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Government Public Engagement Health Needs Assessment
In 2024, the City of Beaumont completed a Community Health Needs Assessment in partnership with MNP and Alberta Health Services.
The Health Needs Assessment provided comprehensive information about the status of the community’s health, services available, needs and issues, and potential future needs and was presented to City Council in March 2024.
It concluded that residents in Beaumont are healthy overall, and their health needs a generally well served. However, it also identified gaps that need attention now and as the community grows, such as a lack of after-hours service and that family doctors do not have capacity for new patients.
A Health Services Action Plan was developed to put the assessment’s recommendations into place and presented to Council in April 2024. The actions are focused on ways to bring needed services to the community, advocating to senior levels of government to address regional health care priorities, building networks of health care providers and support services, and connecting residents to pathways of care.
Some actions are underway where existing resources are available. Actions that require additional resources will be considered during budget deliberations.
Thanks to the 940 survey responses and the over 40 people who participated in the demographic specific sessions for seniors, people with disabilities, growing families and healthcare providers. This input will help City Council assess the next steps to meet the growing health needs of residents.
Please send enquiries to administrator@beaumont.ab.ca
City administration worked with Alberta Health Services to outline a scope for this project. MNP was engaged to review and analyze demographics, projections, and health utilization data; analyze research from comparable communities; develop a survey; organize community meetings; and provide recommendations for Council’s consideration.
A Community Health Needs Assessment provides comprehensive information about the community’s current health status, needs and issues, and identifies potential future needs.
A Community Health Needs Assessment provides comprehensive information about the community’s current health status, needs and issues, and identifies potential future needs. By engaging with residents and stakeholders (through an online survey and community sessions for key demographics); a comprehensive analysis of community, Alberta Health Services health utilization data, population growth and demographics, and comparisons of similar municipalities and policy reviews on best practices to encourage better access to healthcare services, results were compiled. By combining the survey results, feedback from the community sessions and data, the report provides a comprehensive picture of the community’s needs. It was important to gauge what the community perceives and believes the needs to be, based on their immediate networks within the community, by comparing this with what data tells us. This provided a more comprehensive picture than just looking at the numbers.
While the province, through Alberta Health Services and Alberta Health, is responsible for delivering health services to Albertans, municipalities play a supportive role by developing policies and bylaws to support community health and wellbeing. Through community health planning, the City of Beaumont is assessing current community health needs and potential future needs to support city residents as Beaumont continues to grow. By developing a community health plan, the city will be well placed to work with provincial and neighbouring municipal partners to identify and provide access to health and wellness services for residents.
Beaumont is growing at a faster pace than most other communities in Alberta, so City Council needs to continue to focus on current needs of the city, while planning for how the city will meet the needs of a larger community.
Watch for updates on the city’s website.
Feedback from residents and service providers in Beaumont was collected through a survey and demographic-specific community consultation sessions.
MNP is committed to strict confidentiality in the administration of the survey. Survey results will be aggregated into themes, and specific data will not be linked directly to any individual.
The Community Health Needs Assessment was budgeted at $100,000. This included researching current health services in Beaumont and comparisons with similar-sized municipalities, surveying residents, health and social care providers, and providing a final report with recommendations to City Council.
Some of the items in the Health Services Action Plan will require additional resources to implement. These will be brought forward for Council’s consideration during budget deliberations.