The health of a community isn’t measured by just one issue alone. A fair and comprehensive evaluation thoughtfully considers the well-being of everyone and the barriers that keep some neighbors from achieving good health. Bon Secours daily strives to provide accessible spaces in which dignified care can be delivered to at-risk populations such as the poor, the dying and the underserved.
With input from stakeholders and local residents, the organization’s most recent Community Health Needs Assessment revealed several key factors impacting the current state of health within underserved communities in the greater Richmond area. The need for access to chronic disease management and preventive care ranked high on the list.
Bon Secours supports a safety net of health care available to the poor. The overall goal is to increase the availability of treatment options and to provide education to empower residents with knowledge in how to prevent and manage chronic diseases like asthma, high blood pressure and diabetes. Thanks to the recent opening of Bon Secours’ Manchester-based Community Health Clinic and the East End Wellness Center, uninsured and underinsured patients now have convenient options where they can readily find the care, services and information they’re looking for.
The Community Health Needs Assessment identified engagement and inclusion as another important focal point of community health, guiding Bon Secours to create a series of events and town-hall-style gatherings where residents can make their voices heard to effect change through face-to-face communication with local leaders and stakeholders in the organization.
Like so many communities, the Richmond population has demonstrated a steadily growing need for mental and behavioral health services in recent years. Bon Secours is working to expand access to this essential care through increased screenings, referrals and community partnerships. Initiatives like the new behavioral health partial hospitalization program launched last year in the East End and in Petersburg offer treatment in an intensive outpatient setting that bridges the gap between hospitalization and traditional outpatient care. Bon Secours is also investing more than $1 million in school-based mental health supports to help meet children and community members in their own familiar environments. Â
Interpersonal and community violence has touched nearly every neighborhood in Richmond. To promote safer communities and expand the scope of services available to victims, the Bon Secours Violence Response Team responds to calls at all of the organization’s hospitals and emergency departments. Plans are in motion to strengthen the range of services the team is able to provide in Petersburg and the East End.
By partnering with the Boys & Girls Clubs of Richmond and maintaining the Sarah Garland Jones Center for Healthy Living, Bon Secours gives local youth safe physical and virtual spaces where they can meet up with friends, stay active and even pick up valuable life skills. The free eight-week RVA C.O.O.K.S. program, a partnership with the Richmond Police Department, provides teens with the foundational tools and preparation they need to pursue employment in the culinary field and beyond. Bon Secours’ continued sponsorship of the annual RVA East End Festival celebrates the musical and artistic achievements of participating school kids, while helping to raise over $400,000 for the Richmond Public Schools arts programs in Richmond’s East End.Â
To learn more about how Bon Secours is working to create safe spaces that support healthy communities in Richmond, visit bonsecours.com.
