In partnership with the HEALing Communities Study and the Huron County Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services, Huron County Public Health has launched a Mental Health & Substance Abuse data dashboard for information on services on the agency’s website, according to a news release.
Data has been a vital component of the HEALing Communities Study in Huron County, and earlier this year, its field staff in the county tasked local partners with identifying a path to sustain data reporting once the study was completed at the end of December, the release said.
A data workgroup comprised of members from the health department and the mental health and addiction services worked together since January 2023 to design the Huron County Mental Health & Substance Abuse Dashboard for both the public and other agencies working in Huron County to use, according to the release.
Both agencies hope the data dashboard will assist other partners in staying informed about mental health and substance use in Huron County, while providing them with the information needed to educate others, secure funding through grants, etc., the release said.
Also, the Huron County Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services and Huron County Public Health hope that the public finds the dashboard a useful tool to stay informed, according to the release.
The dashboard entails data collected from sources that are available and shared with the Huron County Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services, such as 911 and 988 calls, hospital emergency department data pertaining to alcohol, drug and suicide-related cases, treatment data, pharmacy data and more, the release said.
The “data at a glance” section of the dashboard also provides a quick look at year-to-date statistics for overdoses and suicide in Huron County.
Beginning this month, officials will update the dashboard monthly, according to the release.
At the Huron County Overdose Response Committee’s final meeting Dec. 13, 2023, the dashboard was revealed to committee members and partners in attendance and officially launched on the health department’s website.
On behalf of Huron County Public Health and Huron County Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services, officials encourage the community to visit the dashboard and explore the data provided by the various participating community partners at www.huroncohealth.com/dashboard.
“As the substance abuse and mental health landscape is ever-changing, the goal of the dashboard is to provide timely and accurate data to help the community in Huron County make data-driven decisions and create a greater awareness to reduce stigma,” the release said. “As the community gets familiar with the data, (Huron County Public Health) encourages the community to provide feedback about the dashboard using the feedback survey at the bottom of the dashboard’s landing page, so that the dashboard can continuously be improved to better serve the community.
“A special thank you to Kristen Cardone and Ashley Morrow at Huron County Board of Mental Health and Addiction Services, as well as Amy Kuntz,
community data coordinator, and the field team for the HEALing Communities Study in Huron County, for all the time and effort that they contributed towards the development of the dashboard.
“Functionality of mobile viewing may be limited at this time, and it is recommended to view the dashboard on a desktop computer if able. We are working to create a quality mobile viewing experience for the dashboard and will provide updates once available.”
More information about the HEALing Communities Study in Huron County can be found at https://healingcommunitiesstudy.org/communities/ohhuron.html.
