Lee Memorial Health System

Community Health Visioning 2017
 
In 2006, Lee Memorial Health System (LMHS)—the largest public health system in Florida operating without local tax support—purchased two hospitals and gained control of 96 percent of the hospital beds in the county. The community at-large did not appreciate how LMHS’ new market position had the potential of making LMHS a true community-owned health system.

As a result, LMHS launched Community Health Visioning: 2017 to fully engage its community members to create a united, shared vision for coordinated, community-wide health care. Focusing on quality, efficiency, and shared planning for the future, a 38-member steering committee of community leaders guided the Visioning effort. Committee members were from all areas of the community, including health care, education, government, private businesses and non-profit organizations.

Several avenues were used to collect feedback from the community, including conducting a 1,000-person telephone survey, an online survey, four town hall meetings and 150 focus groups. In all, key members of the LMHS staff worked with the committee to penetrate deep into community – reaching 4,000 stakeholders in only a few months.

To close the feedback loop, some short-term solutions were launched immediately. For instance, LMHS learned that one of the areas of concern identified by community residents centered on behavioral and mental health services. Partnering with a mental health provider, LMHS created a 15-bed wing in one of its facilities for more inpatient psychiatric beds in the area. Local agencies also secured grant funding to create a new “drop off” site for people exhibiting signs of mental illness, rather than taking them to jail or the emergency room.

The success of Visioning was the sense of community-wide ownership that emerged during the process. LMHS has sense realized that the complexities of both short- and long-term health needs are challenges for the entire community to tackle together.
 

For more information about this program, please contact:

Kevin Newingham
System Director Planning & Strategy
Kevin.newingham@leememorial.org