The delivery of health care services is complex and relies on the collaboration of many. To integrate services and improve population health, we work in partnership and share responsibility with our:
- Colleagues
- Clients
- Communities
- Municipal and government organizations
Island Health is committed to working closely with the communities it serves.
Community Development Team
Island Health’s Community Development Program aims to reduce health inequities and promote healthier, more resilient communities through a community-led, collaborative approach. Central to this effort are Community Health Promoters (CHPs), who work closely with local organizations, local government and community partners to improve public health outcomes. By prioritizing community conversations, capacity-building, and collective action, the program supports health promotion, injury prevention, and health protection, focusing on both immediate and emerging public health challenges. This strategy emphasizes long-term, sustainable solutions to enhance the well-being of communities across the Island Health region.
Community Development Guiding Principles:
- Health equity
- Cultural humility
- Community engagement
Community Development Priority Areas:
Community Health Promoters (CHPs) are critical in connecting local communities to the expertise and resources of Population and Public Health, within Island Health. This connection to Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) enhances the effectiveness of community-driven health initiatives across five priority areas:
- Climate Change and Resilience: CHPs will collaborate with SMEs to address the health impacts of climate change by fostering preparedness and resilience around extreme weather, air quality, and climate-related health effects.
- Youth Mental Health and Wellness: In partnership with mental health SMEs, CHPs will support initiatives aimed at improving youth mental health outcomes and reducing stigma surrounding mental health challenges.
- Social Determinants of Health: CHPs will liaise with SMEs to address key factors such as housing, transportation, food security, and education, ensuring vulnerable populations receive resources and services they need to thrive.
- Indigenous Health and Wellness: CHPs will engage with Indigenous health experts to support Indigenous-led initiatives, promote self-determination, and involve Indigenous communities in health decision-making and policy development.
- Emerging Health Threats: In collaboration with public health SMEs, CHPs will assist in preparing communities for emerging health threats, including communicable diseases and extreme weather, ensuring coordinated responses.
- System Navigation: CHPs will facilitate connections between local communities and PPH SMEs, ensuring that community health initiatives and policies are informed by expert guidance and aligned with current best practices.
Community Health Network
As part of its mandate to support an overall healthier population, Island Health is committed to providing financial support and dedicated participation in Community Health Networks (CHNs). These CHNS are key community partners to Island Health, and are forums where multiple community partners come together to better understand community health issues and jointly create healthy communities plans and policies.
Additional community partners to Island Health, and the Community Development team specifically, include local government (municipalities, First Nations) and non-profit organizations across the Island Health region.
Island Health’s Community Health Networks bring together multiple partners to improve community health and wellness by catalyzing collective action to address locally prioritized social determinants of health and modifiable risk factors in a way that no one group, or sector could alone. CHNs enable a societal approach to health promotion by mobilizing the influence and resources of local leaders and partners from across sectors including local governments, local First Nations, educational institutions, Divisions of Family Practice, non-profit organizations, business sector representatives, provincial ministries; as well as the influence and action of community members from diverse backgrounds who may not be affiliated with any particular organization.
Health Networks facilitate dialogue and understanding amongst citizens and stakeholders, build partnerships and capacity; share ideas and resources and create innovative solutions that impact the social determinants of health and work towards sustainable healthy communities. CHN’s are grounded in research, facilitate collaboration, action and connections for good health in our communities. Together stakeholders focus on prevention, wellness and health promotion, leveraging existing resources, building on community strengths and assets, generating system change and co-creating equitable and health promoting policies, programs, infrastructure and amenities.
Community Health Networks
- Sooke Region Health Network
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The Sooke Region Communities Health Network (SRCHN) is a cooperative non-profit organization with charitable status with a vision to create healthy thriving communities within the Sooke Region. Its mission is to support healthy lives in healthy communities through innovative, collaborative development and improvement of services for everyone.
The Sooke Region Health Network acknowledges the traditional territories of the Coast Salish, SCIA’NEW Nation and T’Sou-ke Nation, and Nuu-chah-nulth Pacheedaht Nation to the west, upon which we work together to improve health and wellbeing for all.
Website: www.sookeregionchn.org
Contact: Christine Bossi, srchn@sookeregion.com, 778-365-1878
- Regional Outcomes Monitoring CHN
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The Regional Outcomes Monitoring (ROM) Collaborative is a voluntary multi-sectoral group working to inform community health and wellbeing policies, program planning and decision-making in the capital region through ongoing collection, consolidation and analysis of regional data. The ROM is operating as a Community Health Network (CHN) for the Capital Regional District.
