiative/
  • https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/local-management-board/learning-beyond-the-classroom/
  • https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/behavioral-health-authority/garrett-county-communities-supportive-of-behavioral-health-treatment-wellness-and-recovery/
  • They are currently seeking public input on the Behavioral Health Plan of Operations for the fiscal year 2022 – input will become part of an ongoing and valuable process that provides meaningful feedback concerning strengths and gaps about the publically funded behavioral health services in Garrett County. Now’s your chance to share your experiences and help create a better network of care. Visit https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/behavioral-health-authority/
• As a community, we work on reducing hospital readmission rates through Home Health Providers.  There’s a unit in the Garrett County Health Department that is dedicated to meeting the medical needs of clients in their homes, across a continuum of care with the ultimate goal of maximizing self-sufficiency and independence.  Physician referrals are a vital component of this critical service as well as a team of skilled health care workers that manage patients daily. View up-to-date happenings reported by Tayler George here:  https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/hospital-readmission-rates/
• Food resources are another important part of community health – and no one knows more about it than Cheryl DeBerry. Using a collaborative approach to better meet the nutritional needs of our most vulnerable residents the Food Council works on issues related to food, from production at the farm to nutrition at the table. Cheryl updated a new food resources brochure that is current for the Western Maryland Food Council Group.  Please visit it here and pass in on to anyone who may need it-https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/social-determinants-of-health/
• Beth Brenneman is dedicated to keeping the leadership of multiple sectors abreast of the most immediate and pressing issues of the county by updating the Health Planning Council action group. Most recently, Mark Boucot presented GRMC’s strategic plan and Beth has posted that along with the minutes for all to view.  Mark sincerely asked for feedback regarding the proposed plan.  Please take a look and post your comments in the HPC group or call the hospital.  We are fortunate to have such a high-quality health care facility in our community. https://mygarrettcounty.com/groups/health-planning-council/

As you can see there’s a tremendous amount of work being done and we do appreciate our staff, partner organizations, and the community members who give us all the opportunity to engage with and be a part of health improvement activities!  Please feel free to join any of the action groups that interest you – there are approximately 190 to choose from and everyone is invited! You do need to sign up for a free account on mygarrettcounty.com to participate in the discussions. 

It’s hard to believe it’s been two and a half weeks since the launch of our well-being program called Go! Garrett County. It’s championed by the Garrett County Health Department through the Health Planning Council, designed to highlight local businesses and community resources that help keep us healthy & safe as we navigate this unprecedented time. Approximately 120 people have joined and almost everyone opted to take the survey, thank you so much for that! – it’s important data that informs our programming. 

Go! Garrett County (https://gogarrettcounty.com), rolling out through 2021, supports local businesses and community resources by offering participation points for watching videos from locals and reading articles that help us take good care of ourselves, our families, and our neighbors. 

Many of the prizes have been purchased from local businesses to support Garrett County. If you know of other businesses or community resources (formal or informal) that would like to share their information please have them reach out to [email protected] to be featured in this new program. The program features everything from our leading chronic disease management programs at GRMC & Mountain Laurel Medical Center to staying active with bicycle groups from around the county. 

To start earning great rewards, while learning about resources, services, and activities in Garrett County, register for a FREE account at https://gogarrettcounty.com/register.