Hospitals in pursuit of excellence

Creating Healthy Communities

How do you measure success in creating a culture of health? Mountain View Hospital, a 25-bed critical access hospital in Madras, Ore., can count the 1,660 pounds that participants collectively lost in Movin? Mountains Health Challenge 2010. MVH serves a diverse, rural and somewhat economically challenged population in Jefferson County. In 2006, the Mountain View Community Health Improvement Partnership was created to improve the health of area residents. CHIP's priorities are based on community assessments, data and identified community priorities. CHIP has supported after-school fitness programming, dental care for children and uninsured families, community gardens and community health challenges like Movin? Mountains. To date, dental care initiatives have provided twice-yearly fluoride varnishes and screenings for 90 percent of children in the area?s kindergarten and Head Start classes. This fall, the Community Cardio Challenge encourages individuals and teams ?to log sustained cardio-respiratory activity--such as walking, running, biking, swimming or dancing?for at least 35 of 50 days. MVH is sponsoring weekly activities including water aerobics, bike rides, a nutrition class and a cardiology seminar. To learn more, contact Beth Ann Beamer, CHIP director, at bbeamer@mvhd.org.