Columbiana County Health Partners release findings of needs assessment

The Columbiana County Health Partners announced in a news release on Wednesday the completion of the 2025-2028 "Community Health Needs Assessment" (CHNA) for Columbiana County.

Top issues identified and prioritized in the findings include:

• Behavioral health, including mental health, substance use, depression and suicide
• Obesity, including nutrition and physical activity
• Chronic disease, including cancer, caridiac disease and diabetes

The Health Partners have been working throughout 2025 to complete the assessment, which can now be used by community groups, agencies and organizations.

The findings could be used by the organizations to develop programs and apply for funding opportunities that could be used to enhance the health of the Columbiana County community.

According to the release, the group wanted to ensure that community voices were heard.

In order to do achieve this, data was collected from community members, 31 stakeholder and focus group interviews were conducted which represented 106 participants and 584 written surveys were completed by individuals within the couny.

Additionally, secondary public health data about Columbiana County was collected for the report, including data from the following:

• Ohio Department of Health
• Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
• Healthy People 2030
• County Health Rankings
• A number of other reports and publications

Speaking as a group, the collective stated in the release," This report aims to evaluate the community's health status and needs, identify factors influencing population health, assess the availability of current resources that can be leveraged to enhance health outcomes and support the creation of evidence-based, population-level interventions with measurable results."

Additionally, a "thank you" was extended to the community for their participation in the surveys and focus groups.

The Columbiana County Health Partners are made up of several public and private agencies, including:

• Akron Children's Hospital
• Columbiana County Community Action Agency
• Columbiana County Educational Service Center
• Columbiana County Health District
• Columbiana County Job & Family Services
• Columbiana County Mental Health and Recovery Services Board
• Coordinated Action for School Health (CASH)
• East Liverpool City Health District
• East Liverpool City Hospital
• Family and Children First Council
• Family Recover Center
• The Ohio State University - Extension
• Salem City Health District
• Salem Regional Medical Center

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