Reflection

End of Year Rewind Post

They say that with the New Year comes a sense of renewal — unfortunately the beginning of 2021 has brought with it a continuation of the many challenges we witnessed in 2020. It is evident now more than ever that turning the page on the calendar doesn’t mean we can turn away from the intense challenges facing our communities as we continue to battle the COVID-19 pandemic, health inequities, racial injustice, and other social determinants that threaten public health in the Blue Hills region. Despite the fatigue and despair that we’ve felt over the past year, and still continue to feel in this New Year, we also have reasons for optimism and hope.

The Blue Hills Community Health Alliance (CHNA 20) begins 2021 in a stronger position than ever before, ready to tackle the mounting challenges ahead of us with the strength and support of our many community partners.

Celebrating Kym Williams

2020 has been a year of great change for most of us, and the Blue Hills Community Health Alliance is no exception. Amid all the challenges of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and social inequities that impact our communities, we’re also facing internal change. Some of the changes for the CHNA are positive, such as our new home at Bay State Community Services. Others are harder to accept -- like the decision of our longtime Program Director, Kym Williams, to step aside into a less substantive role as we approached the end of the fiscal year.

Caring for the Community During COVID-19: CHNA 20 Responds

Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, we’ve been sharing the stories of our partner agencies in the Quincy Metro Area who have stepped up in unique ways to provide needed services during the crisis. We’ve been inspired by their efforts and honored to have the opportunity to shine a spotlight on the great work that can be done when dedicated organizations engage in collaboration and innovation. However, what we haven’t yet shared is the work that CHNA 20 has done to provide assistance and relief to the community. We have had our own role in caring for public health during this time, and have taken an active part in caring for our community.

Caring for the Community during COVID-19: Lessons Learned

Throughout the COVID-19 crisis, CHNA 20 has been highlighting the stories of our community partners and their heroic efforts to continue serving their clients despite the many challenges presented by the pandemic. As an organization that strives to make meaningful connections between agencies to improve public health outcomes in the long term, we feel it’s vitally important for us to take some time to step back and examine the lessons that have been learned during this time. What has worked well? What surprising insights have agencies had due to changing their models? What do community partners want to take forward with them into a “new normal” that will hopefully change public health for the better?

CHNA 20 Annual Report 2018 - 2019

Every year, the Blue Hills Community Health Alliance (CHNA 20) staff creates an annual report that is shared with local hospitals whose Determination of Need (DoN) funds support community health initiatives and build the capacity of CHNA 20 and its members.

Ensuring that these funds are utilized in the most strategic, cost-effective and impactful manner possible is paramount to CHNA 20. During the last two years we have allocated resources to support multi-sector partnerships, taken steps to align with regional public health efforts, and increased our internal capacity, while prioritizing social determinants of health and health equity initiatives.