Community Outreach
The Community Outreach Department provides the vehicle for "Responsiveness" of the hospital to the healthcare needs of the community. Recognizing that it can only be responsive if it is actively involved with community organizations and links, the hospital has chosen to support the office of the Ashe County Health Council, "A Healthy Carolinians Task Force." The Community Outreach Office communicates and coordinates the efforts of the 317 members of the Task Force. The Task Force has been active for the past 13 years and has been certified and recertified as a NC Health Carolinians Task Force since 1995, winning the William G. Anlyan Award in 1999 for: "Exemplary commitment and performance in working on a common vision with diverse populations developing innovative projects that improve health outcomes." The Office of Healthy Carolinians was established in 1992 upon the recommendation of the Governor's Task Force on Health Objectives for the year 2000. To date, 54 counties have established local Healthy Carolinians task forces, of which 39 are certified, and 23 other counties are in the planning stage. These local task forces share the common mission of improving the health and safety of citizens of North Carolina. The local task forces serve as the umbrella for all programs to assure effective use of resources, building a community's consensus to mobilize and respond to health risks and establishing public/private partnerships. In Ashe, the local Task Force is guided by its vision of an Ashe County that shows values for all by providing a social, physical, economic, emotional and spiritual environment that supports health, healing and happiness through open, active collaborative communication with all its people." The Task Force has been very successful and has been recognized for its ability to identify issues, garner resources and mobilize the community to address those issues. Several of the projects and programs implemented include: A.S.H.E. (A Safe Home for Everyone our Domestic Violence Program). The Ashe School Based Health Center, Sunshine Sunday and the ASAP (Ashe Suicide/Depression Awareness and Prevention) Task Force, The Winners Circle in the schools, Smoke Free Dining Days, ACT Against Cancer, Women-In-Touch , and endowment fund that provides financial assistance to needy community members in accessing cancer detection and treatment services, CHATs (Community Health Action Teams), Low Cost Monthly Cholesterol and Lipid screening, the Ashe Volunteer Initiative, The Ashe Latino Center, The Mt. Family Care Center, working with the Duke Endowment Program for the Rural Carolinians on Economic Development issues, the development of an ongoing program for child safety seats, the coordination of English as a Second Language Classes in the community. This past year, the Task Force has been responsible for the walking trail and the climbing wall at the Middle School and the walking trail in Lansing as well as the very popular "Fit as a Fiddle" Business challenge in Downtown West Jefferson. And...have you noticed the art work in the sidewalks of West Jefferson marking 1/5 points along the Locomotion Trail. As one of the key organizations supporting the work of the community through the Task Force, all of the above projects are supported in various ways by the staff and financial resources that Ashe Memorial Hospital commits to the Community Outreach Department. Other key organizations partnering with the hospital include Ashe Services for Aging, The Ashe Partnership for Children, Ashe County Schools System, The Appalachian District Health Department, New River Behavioral Health, The North Carolina Extension Ashe County Center and the Ashe Department of Social Services. The Community Outreach Department also serves as the grants administration office of the hospital. In the past it has facilitated the building of the Mountain Hearts Facility, Renovation of the Outpatient area, Renovation of the 2nd floor nursing station, Renovation of MBU, Renovation of the Pharmacy and Laboratory, Renovation of the Labor and Delivery Department, the Patient Safety project and the Renovation of Segraves Care Center and the Volunteer/Switchboard area in the lobby. The Grants Administration office also serves as fiscal agent for several community grants and oversight of several programs including the Ashe and Alleghany Farm Workers Health Program, and the Comenzando Bien Prenatal program for Latino families. There is no administrative charge to non-profit service agencies and organizations for this service.
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