The new campaign will address a range of issues, including rural healthcare, challenges in post-acute care, and the state of mental health services in New Hampshire.
Dartmouth Health has launched a public education and patient engagement campaign, The Thread.
The healthcare system is notoriously complicated, and The Thread is designed to educate patients, policy makers, and members of the general public about key healthcare issues.
"One of our greatest motivators for launching The Thread is that historically a lot of our campaigns have been driven by informing communities about the services we offer, and we wanted to go beyond that approach," says Maria Padin, MD, CMO of the Dartmouth Health Southern Region/Community Group Practices. "We are the only academic medical center in New Hampshire dedicated to education—not only the education of our future clinicians, but also the education of the public."
One of the goals of The Thread is to explore issues and opportunities related to rural healthcare, according to Padin.
"That is important for our government officials, who are often making decisions that we want to be fact-informed around the needs of communities," Padin says. "We want to focus on solutions and partnerships."
Padin says rural healthcare issues that will be addressed by The Thread include access to clinical services in rural areas, recruitment of clinicians in rural communities, challenges in maternity services in New Hampshire because several hospitals have discontinued those services, and transportation options for patients in rural communities.
The Thread will address a range of other issues.
"The other areas we will tackle include transgender care in the state and within Dartmouth Health, challenges in post-acute care such as access to long-term care facilities, and exploring models of care for our aging population to remain at home," Padin says. "We also want to address the state of mental healthcare in New Hampshire."
Maria Padin, MD, is CMO of the the Dartmouth Health Southern Region/Community Group Practices. Photo courtesy of Dartmouth Health.
For patients, The Thread is an opportunity to have concise information from a reliable source.
"The Thread will guide patients to where services can be obtained," Padin says, "but, more importantly, the value of The Thread for patients is to inform them and educate them around the issues that face healthcare in their communities."
The Thread will also help patients navigate the complexities of healthcare, Padin explains.
"Our hope is to at least provide a basic foundation of understanding in a simple format of facts," Padin says. "We want to help patients during a time when reliability is not always present in what we read."
Dartmouth Health has a responsibility to offer the kind of information that will be provided through The Thread, according to Padin.
"As an organization that serves communities across the state, it is a responsible shift for us to be engaged during a time when there is polarization and risk for our communities," Padin says. "For us as a leader in the state's healthcare, we want to take the lead in education of our communities as it relates to issues that are relevant to health and wellness."
Christopher Cheney is the CMO editor at HealthLeaders.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
Dartmouth Health has decided to go beyond informing the public about its services, with a campaign focusing on key healthcare issues affecting the health system's communities.
The educational campaign, The Thread, is targeting patients, policymakers, and members of the general public.
Dartmouth Health sees The Thread as a responsibility of the organization's academic mission to not only educate clinicians but also the public.