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In this era of information overload, concrete data is the guide to assured decisions. But the who, what, where, when, and why can still be hard to find. Now, the Appalachian Children’s Coalition (ACC) has come up with a solution that benefits the 32 counties that comprise Appalachian Ohio.
Developed with funding from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services (OMHAS) and in partnership with the Appalachian New Economy Partnership (ANEP) funding administered by Ohio University’s George Voinovich School of Public Service and Leadership , this one-stop data source dashboard consists of over 200 community indicators on health and wellbeing across Appalachian Ohio.
Daniel Kloepfer, senior research manager at the Voinovich School and director of evaluation and assessment for the ACC, spearheaded the dashboard development in conjunction with Conduent, a software development firm focusing on community health.
“We wanted this to be easily accessible because some of this data is buried,” says Kloepfer. “You don't necessarily know where to find it.”
Healthcare practitioners, health departments, school districts, social service agencies, policymakers, local leaders, researchers, and community members can use these tools and data to better understand the root causes of inequities and improve outcomes for Appalachia, Ohio’s children and families. The scope of the project is what sets the ACC dashboard apart from others.
“Many of our other platforms tend to be single counties or smaller geographic areas,” says Cara Woodard, senior account manager at Conduent. “The wide geographic area this dashboard impacts is pretty impressive.”
The data is pulled from a wide range of sources, from the Center for Disease Control to local health departments. The dashboard is easy to tweak; Kloepfer says more than 20 local indicators have been incorporated. The project aims to demonstrate the region's needs to state and local officials.
“It’s essentially a storytelling aid,” says Kloepfer. “The main thing I want people to use it for is as evidence to receive more funding and to show the issues, inequities, and challenges Appalachia Ohio faces that differ from the rest of the state.”