CHNAs Hold Key to Improving Community Health

By Haley Fretes, Public Relations Intern at WellFlorida Council

Community Health Needs Assessments (or CHNAs)
are essential tools for those tasked with developing a health improvement plan
for the community. A well-crafted CHNA provides a community with a snapshot of
“where they are,” which is a crucial first step in determining the vision of
“where they need to be” in terms of the health of its residents and operation
and performance of its health systems.

“You need to
know where the mountain is and how high it is before you can […]

By Haley Fretes, Public Relations Intern at WellFlorida Council

Pre-Exposure
Prophylaxis (PrEP) is a comprehensive HIV prevention strategy where people at
extremely high risk for HIV take daily HIV medications to lower their chances
of getting infected from sex or injection drug use. (CDC, 2018).

In
July 2012, the US Food and Drug Administration approved the use of Truvada, a
single pill that combines two HIV medicines (tenofovir and emtricitabine), for
use as PrEP (Florida DOH, 2018). When taken daily, the medication in your
bloodstream can often stop HIV from taking hold […]

Central Florida Health and WellFlorida Council are conducting surveys and focus groups in Lake, Sumter and Marion counties to gauge the health and health needs in the region. Results, along with research and health related data, will be made available in a community health needs assessment in summer 2019.

The 10-minute surveys are available at www.WellFlorida.org (select “Survey”). Participants will be entered to win a $30 gift card. The survey will be open from Feb. 15 to March 31, 2019. To receive a […]

WellFlorida
Council recently released the 2018 health data for each county in North Central
Florida and the collective region. A PDF version of the profiles along with additional
health information is now available on the website.

WellFlorida Council provides annual county health profiles to
help residents and community leaders get an accurate overview of the health
status of the region and how each county compares to each other and the state.

WellFlorida Council is a state designated local health
planning council serving 16 counties in North Central Florida: Alachua,
Bradford, Citrus, Columbia, Dixie, Gilchrist, […]

WellFlorida Council is excited to announce the new website launch for HIV Care Programs, an optimal resource built to educate the public about healthcare and support services for people living with HIV in North Central Florida, HIV prevention and how to stay healthy.

The website is the product of a partnership
among WellFlorida Council, Ryan White HIV patient care providers in Area 3/13
and the North Central Florida CARE Consortium. The partnership helps provide
primary healthcare and support services to low-income persons living with HIV.

Featured HIV […]

National Black HIV/AIDS Awareness Day on Feb. 7. is a day to increase awareness about HIV among blacks/African Americans and encourage people to get involved in prevention efforts, get tested and get treatment if they are living with HIV.

Florida is among the top three states in the nation for the number of people newly diagnosed with HIV. Data recently released from the Florida Department of Health shows that of the 116,944 persons with HIV, 42% are black or African American, 31% are Hispanic and […]