OAKLAND, California, Sept. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — Blue Shield of California today announced its new “Neighborhood Health Dashboard,” an online tool that will advance public health services, and increase transparency around community health and help address health disparities in California.

The Neighborhood Health Dashboard uses data intelligence from dozens of sources to create a comprehensive picture of a community’s health including: health outcomes, preventative health care, utilization and access, health behaviors, social risk factors, and environment and economic health conditions.

The innovative online tool is available free to the public. The goal is to provide support to organizations and individuals such as community organizations, health advocates, hospitals, physicians, public health officials and policymakers to better understand the health of their neighborhoods and address the needs within their communities. The tool was developed in collaboration with mySidewalk and initially made available to Blue Shield’s Community Health Advocates, including those serving in the L.A. Care Health Plan/Blue Shield of California Promise Health Plan Community Resource Center.

“Community health needs assessments are important tools in helping to align disparate organizations in a common strategy to improve the health of the community and address health disparities,” said Peter Long, senior vice president of Healthcare and Community Health Transformation at Blue Shield of California. “By making the data publicly available, anyone can gain a deeper understanding of the unmet social needs in their community and serve the population with increased knowledge about issues that have an impact on people’s health and wellbeing.”

A user can simply enter an address or zip code to generate an interactive, Web-based dashboard that is customized to a zip code level with a unique URL that can be shared with others. The tool includes nearly 100 data indicators that capture a holistic view of a community’s health to help inform advocacy and action for improvement.

“We are proud to work with Blue Shield of California to provide this opportunity to democratize data and align our vision for improving community health across the state,” said Sarah Martin, vice president of Health Solutions for mySidewalk. “Our mission is to empower city leaders and the public with the most complete, clear and real-time understanding of their communities so they can improve and innovate together.”

Most recently, the platform was used to produce California’s Vulnerability Index, which focuses on social and economic vulnerability of communities to start conversations about equitably prioritizing the allocation of resources for COVID-19 recovery efforts. In addition to the health impact of the pandemic on different communities, the report also considers which areas are likely to have a more difficult time recovering from the coronavirus-related shutdowns, job reductions and layoffs.  

“The Neighborhood Health Dashboard is a critical resource that will help Community Health Centers in California identify community health needs and align programming and resources accordingly,” said Mike Witte, chief medical officer, California Primary Care Association. “Ultimately, patients and providers of Community Health Centers will benefit when our members and communities are able to collectively work to identify opportunities to improve individual and community level health.”

The Neighborhood Health Dashboard is the latest example of Blue Shield of California’s Health Reimagined initiative. The collaboration with mySidewalk seeks to transform the healthcare system for individuals, families and communities by sharing important information with all Californians to identify local drivers of health inequities that result from historical and systemic injustices including racism, bias, and discrimination.

About Blue Shield of California
Blue Shield of California strives to create a healthcare system worthy of its family and friends that is sustainably affordable. Blue Shield of California is a tax paying, nonprofit, independent member of the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association with over four million members, 6,800 employees and more than $20 billion in annual revenue. Founded in 1939 in San Francisco and now headquartered in Oakland, Blue Shield of California and its affiliates provide health, dental, vision, Medicaid and Medicare healthcare service plans in California. The company has contributed more than $500 million to Blue Shield of California Foundation since 2002 to have an impact on California communities.

For more news about Blue Shield of California, please visit news.blueshieldca.com.

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About mySidewalk
mySidewalk is a technology company on a mission to democratize data. mySidewalk equips community change-makers with tools to help them advance equitable programs and policies. With an extensive data library and mobile-friendly, ADA-accessible publishing platform, mySidewalk creates place-based analytics built on data, design, and expertise. mySidewalk works with hundreds of public, private, and nonprofit clients across the country to break down barriers to knowledge, and inspire change.

For more information, visit mysidewalk.com/health or contact [email protected].

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SOURCE Blue Shield of California