ADVENTIST HEALTH MENDOCINO COAST

1. Top 10 Disparities

2. Equity Plan

California Assembly Bill (AB) 1204 governs the framework for supporting health equity initiatives. This Bill requires California hospitals to address their 10 top disparities as identified by the Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) through Health Care Access and Information (HCAI). The stratified HQI data identifying the top disparities is from Calendar Year 2024.


Adventist Health

Adventist Health has a long-term commitment to equitable healthcare and serving the community through Our Mission and Our Vision: Living God's love by inspiring health, wholeness, and hope; We will transform the health experience of our communities by improving physical, mental, and spiritual health; enhancing interactions; and making care more accessible and affordable.

As detailed in the Adventist Health Community Reports, community impact is at the heart of Adventist Health's vision to transform the health experience of our communities. And Adventist Health recognizes that each community has a unique set of needs. Therefore, a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) is conducted to better understand the communities we serve. AHMC utilized the 2022 Mendocino CHNA to build the framework for health equity initiatives. The service area represents Adventist Health Howard Memorial, Mendocino Coast, and Ukiah Valley's primary service areas (PSA).

Adventist Health Mendocino Coast (AHMC)

Located on the Pacific Coast of California along Shoreline Highway in Mendocino County, Adventist Health Mendocino Coast is a 25-bed Critical Access Hospital serving California's Mendocino coast. The hospital offers vital services, including 24-hour emergency care, medical imaging, intensive care, and surgery. The hospital is dedicated to creating greater accessibility to healthcare in rural communities and to ensure their community has access to quality care.

The CHNA service area is a breathtaking community with a total population of 116,095. The largest city in the service area is Ukiah, with a population of 16,075. The median household income is $56,401. The largest segment of the population (37.2%) is over the age of 55. Among this population, 59.95% of an individual's income is spent on housing and transportation, while 20.66% of children live in poverty and 6.67% of students are unhoused compared to the state average of 4.25% and national average of 2.77%.

The CHNA identified three top community needs are 1. Access to Care, 2. Financial Stability, and 3. Health Risk Behaviors. Community members noted that transportation problems impact their access to medical appointments such as primary and specialty care. The health professional shortage area rate is extremely high (71.1%) contributing to long wait times to see a primary care provider, noted to be especially challenging to coastal residents. In addition, financial concerns impact physical and mental health with those facing unattainable housing, unemployment, or low annual incomes. Health risk behaviors facing the community include 15.9% reported tobacco smoking rate, 21.4 per 1,000 teen birth rate, 6.7% rate of substance use disorder, and community members noting poor dietary habits driven by limited incomes.


Overall Strategy

AHMC has formed a multidisciplinary team aimed to coordinate efforts to address both the health equity needs identified in the Mendocino 2022 CHNA report and patient reported social determinants identified by hospital screening. This team includes case management, social work, nursing, medical staff, quality, and administration.

The Hospital Quality Institute (HQI) report identified 3 disparities when evaluating AHMC. These are all under the measure of the All-Cause unplanned 30-Day Hospital Readmission Rate, and include the stratification of sex assigned at birth, expected payor and age.

Disparity 1:

All-Cause Readmission Rate was higher in male patients (17.3) vs. female patients (10.3).

Disparity 2:

All-Cause Readmission Rate was higher for Medicare patients (14.9) compared to those with private insurance (10.8)

Disparity 3:

All-Cause Readmission Rate was higher for the age group of 50 to 65 (17.1) compared to patients age 65 and older (15.1).

Equity Plan:

An action plan is in place to reduce the All-Cause Readmissions rate in the stratified groups including male sex at birth, age 50-64, and expected payor of Medicare by 2% by the end of calendar year 2026.

Additional actions to address disparities stratified by identified populations of age, gender, and payer
Substance Use Navigator Program
Cal Aim Compass Program
Implement Age Friendly Measures
Optimize community partners for housing and food resources
7-day hospital follow up appointments with primary care provider
Case Management Utilization Review

3. Structural Measures

4. Web Address for Equity Report

https://www.adventisthealth.org/about-us/health-equity

5. Download Equity Measures Report

Click on the link below to download the equity measures report.

6. Looking for Related Reports?

• Hospital Supplier Diversity Plan
• Hospital Fair Billing Policies
• Hospital Profile