Communication of New Data Drives Improved Community Health Services in Rural Georgia

by Jake Cowan

A publication of the Local Data for Equitable Recovery Resource Hub

Cook County Family Connection (CCFC) is using insights from the community and strong partnerships with collaborators to reduce the harmful effects of the pandemic on the people who live in rural Cook County in southern Georgia. Its efforts illustrate the conviction of CCFC executive director Zoe Myers that “the data drives the work that creates the change,” and community coalitions can learn from the organization’s approach to moving from data to action for community health.

Recognizing that existing funding sources would be insufficient, CCFC successfully applied for a grant from the Using Data to Inform Local Decisions on COVID-19 Response & Recovery program to survey their community about people’s experiences in the pandemic and their emerging needs. Under the direction of Myers and coresearcher Dr. Chet Ballard, CCFC also interviewed more than 30 community leaders and agency directors to learn how they were adapting their services during the pandemic and to hear their perspectives on community priorities. The survey and interviews provided CCFC with a deep understanding of the challenges caused by the pandemic and a starting point for bringing stakeholders together to collaborate and improve community health.

Communicating findings

CCFC synthesized and published the information from the data collection in an accessible report. They sent the report to people who participated in surveys and interviews, returning the summary information to those represented in the data. They also strategically identified the audiences who could use the new findings to inform their programs and services. In addition to disseminating findings through social media and local and statewide media outlets, CCFC shared the report with and held briefings for local, regional, and statewide partners and sent report copies to state government leaders.

Taking action

CCFC staff used the survey findings, such as the growing inability of residents to access basic needs like food and shelter and the increased demand for mental health services, in their day-to-day work engaging partners, planning programs, and seeking resources for the community.

One key finding from the survey was a 360 percent increase in food insecurity in Cook County. CCFC staff engaged community partners to discuss strategies for improving people’s access to food. They also sought resources to support new food security initiatives, using findings from the survey to shape their grant funding requests and develop new programs. For example, CCFC now supplies a local 80-resident senior center with canned goods, stocked in a bookshelf in a common space where seniors can take food when they need it. CCFC provides an estimated 400 pounds of canned goods each month at no cost to residents. The Georgia Department of Early Care and Learning also invested in CCFC’s Well-Fed & Well-Read program, which provides free fresh fruits and vegetables and free storybooks and literacy resources to about 75 children per month.

CCFC’s new understanding of food security also led the organization to partner with a local produce supplier to deliver fresh produce to seniors with low incomes, to partner with volunteer groups to deliver food to migrant and farmworker families, and to partner with African American pastors to conduct outreach and provide food to their congregations. Across all of these initiatives, CCFC estimates that it and its partners have distributed more than 250,000 pounds of food throughout the pandemic through new systems created because of their research findings.

The survey also revealed a three-fold increase in mental distress during the pandemic, and CCFC acted to address this challenge. It engaged with Legacy Behavioral Health Services to communicate the research findings, and, in response, the mental health agency assigned a full-time therapist to serve students in Cook County schools. CCFC also increased communications to raise awareness about crisis counseling resources, including a crisis hotline, in partnership with the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. Complementing these initiatives, CCFC delivered a series of trauma-informed care workshops for their community partners, which include guidance on how to build resiliency and manage stress.

Data continue to drive the work that creates the change

Myers says CCFC would not have been able to implement these initiatives and find the funding to support additional community services without the survey and interview results. The progress CCFC has made in addressing food insecurity and mental health in Cook County shows the payoff of pairing relevant data with strategic and widespread communications and engagement. In addition to the programs above, CCFC leveraged what they learned from the research to successfully apply for a $350,000 grant from the Communities RISE Together initiative that will support CCFC and 30 collaborative partners in expanding their efforts to address the community needs identified in the survey.

CCFC’s use of these findings to improve its community builds on a long track record of using data to drive change. Myers recently taught a workshop on collaboration for a group of emerging leaders in a program sponsored by the Adel-Cook County Chamber of Commerce. During the workshop, Myers presented KIDS COUNT data to the emerging leaders. She showed that the data identify Cook County’s rate of child abuse and neglect as five times higher than the state average. Myers asked the emerging leaders, “How are we allowing this to happen?” In response, the program participants designed and implemented a child abuse and neglect prevention campaign. “Data is not just for data’s sake,” said Myers. “Data should be used as a tool to spearhead meaningful change, and the way in which our chamber leaders were motivated to action by the data is a perfect example of the power of data.”

CCFC’s approach, leading with data and using it to drive change, highlights that disseminating findings and engaging partners in solutions can lead to new programs and resources to address the health priorities of communities.

We thank the Cook County Family Connection for their contributions to this blog post. They are one of the grantees of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation’s Using Data to Inform Local Decisions on COVID-19 Response & Recovery program.