New Jersey’s hospitals provide more than $3.2 billion in programs annually to support their communities’ well-being, according to a new report from the New Jersey Hospital Association. That’s a huge number. As a nurse whose focus is always on patients, I like to break it down and see what it means to real people across New Jersey’s communities.
Included within that $3.2 billion are wonderful initiatives that deliver free and discounted care to people in need, develop stable and affordable housing, provide healthy foods in areas without supermarkets and a host of other programs. We know that factors like housing, employment, transportation and education play a major role in your health status. One study showed that as many as one-third of total deaths in the United States can be linked to these social determinants of health. That’s why our healthcare organizations are directing so many of their efforts toward building healthier communities.
What else do the numbers show? They show that more than 32,000 people participated directly in these hospital programs including health screenings, nutrition and fitness programs, support groups and community-based clinics. And the ripple effects extend throughout our towns, with all of us reaping the benefits of hospital efforts in areas like safe streets, community gardens, beach and park cleanups and more.
The numbers also include $261 million devoted to training future medical professionals. I can’t emphasize enough how important that is. Our healthcare system is confronting shortages of physicians, nurses, nursing assistants, home health aides and other caregivers. We feel those shortages already, and that’s before we face the gray tsunami of aging Baby Boomers. This support is essential to ensuring our access to care.
It seems like in every report there’s also that “Other” category that is a catch-all. In the Community Benefit report, “other” includes clinical research that brings hope for better health outcomes in the future. “Other” also encompasses things like voluntary payments to municipalities, donations to the local fire district for an ambulance, coalition building with community partners and development of our workforce. The grand total of those “other” benefits? More than $880 million.
Speaking of workforce, the data also shows that more than 150,000 people are employed by New Jersey hospitals. Our hospitals and health systems are more than just providers of healthcare services. They are anchors of their communities, providing $9 billion in wages, $3.7 billion in transactions with other businesses and a total of $24.7 billion in economic activity.
In my field, I’ve always been focused on numbers like a healthy blood pressure of 120/80 or a resting heart rate of 60 to 80 beats per minute. But I’ve come to appreciate that these community and economic benefits likewise are very telling vital signs for the health of New Jersey’s communities.
Kathryn Burns Collins, RN, DMH(c), is clinical quality improvement specialist for the Health Research and Educational Trust of New Jersey, an affiliate of the New Jersey Hospital Association.
