LVHN’s Commitment to Community Health Goes Beyond the Hospital

At Lehigh Valley Health Network (LVHN), we believe health is more than just the absence of illness – it’s about creating the conditions that allow every person in every community we serve to thrive. With a reach that spans more than 5,000 square miles and more than 2 million residents, LVHN’s commitment to health extends far beyond the walls of our hospitals and clinics. Through a growing number of community-focused initiatives and strategic partnerships, we are redefining what it means to care for the health of a population.

Our work is rooted in the understanding that much of what determines a person’s health over time lies outside the health care setting. That’s why the Well-Being Portfolio, developed by The Rippel Foundation – an organization that creates equitable systems for health and well-being – makes sense as the framework for our community health strategy. This framework outlines seven Vital Conditions for Health and Well-Being, which are the building blocks of a healthy life. Guiding every facet of our community engagement, the conditions are:

Thriving Natural World. Besides clean air, water and soil, this covers freedom from extreme heat, flooding, radiation and other hazards.

Basic Needs for Health & Safety. Nutritious food, safe drinking water, freedom from violence and crime, and other requirements fall under this category.

Humane Housing. This condition includes adequate space, safe structures, affordable costs and neighborhoods that are free from segregation and concentrated poverty.

Meaningful Work & Wealth. For this condition, people need job training, good-paying jobs, the ability to have savings and limited debt.

Lifelong Learning. This covers continuous development of cognitive, social and emotional abilities as well as education from early childhood through adulthood.

Reliable Transportation. Communities need safe, reliable and accessible transportation so people can travel to work and school with ease. 

Belonging & Civic Muscle. This final condition covers a lot, from social support and freedom from oppression to vibrant arts and culture and opportunities for civic involvement.

This article is the kickoff for a series that will describe the work of community health at LVHN. Over the coming months, we will be highlighting our commitment to these vital conditions and social needs, sharing stories of progress, hope and collaboration across the many different geographic areas we serve.

These stories include partnerships that support fresh and healthy produce at local schools, investments in humane housing and tenant support, and new, innovative methods for supporting the mental health of our community members such as integrated community therapy (ICT). ICT is a method of supporting individual and community health through group conversation.

LVHN’s approach to community health includes two strategic assets in the Leonard Parker Pool Institute for Health (LPPIH) and the Pool Center for Health Analytics (PCHA). LPPIH plays quarterback as a convener and facilitator within the Greater Lehigh Valley community. The organization seeks to understand the existing grassroots efforts of local nonprofit organizations and provide additional support by way of holistic neighborhood development and building up our local capacity to collaborate and advance systems changes.

One of the most vivid illustrations of this commitment is our place-based work, where we’ve partnered with residents, nonprofits and other stakeholders to address complex issues in a specific neighborhood in Allentown. The approach aims to improve quality of life and access to opportunity for people who live in neighborhoods and communities experiencing disinvestment over time.

PCHA then supports both LPPIH and LVHN with its robust usage and interpretation of local data regarding the community’s health and well-being. Data collected and interpreted by PCHA are consistent with the Vital Conditions for Health and Well-Being framework.

We will be releasing the next iteration of our Community Health Needs Assessment this summer and it will further display the health network’s use of data in our place-based projects.

At LVHN, we know that health doesn’t just happen in hospitals. It happens in neighborhoods, schools, the workplace, homes and parks. It happens in communities. And LVHN is proud to walk alongside our communities every step of the way to support their vital, everyday needs.