Mercy Health-St. Rita's in Lima launched a new community health improvement plan on Monday, setting a three-year strategic course to address pressing health needs across the region. The comprehensive plan outlines specific initiatives and goals aimed at enhancing the well-being of local residents over the next three years.
Developed following a community health needs assessment process, St. Rita's has prioritized four key areas for improvement. These include bolstering access to care, addressing maternal, infant and child health outcomes, enhancing adolescent and adult mental health services, and improving preventive care for chronic diseases.
To expand access to care, Mercy Health-St. Rita’s intends to broaden its provision of holistic care services. In addition, the hospital plans to introduce a community paramedicine program. This program is designed to bring healthcare services directly into the community, aiming to reach individuals who might otherwise face barriers to accessing traditional medical facilities, according to St. Rita's.
Addressing adolescent and adult mental health is a central component of the new plan. St. Rita's will initiate a dedicated three-year mental health initiative. A key feature of this initiative will be a speaker series, which the hospital aims to use to foster greater mental health literacy within the community and actively work to reduce the stigma often associated with mental health conditions.
Complementing these efforts, the hospital has also announced plans to open a partial hospitalization mental health facility specifically for youth in the area. This specialized facility is slated to begin operations in the fall of 2027, providing an additional layer of support for young people facing mental health challenges.
Regarding preventive care for chronic disease, St. Rita's is moving to establish a community health worker-led program. This program will focus on proactively screening patients for critical health indicators, including high blood pressure. Furthermore, it will assess patients for social determinants of health needs, recognizing the broader factors that influence an individual's well-being and health outcomes.
Patients identified through this screening process will be enrolled in the community health worker-led program. Once enrolled, these individuals will benefit from personalized education tailored to their specific health requirements. They will also receive navigation assistance to connect them with necessary resources and ongoing follow-up care to support their health journey, St. Rita's reported.
The majority of the strategies outlined within St. Rita's 2026 plan are expected to be implemented within a defined timeframe. According to the hospital, most of these initiatives should be in place and operational by December 2028.
The launch of St. Rita's community health improvement plan is part of a wider effort by its parent organization. This local plan is among 11 such initiatives being rolled out by Mercy Health across various communities throughout Ohio, underscoring a system-wide commitment to community health improvement.
