ORANGE PARK – Health leaders have marked significant process on a healthcare plan developed by the community, for the community.

Agencies have reported marked process just over a year after health care professionals, social service and nonprofit agencies along with county leaders unveiled the Community Health Improvement Plan in an effort to chip away at health concerns such as obesity and smoking rates.

At a meeting of affiliate agencies last Wednesday in Green Cove Springs, roughly 30 officials unveiled their progress to mark where they’ve been, and where they still hope to go between now and the end of next year.

“It is their community,” said Heather Huffman, health administrator for the Florida Department of Health in Clay County. “There is a lot of invested community members that really want the community to thrive. Hopefully we can continue to get buy-in from them and get champions who want to lead the endeavors and efforts to improve the population’s health.”

Officials found mental health access in the county as one of the most pressing issues last year.

Clay County’s suicide rate is nearly two points above the state average – 13.8 per 100,000 residents. At the same time, the county has less psychiatric beds per capita available than the state average.

Also of particular interest is lackluster healthcare access and education on unhealthy behaviors, namely obesity and smoking rates, which, likewise, remain inflated within the county.

Area residents smoke at a two percent higher rate than the rest of the state. Aside from the inherent gradual causes of death created from smoking, tobacco use also causes premature birth, low birth weight, stillbirth and infant death.

The 2016 CHIP aims to address those issues, among others, while providing a yearly review based on what participants can realistically accomplish within the year.

To combat the informational gap of the underused mental health services actually available in the county, officials held five seminars on available services and plan to ramp the program up by 20 percent over the next two years.

Clay Behavioral Health, the county’s prominent mental health provider, also began to offer their services within two new schools this year, giving more support to the most vulnerable population to mental health disorders and suicide.

The provider also secured funding to begin researching how to respond quickly in the event of a mental health crisis and provide quick support.

There is still much to do in the mental health sector before the plan comes to life. Some strategies have been removed from the CHIP list since last year for various reasons.

One strategy currently in the works before the end of next year is to train teens to be suicide prevention advocates in their schools and communities.

“We’ve got people talking about it, and I think that’s a huge accomplishment,” said Irene Toto, chief executive officer with Clay Behavioral Health. “People are talking about it, spending some time brainstorming and problem solving. I think it’s definitely got a more prominent place in people’s thinking. We’re getting people towards recognizing that there’s no health without mental health, that it’s a part of overall health.”

As mounting data corroborates – Clay County residents have some work to do on their weight. Only roughly 33 percent of residents are at a healthy weight according to a 2013 DOH survey. Among the most startling ideas to bring this to light within the CHIP plan is to bring Mission 1 Million to Clay County.

The community health campaign puts a number and a face to the reported weight loss in a given area. Jacksonville, who participates in the campaign, announced in April that residents lost a combined 75,000 pounds.

There’s been no movement on this effort locally as of yet, although work continues.

Next year, the DOH will conduct a Community Health Needs Assessment to gather vital data on what the most important focus points could be for future health plans targeting the community.

“I think for most people, most families want to live in places that are safe and healthy, and have a good education system – and those don’t live independently of each other,” Huffman said. “You have to look at them interrelated, you can’t just look at them in silos. I think for our role is that we continue to keep reengaging those community partners in that conversation.”