LVHN’s 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment Is Ready

Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN) is pleased to present its 2025 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). As part of the Affordable Care Act, starting in 2013 all nonprofit hospitals and health care systems are required to complete a CHNA every three years.

To arrive at its assessment, the CHNA reviews published data about the population of a defined service area, in this case the county. Based on the health needs identified in that data, the health network must validate and prioritize the health needs of the county, using input from those who live and work in the community. Hospitals are then asked to develop an implementation plan, which includes activities to address needs that were prioritized in the area’s health profile.

Part of the CHNA is an examination of factors that impact the health and wellness of the community. LVHN’s latest CHNA report includes data and information about the counties LVHN serves and defines “community” as all residents living within a specific county.

Within the communities LVHN serves, the CHNA reports place a greater emphasis on individuals who are experiencing health disparities or who are at risk for negative health outcomes because of social and environmental factors influencing their health. Improving the health of the most vulnerable members of a community has been shown to improve health outcomes for all in the community.

Access to quality health care is only one of the factors that contribute to the health of a population. Other factors such as health behaviors, the physical environment and socioeconomic factors are more powerful predictors of health, illness and health care utilization over time.

For this reason, the needs assessment report focuses on the social drivers of health, using the Well-Being Portfolio as the framework for LVHN’s community health strategy. This holistic framework incorporates services that address urgent needs (such as acute care for illness or injury and assistance with meeting basic needs for food and shelter) and a long-term investment in assuring that all people have what they need to thrive.

Along these lines, the Well-Being Portfolio outlines seven vital conditions for health and well-being: basic needs for health and safety, lifelong learning, meaningful work and wealth, humane housing, a thriving natural world, reliable transportation, and belonging and civic muscle. As we assessed the health needs of people in the county, we considered the role of health care in addressing both urgent needs and the broader vital conditions that contribute to the health of individuals and families in the region.

To assess the health needs of a population, we look at both quantitative (numbers and statistics) as well as qualitative (interviews, community conversation) information. This report includes secondary quantitative data from publicly available state and national sources, such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the Census Bureau. It provides information about social and environmental factors such as employment, education and air quality; individual behaviors like smoking or healthy eating; and the quality and availability of health care in the area. The data has been compiled into a comprehensive data dashboard that includes a lot of in-depth information about each county in the region.

This data is used to identify the top health and social needs in the county and is then validated through community meetings and interviews with residents, where they are asked to select three areas they feel are of greatest concern. They are also asked to add any health needs they see but that may not be easily identified in county-level, publicly available data. Callout boxes are incorporated throughout the report that highlight findings from the community meetings and interviews.

When taken together, this needs assessment serves as an important overview of the current state of health in our region. It identifies potential areas of concern that LVHN can work to address in partnership with other sectors and organizations. This information will inform development of the implementation plan that will guide LVHN’s work over the next three years. The 2025 Community Health Implementation Plan will be shared soon after the CHNA report is released.