Essentia Health receives national recognition for commitment to healthier communities

The American Hospital Association (AHA) has recognized Essentia Health with the prestigious AHA Dick Davidson NOVA Award for hospital-led collaborative efforts that improve community health. Essentia is one of five recipients across the country to receive this honor.

"This year's Dick Davidson NOVA Award winners have demonstrated dedication and commitment to improving community health by forging strong partnerships with other community organizations," said AHA president and CEO Rick Pollack. "These hospitals and health systems offer exemplary and essential services and programs that have adapted and evolved to effectively meet the changing needs of their communities."

Essentia Health received the award for its Resourceful program. Resourceful was launched in 2021 as a public resource directory connecting community members with thousands of verified programs providing free and reduced-cost services. Information available at WeAreResourceful.org is customized for the specific needs of communities served by Essentia in Wisconsin, Minnesota and North Dakota.

The program integrates into Essentia’s electronic medical record system and is widely used by community members including Essentia staff and local organizations. All Essentia patients are screened for social needs at primary care and pediatric appointments. Its team of community health workers develop relationships with patients and utilize Resourceful to connect them to services addressing patient concerns such as food insecurity, transportation and housing. You can view a video about Resourceful on Essentia’s YouTube channel.

Representatives from this year's winning health systems will be recognized at the AHA Accelerating Health Equity Conference May 7-9 in Kansas City, Mo.