Twiggs County is a rural county located in middle Georgia. Jeffersonville is the county seat in the county – alongside two neighboring towns includes Danville and Dry Branch. The 2019 County Health Rankings measured Twiggs County at 158 out of 159 for health outcomes in the state. Health outcome measures include how long you live and how healthy you feel. In addition, Twiggs County ranked 146 out of 159 for health factors; which includes health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors, and physical environment impacts on health. GRHIC reached out to community members to assist the community towards improving health status through the development of a Health Collaborative. The anticipated goal of this collaborative is to increase efforts towards identifying, addressing, and influencing the health outcomes of the community. The Georgia Rural Health Innovation Center will facilitate the group in order to meet the community’s designated goals.
On February 11th, 14 participants from the community gathered together to hear about and discuss the feasibility of a Twiggs County collaborative group. Using our online Data Hub, we shared how many people were above the state average for health conditions like obesity, diabetes, kidney disease, and other chronic health concerns. In addition, the participants gave feedback on the data presented and engaged in developing an Asset-Based map for Twiggs County. Asset-Based Community Development is an approach that focuses on building and strengthening communities by utilizing current and potential assets of the community, rather than focusing on the needs. On February 26th, GRHIC presented to additional community members at the annual Leadership Retreat to gauge interest and send invitations for the next collaborative meeting.
Our next collaborative meeting will focus on establishing the group structure – mission, vision, and values. Then, the collaborative will utilize the asset-map and SWOT analysis to determine achievable goals towards improving health status in Twiggs County.