Holy Cross Hospital in Taos, NM, knows what it takes to build healthy communities. The hospital's "Taos First Steps" program received a 2009 AHA NOVA Award, which honors local partnerships that improve community health. Holy Cross partners with the University of New Mexico-Taos Early Childhood Resource Center to provide home visits to women pregnant for the first time, first-time parents and families up to the child's third birthday. We recently spoke to Holy Cross President Peter Hofstetter about his organization's strong community connections.
AHA News: How does the range of services you provide outside the walls of the hospital help demonstrate accountability to the community?
Hofstetter: We have always been very active in our community. Our community like other communities has health issues and concerns, and as the only hospital in this community it is important for us to recognize and respond to our citizens' needs.
AHA News: Why did Holy Cross take the lead in setting up Taos First Steps and what has the program achieved thus far?
Hofstetter: Four years ago we identified that there were no services specifically addressing the extremely low prenatal care rates in our region. We see the impact of these rates through high emergency department deliveries and low birth weight babies. We convened early childhood professionals, health professionals and other social service organizations to develop the most appropriate program to address these rates.
The consensus was that home visiting for all first-time families helped connect them to existing community resources and provided a positive parenting foundation. Since its inception we have reached 54% of our target population. Measures indicate that women who join Taos First Steps during the prenatal period have babies weighing a pound more than our families who join after the baby's birth.
Additionally, 95% of children in the program are on health insurance and receive well-child check-ups regularly.
AHA News: What has been the key to its success?
Hofstetter: The key has been the collaborative program model. We truly became a community partner investing in the web of services to support the entire system of care for families. This investment in families and community organizations was the catalyst for success. Our openness to leveraging the existing assets in our community and building a system around those assets, continues to transform how we think about our community-focused services.
AHA News: How important is it for a hospital to find ways of effectively connecting to their community to better tell their story?
Hofstetter: Being in a rural area, our hospital plays a prominent role in our community. We are the largest employer in town; the main health provider and a major economic driver. So our obligation is to be a responsible community member, and that is why our story is important. I believe that by being responsible community members we have a powerful opportunity through the personal stories of our programs and services to transform the health and economic status of our rural region. People know us not just as hospital employees but as their neighbors and friends who take care of each other.
AHA News: How does your governance structure help strengthen your "community connections?"
Hofstetter: Our board has 13 members, all from our community and surrounding areas. They too, live and work in the different parts of our region and are invaluable at helping to tell our story.
