August 7-13 is National Health Center Week and health centers in North Dakota and South Dakota have many exciting activities and promotions planned to showcase their centers, recognize their staff and engage their communities. This year, the Community Health Association of the Dakotas (CHAD) team has embraced the theme, “I love my health center.”
The CHAD team has been identifying opportunities to tell the story of health centers and highlight the different attributes that make them so special. Toolkits were mailed to each health center location with desk banners and handouts describing different health center services like primary care, behavioral health, dental care, transportation, translation, and school-based health care. The hope is these tools add another layer to patient and community education materials available for the health centers. The Dakotas’ federally qualified health centers will be rolling out the red carpet to thank their patients and the communities they serve and highlight the important contributions health centers make to the health care system in both urban and rural communities.
Several partner organizations received t-shirts with the “I love my health center” message. Organizations and their staff are encouraged to join the Health Center Week celebration on social media with photos sharing their own reasons why they love their local health center. We will share local efforts and activity throughout National Health Center Week.
With 66 delivery sites in 52 communities across the Dakotas, you are sure to find a health center near you where you can stop during National Health Center Week and learn more about what your local health center can do for you. This is a great opportunity to meet the providers and ask questions about health center programs and services. It is also a great opportunity for health centers to recognize their outstanding staff for all they do and to give back to the communities they call home.
To find a community health center near you, click here for a map of delivery sites in both North Dakota and South Dakota. For more information about health centers in the Dakotas and their plans for National Health Center Week, visit their websites.
Telling the Health Center Story Webinar
CHAD held an educational and inspirational introduction to community health centers last week. Participants gained a foundational knowledge of health centers, including defining features, key services and populations served. This interactive presentation provided a context of the greater health center movement and legacy and locations, features, and impact of health centers here in the Dakotas.
The Community HealthCare Association of the Dakotas (CHAD) is a non-profit membership organization that serves as the primary care association for North Dakota and South Dakota. CHAD believe that everyone has a right to high-quality, reliable, affordable health care, regardless of where they live. The CHAD team work with health centers, community leaders, and partners to increase access to and improve health care services in areas of the Dakotas that need it most. Learn more.