Delco moving forward with health services assessment

MEDIA » After gathering public comment about what the public would like to see included in a study of health systems in Delaware County, county officials are on track to hire a firm to conduct such an evaluation.

In April, Delaware County Council voted unanimously to conduct a study of the county’s health needs following the release of two larger studies with conflicting information. The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation ranked Delaware County 12th out of 67 Pennsylvania counties for health factors but 49th for health outcomes. In addition, an Aetna Foundation evaluation ranked the county as one of the top 500 healthiest in the United States.

As a way to get its own clearer understanding and to look at what services are available and where there are gaps, county officials agreed to do their own study.

As part of that, a committee headed by county Executive Director Marianne Grace was formed to create the parameters for this study. On Wednesday, she explained that the county solicited public comment for 45 days on its website and that ended around Aug. 6.

“There were a number of comments on health issues, suicide issues, certainly the opioid issues, environmental issues,” Grace said.

Additional comments includes issues around trauma, access to care for a variety of reasons from a person’s ability to communicate to proximity of services. Grace said the League of Women Voters of Delaware County asked about the viability of a health department.

Some public requests were outside the scope of this study, such as an analysis of bicycle lanes or measuring happiness.

“I think so many things do add to health but I think we are trying to focus into more conventional health,” Grace said.

The executive director said the suggestions are being incorporated into what county officials will be asking a provider to study.

“We’re asking for a lot,” Grace said, explaining the county wants a spectrum of services from mental illness to opioids to environmental issues evaluated. “And, we’re really asking them to look at the structure.”

Grace was hopeful that council would be able to authorize a bid to publish a request for proposals at the Oct. 3 meeting for firms who would be interested in doing this work.

“I anticipate that we’ll get several responses,” she said.

Overall, whomever submits a proposal, the job before them to look at what the county’s health needs are and how they are being delivered is no small task.

“We’re asking them to consider what we currently have, how services are currently being delivered (and) what is the best model for service delivery,” Grace said.