Barton to take pulse of community as a whole

Barton Health and other community organizations and businesses are joining forces to give South Lake Tahoe and its surrounding areas a “complete physical”.

The process, known as a Community Health Needs Assessment, consists of gathering information about the health status of residents on three levels: in-depth discussion groups; an area-wide telephone survey; and collection of state, county and national health data.

Lake Tahoe News in October 2011 first wrote about the assessment, which is now about to start. This month, the project will identify major health risks, disease incidence and service needs of residents of South Lake Tahoe and its surrounding communities.

Beginning in March, 400 20-minute phone interviews will take place with adults ages 18 and older in English and Spanish.

Barton will hold focus groups and work alongside community agencies to gather additional elemental data for the health assessment.

Full results from the CHNA will be available to the public by late summer. Barton will have the information posted online as well as have a town hall meeting to share the results and action plan.