Community Health Forum 2001
A common vision for North Hawaii was distilled from 12 community focus groups facilitated by North Hawaii Outcomes Project and Five Mountains Hawaii in 1999 and 2000. The vision is simple: North Hawaii is a great place to live, with a great sense of community, a great place to work, play and raise a strong family and a great place to heal.
The priorities below, to achieve that vision, were either selected by the community, or identified subsequently as important to reduce health disparities in Hawaii County:
- Improve Access to Primary Healthcare
- Balance Economic Growth and Cultural Preservation
- Improve Educational Attainment
- Increase Qualified Workforce
- Increase Youth Activities
- Improve Measurement of Success
- Improve Prevention of Chronic Disease
- Decrease Child Abuse and Domestic Violence
- Reduce Motor Vehicle Related Fatalities
- Decrease Stroke Death Rates
- Decrease Substance Abuse in Youth and Adults
- Decrease Teen Pregnancy
- Decrease Suicide and Suicide Attempts
Community Health Improvement takes time. The success in other communities and states shows that community health improvement is a marathon, not a sprint, and that “it can be done.” Many individuals and organizations are collaborating to make sustainable improvements in the North Hawaii and Hawaii County in the community-selected priorities and critical health issues. Improving health in North Hawaii and Hawaii County is a shared responsibility, Health…it takes a community.