Park County Health Coalition Addresses Community Issues
Written by Andrew-Rossi on May 9, 2017
Organizations in Park County are banding together to create safer, healthier communities.
The Park County Health Coalition meets regularly to collaborate and brainstorm ways to educate and mobilize resources for the overall wellness of the citizens of Park County. Members of the coalition include representatives from public health offices, hospitals, food banks, extension offices, law enforcement, schools and other organizations dedicated to providing assistance to residents.
At this month’s meeting at West Park Hospital last Thursday, attendees brainstormed topics of particular concern that the group will then collaborate on to determine action steps at upcoming quarterly meetings.
One of the organizations represented at the meeting was Safe Kids Wyoming, whose focus is to address and prevent injuries to children ages zero to 18. Lillian Brazelton, coordinator for Safe Kids Park County, says the top three preventable injuries for children in Wyoming are falls, motor vehicle accidents and poisoning, and helping to educate the public to prevent those injuries for all residents, not just kids, is a concern of their organization.
Brazelton’s concerns were echoed by many others around the room at Thursday’s meeting. Other topics discussed at the meeting include poverty, alcohol and drug use in schools, suicide prevention, aging population issues, teen pregnancy, and nutrition.
The Park County Health Coalition will be meeting again August 3rd in a super-meeting that will include brief presentations from each group present, and breakout sessions afterwards to begin to collaborate on projects that the coalition determines to be of highest importance.