In April, the WHI was chosen to be the coordinating organization for the Washtenaw and Livingston County Community Health Innovation Region (CHIR) for Michigan’s State Innovation Model (SIM). A CHIR is a specific geographic region where local social service agencies, public health departments, community mental health agencies, health plans, and medical providers work together to improve the health of vulnerable residents. The state established three focus populations for the SIM work: people who frequently visit emergency departments; high-risk pregnant women; and people with multiple chronic conditions.
This project was the first time the WHI expanded health initiatives outside of Washtenaw County. Two health systems that would contribute to the State Innovation Model’s intervention, the University of Michigan Health System and Saint Joseph Mercy Health System, already had footprints in Livingston County from their hospital referral processes. The WHI worked to engage other Livingston Counties health service agencies, including the Livingston County Health Department.