HHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) Collaborates with Baltimore Community

The Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (ODPHP) is collaborating with the Middlesex Community Health Center and the Essex Library in Baltimore to provide understandable and actionable prevention information to the public.

Since 1997, ODPHP has maintained healthfinder.gov, a Web site that helps consumers find reliable health information from more than 1,500 government and nonprofit organizations. ODPHP has recently undertaken an evidence-based redesign of this site, developing a Quick Guide to Healthy Living that is appropriate for consumers with limited health literacy. The Quick Guide is designed to be easy to navigate and provides relevant and actionable prevention information for the public. It also provides preventive service recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Taskforce based on age and gender.

This project utilizes a community participatory research approach to work with Health Center staff and patients to develop and implement a cost effective way to integrate prevention guidance into daily interactions with patients. Staff will use the electronic medical record and prevention information from healthfinder.gov to support their interactions. Baltimore Medical System outreach staff will continue to support patients after the Center visit through follow-up phone calls, counseling opportunities, and group meetings in community settings such as churches and recreation centers.

ODPHP is working with staff from the Baltimore County Library System to develop a librarian training on the redesigned healthfinder.gov and the Quick Guide to Health Living. The Essex Library is located across the street from the Middlesex Health Center so it provides easy access for patients to get continued support on learning how to stay healthy and prevent disease.

Patients’ self-efficacy in taking preventive measures, self-reported behavior change, and satisfaction with the health center visit will be evaluated as outcomes of this project. ODPHP plans to work with the Health Resources and Services’ Administration (HRSA) and the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ) to apply and disseminate the findings from this project to other community health centers across the country.

Linda Harris, Ph.D, Lead, Health Communication and eHealth Team, ODPHP
linda.harris@hhs.gov