PARTNERS WORKING TOGETHER

The 2017 HRET Community Outreach awards recognize hospital-initiated programs that identify, respond, collaborate and successfully fulfill community needs. Sponsored by Saint Peter’s University Hospital and Robert Wood Johnson University Hospital, Healthier Middlesex partners collaborated to create the Outside the Box: Partnering with Local Libraries to Increase Community Health Literacy program to help patients better advocate for their own health.

By partnering with public libraries throughout Middlesex County, as well as the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, Middle Atlantic Region; the United Way of Central Jersey; Robert Wood Johnson Medical School; and Rutgers University, the program has increased access to health information.

The Outside the Box program was started in 205 to provide culturally and linguistically appropriate—and evidence-based—health information to populations particularly vulnerable to poor health literacy: the elderly, the poor, and new immigrants.  Access to care is a pervasive issue across the United States, and was identified as an area for improvement in the Middlesex County Community Health Needs Assessments, especially as Middlesex County is very culturally and linguistically diverse.  Public libraries are trusted and accessible locations, and the research expertise of librarians can help guide patrons to culturally and literacy level appropriate materials.

Through the National Network of Libraries of Medicine, librarians at six Middlesex County libraries were trained in all areas of consumer health and given access to a professional certification called the Consumer Health Information Specialization (CHIS).  During this training, librarians are instructed on how to identify and select information that is uniquely tailored to a patron’s literacy level, native language and visual, mental, or physical impairments.

The reach of the literacy program is estimated, by utilizing a baseline from East Brunswick Public Library, the inspiration for the program, to potentially touch more than 50,000 community members in 2017 through direct question, health information and education events, and a direct health portal.

ABOUT THE HEALTH RESEARCH AND EDUCATIONAL TRUST (HRET) OF NEW JERSEY:

New Jersey Hospital Association’s Health Research and Educational Trust of New Jersey develops research projects and educational initiatives to promote quality, affordable and accessible healthcare and actively participates in various campaigns to raise public and provider awareness about vital healthcare issues. These initiatives use sound methodologies to understand the landscape of healthcare delivery systems in New Jersey. They help to identify healthcare needs and challenges in our communities, provide best ways to overcome them and improve quality of healthcare and health outcomes of all residents. Our outreach and educational resources empower consumers to make more informed choices concerning their healthcare and link them to sources of assistance for improved access to care.