Regional well-being
CHER at Northern Arizona University conducts research
The NARBHA Institute and Northern Arizona Healthcare Foundation approached CHER in 2016 to conduct a comprehensive regional needs and assets assessment of health in Northern Arizona, and to initiate two pilot intervention projects. These projects are funded by the NARBHA Institute and the Northern Arizona Healthcare Foundation.
Needs & assets assessment
CHER is compiling and analyzing existing data and meeting with community members, leaders, and healthcare providers to understand what their priorities are and what resources they feel would be the most impactful in improving health across the region. The assessment will assemble a “best practices” guide to share with the communities and counties. The goal is to create a comprehensive map of existing evidence-based needs, assets, and program development resources and to develop strategies that can reduce health disparities.
Health disparities in jail populations
Coconino County presents an almost unique opportunity to understand the confluence of behavioral health issues, infectious disease, and chronic illnesses, which show significant patterns of health disparities in jail populations when compared with the general population. Incarcerated individuals also show similar patterns of circulation through local emergency rooms and public health facilities. This study, done in collaboration with the Coconino County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, will investigate elements of these topics in Coconino County’s incarcerated population.
Employee well-being
A pilot project on employee well-being in northern Arizona healthcare proposes to study management practices in healthcare institutions and their impact on employee well-being, which has been shown to have a multitude of effects on outcomes for patients as well as for healthcare organizations themselves. The results of the study will help identify actionable intervention strategies to enhance management practices in healthcare organizations and improve healthcare delivery.