Addressing Chronic Disease in Riverside County through multi-sectorial partnership; the Community Translational Research Institute

Historically hospitals, public health departments, and county and city management have limited, if any, interaction because of the perceived nature of their own disparate areas of focus and responsibility. However, in an effort to create “healthy communities” or “accountable care communities” these agencies are recognizing the need for developing effective working relationships with one another. Nationally, there has been some indication of community service organizations working collaboratively to create healthier communities.  However, these efforts are still episodic and disjointed in nature; they lack the systematic, coordinated processes and strategic management required to sustain effective and efficient primary, secondary and tertiary prevention and intervention needed to create and maintain healthy communities.

The Community Translational Research Institute (CTRI), Jurupa Valley Diabetes Free Riverside (DeFeR) Demonstration and Feasibility Assessment Project, brings together the Riverside County Public Health Department, local hospitals, and City and County management along with community leaders and academic institutions to strengthen their infrastructure as a whole, and achieve integrated, multi-sectorial effectiveness in addressing the obesity epidemic among the adults and children residing in Jurupa Valley, California.  Preliminary analyses of data have ignited a greater sense of urgency for prevention measures, 33% of the 139 adults screened have been diagnosed as pre-diabetics.  The importance of community input for promoting healthy nutrition and increasing physical activity is at the forefront of this endeavor; a cadre of health professionals armed with the tools needed to reverse this epidemic and improve better health outcomes for the underserved population of Jurupa Valley, California.