NORTH PLATTE, Neb. (KNOP) – Great Plains Health has released its 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment, a comprehensive study of health care use practices and needs across more than 67,000 square miles of greater Nebraska.
The report focuses on the hospital’s primary service area, detailing local health and wellness needs and identifying gaps in care.
Dental care access identified as priority
Among the goals outlined in the updated plan is the improvement of access to dental care.
“So we’ve been a part of a task force working with a number of community partners on what it would look like, what supports are needed to get something established. So by it being included in our community health needs assessment, we see it as a priority because it’s big and it’s community-wide and it does have to do with health and wellness. If we’re not taking care of these dental issues in a dental clinic, then they’re eventually coming into the ER,” said Great Plains Health Chief Development Officer Megan McGown.
Housing access also targeted
Another key component of the updated Community Health Needs Assessment is to increase access to safe and affordable housing.
“We not only want to look at some of those maybe higher-end homes that our physicians might be looking at to move to our community, but also, I mean, we have 1,300 employees of varying levels of salary, and we want to make sure that safe, affordable housing is available to everyone. And that mirrors our community as well. So, our community has a variety of income levels, and we want to make sure we’re trying to help in each of those areas,” McGown said.
Other significant areas of focus
The assessment also identifies other priorities:
• Recruit and retain quality health care professionals• Advance community health through prevention, education and services that reduce chronic disease, preventable conditions and early mortality• Increase access to mental and behavioral health care
The IRS requires nonprofit hospitals to complete the Community Health Needs Assessment every three years.
The full community health needs assessment can be found here.
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