Health Forward Health Forum Features New Data Website, Panel Conversations with Area Health Leaders

Date: October 18, 2013
Contact: Jennifer Sykes
Phone: 816-241-7006
KANSAS CITY, MO – The Health Forward Foundation (Health Forward) and The Community Advisory Committee (CAC) will host its biannual Health Forum featuring local health leaders on Tuesday, October 22, 2013 from 1:00-4:30 p.m. at the Kauffman Conference Center.

At the forum, Health Forward will launch a new website – kchealthmatters.org. The website was developed in partnership with the Healthy Communities Institute and the Kansas Health Institute and features data on key health indicators for all counties in the Health Forward service area.

“The website has been developed as a one-stop source for data and information about community health and social determinants of health,” said Health Forward President/CEO Bridget McCandless, M.D. “We are excited to show the community the new site and how they can use it to identify issues affecting health in their community and find promising practices to help them develop initiatives to combat those issues.”

After a presentation from the Kansas Health Institute on the new website, Gretchen Kunkel from KC Healthy Kids will moderate three panel discussions focused on Health Forward’s areas of interest. Panelists will cover topics such as increasing community access to healthy foods and active living; expanding access and improving behavioral health care; efforts to improve access to better health and oral health care; and raising awareness and encouraging community participation in the health insurance marketplace.

Panelist include:

Healthy Communities Panelists
Joe Connor, Unified Government of Wyandotte County
Tom Emerson, Lafayette County Health Department
Larry Jones, Independence Health Department
David Toland, Thrive Allen County

Mental Health Panelists
Mel Fetter, Pathways
Alan Flory, ReDiscover
Barbara Mitchell, Johnson County Health Department
Pete Zevenbergen, Wyandot Inc

Safety Net Health Care Panelists
Dr. Rex Archer, Kansas City, Mo., Health Department
Sara Frederick, SEK Multi County Health Department
Hilda Fuentes, Samuel Rodgers Health Center
Jerry Jones, Community Health Council of Wyandotte County
Tiffany Klassen, Cass County Health Department
DeeDee Martin, SEK Multi County Health Department

-Health Forward-