Community Benefits

Assessing the health needs of our community and developing ways to address those needs is one way Wentworth-Douglass helps to improve the overall health and quality of life in our community.  

Every three years, Wentworth-Douglass Hospital conducts a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and develops an implementation strategy to address the community's top health needs identified through the CHNA.

Based on a comprehensive data assessment and input from community members, the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment identified nine significant health needs in our service area. These are (in alphabetical order): 

• Access to Primary Care Services
• Access to Long Term Services & Supports
• Chronic Disease
• Financial Barriers to Care
• Mental Health
• Obesity and Physical Inactivity
• Oral Health
• Social Determinants of Health
• Substance Use Disorders

Read the full 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment (PDF), approved by the Board of Trustees on September 6, 2022.

An implementation strategy has been developed to address these health needs over the next several years. This plan includes: 

• Financial Assistance
• Expanding Access to Primary Care and Behavioral Health Services
• Care-Van Transportation
• Educational Events & Health Screenings
• Funding Community Grants
• Operating a Community Dental Center

Read the full 2022 CHNA Implementation Strategy (PDF), approved by the Board of Trustees on September 6, 2022.

Further Reading: 

2022 Community Benefit Report

2019 Community Health Needs Assessment

2019 CHNA Implementation Strategy

2016 Community Health Needs Assessment (PDF)

2016 CHNA Implementation Strategy (PDF)

We’d love to hear from you! If you have feedback or questions, please contact Meaghan Heusler via email at meaghan.heusler@wdhospital.org.