Sacopee Valley Health Center, which has been providing healthcare services locally for over 42 years, is looking to improve their services, as well as the overall functioning of the health center, and they're asking for just a few moments of your time.
As the only health/medical center for approximately 30 miles in any direction, SVHC is constantly looking for ways to better serve their patients and our rural community’s needs. Patients of the Center come from as far away as Denmark, ME; Conway, NH; Wakefield, NH; and even Waterboro, ME. But, how can you truly understand what the needs of patients and the local community are? Sacopee Valley Health Center is hoping to accomplish this task by conducting an online "community needs assessment".
"We want our patients and the communities we serve to feel that we are 'their Health Center'. A community needs assessment not only measures what we are doing, but also gives the communities an opportunity to voice what we could do better, whether it is our hours of operations, availability, or services." - Lynn Kearney, Executive Director
The survey takes only a few minutes to complete, and most answers are multiple choice. It's completely anonymous, and none of the questions are mandatory, so you can skip any that don't apply, or that you prefer not to answer. There are a variety of questions, none of them ask for personal info. For example, they ask things like "Have you ever confused the Health Center with other facilities that use the name "Sacopee Valley" such as our Dental and Optometry departments" and "Did you know that the Health Center offers Medication Assisted Treatment and counseling for Substance Use Disorder patients?" There are other questions which help to indicate if patients, potential and current, know about all of the services offered at the Center.
Since healthcare is constantly changing, the Health Care Center works hard to stay up to date and ahead of the game. Lynn Kearney, the Executive Director of the Health Center explains "It is extremely important that the Health Center stay abreast of all changes, both clinically and administratively, to ensure we continue to be a community-based organization. For instance, Medicaid expansion, which looks like will be moving forward in January, will have a positive impact on our patients."
The Center wants the entire community to thrive, and to make sure that those who are uninsured and/or underinsured and may need to utilize the sliding fee discount program, know that they are here, and may be able to help. Their discount program takes household size and income into account, to offer families a lower copay for services offered at SVHC. This is an accommodation that is not typically offered through other local businesses.
"We serve patients from all financial and insurance brackets; we take most commercial and private insurances. We offer a wide array of services and year over year we have been ranked among the top 30% of all HRSA-supported health centers that achieved the best overall clinical outcomes, demonstrating high-quality across our clinical operations." - Lynn Kearney
In addition to their current clients, SVHC would like to reach people who aren’t utilizing the local health care services they provide, and to learn what it would take for SVHC to become their choice for their health care provider.
To participate in the survey, click here.
You can learn more about the Health Center, and their current events by visiting their website or Facebook page, or by contacting them directly.
