Healthy Families
Raising a family is a wonderful experience and can also be hard. Families with young children know the child care system is in crisis. Many cannot afford high-quality day care and preschools. Often, these services are not even available. There are other families who take on caregiving for older adults or family members with disabilities. They often do this without pay or enough support.
Oregon has a bold approach to deliver health care. Even so, many families still face barriers when they try to access preventive services.
We need to ease the challenges families face. This will ensure they are supported and thriving. Strategies will help families to:
- Build on family strengths
- Help families feel more supported
- Improve skills in communication
- Help families access needed services
Our approach:
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Definition
Evidence-based means a practice that has been tested through science.
Culturally responsive is the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully to people of all cultures, in a way that accepts the value and preserves the dignity of individuals, families and communities.
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Why This Matters
Oregon is one of the first states to offer nurse home visits for all families with a newborn. This strategy aims to support implementation of the 2019 law through continued funding, training and staffing.
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How we measure change
Percentage of families enrolled in the Family Connects home visiting program following birth of a baby.*
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Definition
Culturally responsive is the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully to people of all cultures, in a way that accepts the value and preserves the dignity of individuals, families and communities.
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Why This Matters
Families with young children know the child care system is in crisis. Many cannot afford child care. Often these services are not even available.
There are other families who take on caregiving for older adults or for family members with disabilities. Caregivers are often paid poorly, if at all. They face stressors that have a negative impact on health.
The purpose of this strategy is to promote policies that help families and provide support for caregiving.
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How we measure change
Percentage of children aged 0-5 with access to a childcare slot.*
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Definition
Family resiliency is the family’s ability to withstand and rebound from life challenges.
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Why This Matters
This strategy seeks to:
- Build on family strengths
- Help families feel closer and more supported
- Improve skills in communication
As family dynamics can be very different depending on the family’s culture, these trainings should take cultural differences into account.
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How we measure change
Percentage of parents coping very well with the daily demands of raising children.*
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Definition
Health care payment reform means changing the way health care is paid for to improve the quality of care a person receives.
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Why This Matters
It is important to determine ways to use health care dollars to support and expand crucial social programs. This is due to the growing knowledge that health outcomes improve when people’s basic needs are met. Some of these needs include food, housing and transportation.
This strategy aims to find funding opportunities in the health care system for these services.
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How we measure change
Average CCO spending on health related services per member per month.*
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Definition
Health literacy is the degree to which people can access and understand health information needed to make decisions about their health.
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Why This Matters
Patients need to understand information about:
- Their health conditions
- Their medications
- How to prevent other illness or disease
Providers need to support patients in health literacy. There are many health literacy trainings. But not all are offered online, on demand and at times when providers can access them. Trainings need to be tailored to different types of providers. They also need to include information that is specific to diverse cultures.
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How we measure change
Percentage of patients who said their doctor explained things in a way that was easy to understand.*
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Definition
Preventive services are healthcare services that prevent illness or disease.
Evidence-based means a practice that has been tested through science.
Promising practice means a practice that reports positive outcomes but may not yet have been studied through science.
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Why This Matters
The focus of prevention is to prevent illness rather than treat symptoms. To be healthy, families need access to services that prevent disease throughout life.
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How we measure change
Percentage of children aged 3-6 who had a well child visit with a primary care provider in the past year.
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Why This Matters
Supporting people to choose when and if they want to have children is part of helping families be healthy. Also, sexually transmitted infections are very common. People sometimes do not access these needed services because of stigma or discomfort with their provider.
The goal of this strategy is to help people feel more comfortable accessing services. It is also to help providers be more comfortable talking about sexual health issues with their patients.
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How we measure change
Gonorrhea incidence State Health Indicator – Gonorrhea cases per 100,000 people in Oregon.*
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Definition
Culturally responsive is the ability of individuals and systems to respond respectfully to people of all cultures, in a way that accepts the value and preserves the dignity of individuals, families and communities.
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Why This Matters
Babies born to those who receive prenatal care are less likely to have low birth weight or to be born prematurely.* Giving new parents support is also important after the birth of a baby.
The goal of this strategy is to give support early in pregnancy and after the birth to ensure the best possible outcomes for parents and babies.
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How we measure change
Percentage of women who had a timely postpartum visit.**
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Why This Matters
It can be complex and confusing to figure out how to enroll in Medicare. SHIBA is a program that helps older adults understand and enroll in Medicare and Medicare Advantage Plans. It is key that this important resource be offered statewide.
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How we measure change
Percentage of contacts with “hard to reach” Medicare beneficiaries who are low income, rural, or non-native English speaking.*