The state of South Dakota has revitalized its State Health Improvement Plan after being paused during the pandemic.
Health organizations and communities reported their results to the Department of Health for the newly published comprehensive State Health Assessment.
Mariah Pokorny is the deputy division director with the Department of Health. She said it’s an effort to better inform the state health system.
“More importantly, we identified through our work that we’re stronger when we can work together," Pokorny said. "So, the improvement plan helps support that collaborative development and implementation of community strategies based on priorities identified in that assessment.”
The all-encompassing assessment includes information on several health fields.
“That process included a collection of assessment data and insights through priority health indicator assessments, the community conversation, and key informant interviews," Pokorny said. "The purpose is to make the assessment available to partners and programs to support data driven efforts in South Dakota.”
Pokorny said meaningful information is gathered when talking directly to boots-on-the-ground health care providers.
“We asked them to identify what was working well or what innovative approaches they have found successful that we can possibly implement in other communities, or what we could do as a state agency to continue to support their efforts with data or other opportunities for collaboration," Pokorny said. "This document is really the backbone that will inform and identify areas such as capacity and training needs.”
A link to those documents is available on the Department of Health's website.