Nassau Queens PPS and Rockaway Waterfront Alliance Partner to Improve Health in Rockaways

ROCKAWAY, N.Y., Oct. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- The Nassau Queens Performing Provider System (NQP) and the Rockaway Waterfront Alliance (RWA) have announced a partnership to improve health care delivery and outcomes for residents of the Rockaways — a community identified by NQP through data as medically underserved.

Through the partnership, RWA will provide information to NQP that will drive efforts to fill the health care gaps in the Rockaways. A grant provided by NQP will support various RWA educational and health-focused programs for Rockaway residents at the Rockaway Institute for a Sustainable Environment, and a community forum where NQP will gather health information directly from community members in attendance.

NQP's Community Needs Assessment, conducted at the start of the New York State Department of Health's Delivery System Reforming Incentive Payment (DSRIP) Program, revealed that the Rockaways are medically underserved; have a high rate of emergency department visits for mental health and substance abuse; have high smoking rates; lack access to fresh fruits and vegetables; lack an efficient public transportation infrastructure; and have a large medically uninsured population.

"When we conducted our Community Needs Assessment, we identified the Rockaways as a community that can benefit from additional health care resources," said Bob Hettenbach, NQP's executive director. "RWA acts as our eyes and ears within the community. They are helping us determine the resources needed to improve the health care landscape of the Rockaways."

The partnership is made possible through New York State's DSRIP Program, and a grant from NQP's Tier 1 Innovation Fund — a fund established by NQP to establish knowledge-building relationships with non-Medicaid billing community-based organizations that provide basic life and social needs to community members.

"We are excited about the potential health benefits to our community members as a result of this partnership," said Ana Fisyak, Rockaway Waterfront Alliance's deputy director of planning and development. "The partnership brings added value to our goal of supporting the health and well-being of the Rockaway community."

About NQP

The Nassau Queens Performing Provider System (NQP) is one of 25 Performing Provider Systems in New York State. NQP is led by NuHealth (Nassau University Medical Center), in alliance with Northwell Health's Long Island Jewish Medical Center and Catholic Health Services of Long Island, and consists of more than 8,400 partner organizations that have come together to better serve the health needs of the community through the Delivery System Reform Incentive Payment (DSRIP) Program. Our goal is to close critical gaps in care and reduce avoidable hospital use by 25 percent by 2020 by increasing access to primary care and community- based resources, integrating behavioral and medical services, and creating better care coordination through shared technology.

About RWA & RISE

Rockaway Waterfront Alliance is a community-based organization dedicated to empowering residents of underserved communities in the Rockaways to play a role in the determination of their neighborhoods. RWA leads grassroots planning initiatives and provides enriching education and community programming, which instill both individual and civic respect for nature, and contribute to advancing the physical, economic and social sustainability of the Rockaway Peninsula. In 2016, RWA opened the Rockaway Institute for a Sustainable Environment (RISE), a center for programs and collaboration focused on addressing the Rockaway's most pressing environmental, economic, and health issues.

Media Contact:

Tom Melillo
Communications Director, Nassau Queens PPS
718-551-1334
[email protected]

Related Links

NQP Website

SOURCE Nassau Queens PPS

Related Links

http://www.nq-pps.org