The Regional Outcomes Monitoring Community Health Network acknowledges that it’s work encompasses the Traditional Territory of the Lək̓ʷəŋən speaking peoples and recognizes the First Nations in the region including the Lək̓ʷəŋən(Songhees) & Xwsepsum(Esquimalt) Nations, W̱SÁNEĆ Nations {W̱JOȽEȽP(Tsartlip), BOḰEĆEN (Pauquachin), SȾÁUTW̱(Tsawout), W̱SIKEM(Tseycum)}, and MÁLEXEȽ(Malahat) & Pune’laxutth’(Penelekut) Nations.
Website: www.crd.bc.ca/project/community-health-wellbeing
Contact: Amanda Ng, ang@crd.bc.ca, 250-360-3174
- Our Cowichan Communities Health Network
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Our Cowichan Communities Health Network is made up of local health organizations, non-profit societies, volunteer groups and government representatives. Our vision is for all people of Cowichan communities to be able to enjoy health and wellbeing. Our mission is to be a collaborative network of organizations and individuals who facilitate dialogue, learn, share information and generate action on the 12 determinants of health. Considering the whole picture, we lead change to improve health and wellness outcomes.
Our Cowichan Communities Health Network acknowledges that it operates within the traditional, unceded territories of the Cowichan, Ditidaht, Penalkut, Halaht, Stz’uminus, Ts’uubaa-asatx, Lyackson, and Malahat First Nations.
Website: www.ourcchn.ca
Contact: Cindy Lise, cindylisecchn@shaw.ca, 250-709-5062
- Naut'sa mawt Oceanside Wellness Network
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Our communities are growing and so has our Network. The Naut'sa mawt Community Wellness Network and the Oceanside Health & Wellness Network, who have been operating independently in the Regional District of Nanaimo have merged to create one Community Health Network - the Naut'sa mawt Oceanside Wellness Network or NOW Network.
Website: https://www.nownetwork.ca/
- Alberni Clayoquot Health Network
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The purpose of the ACHN is to network like-minded organizations, agencies, and networks working to improve community health. We aim to “network the networks” to better support the work you are already doing. We aim to provide supports and capacity to systems enabling us to work more effectively as a region, where no centralised leadership exists. We have committed to taking a convening role to move forward planning and implementation activities. Using a collective impact framework to identify our role for the work in which we engage, we are continuously scanning for opportunities to support, convene and increase capacity to impactful initiatives in our region.
The Alberni-Clayoquot Health Network would like to acknowledge that it exists on the traditional territory of the Nuu Chah Nulth people. This includes the traditional territories of the Ditidaht, Huu-ay-aht, Hupacasath, Tseshaht, Uchucklesaht, Ahousaht, Hesquiaht, Tla-o-qui-aht, Toquaht and Yuu-cluth-aht Nations.
Website: www.achn.ca
Contact: Marcie DeWitt, achn@acrd.bc.ca, 250-726-5019
- Comox Valley Community Health Network
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The Comox Valley Community Health Network is a community-driven network that facilitates collective action to positively impact the social determinants of health in the Comox Valley. We believe a healthy, sustainable, resilient community is a shared responsibility.
The Comox Valley Community Health Network respectfully acknowledges that it operates on the unceded traditional territory of the K’òmoks First Nation and its members live, work and play within this territory
Website: www.cvchn.ca
Contact: info@cvchn.ca
- Strathcona Community Health Network
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The Strathcona Community Health Network is an intersectoral collaborative partnership that works to address health and well-being upstream, focusing on root causes before people get sick. Our aim is to address the social determinants of health at a systems level. Importantly, the Health Network is not involved in looking at deficiencies of health services. The work of the Health Network is directed by a cross-sectoral group called the Table of Partners.
The Strathcona Community Health Network works within the territories of Kwakwaka'wakw, Nu-chah-nulth, and Coast Salish peoples and includes Homalco, We Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum, Klahoose, Kwiakah, Tlowitsis, Mowachaht/Muchalaht, Ehattesaht, Nuchatlaht, Ka:'yu:'k't'h' and Che:k:tles7et'h' First Nations.
Website: www.strathcona-chn.net
Contact: Libby King, lking@srd.ca, 778-348-0762
- Mount Waddington Health Network
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The Mount Waddington Health Network is a group of invested, caring people and organizations who work together to strategize ways to make our people and communities healthier. We do this collaboratively, with a focus on cultural safety and humility. From leads of organizations to the most vulnerable in society, everyone has an equal voice at our table and in our planning. Our vision is “healthy people, healthy communities’, and our mission is to advocate for programs and policy changes that will improve the health status of our area residents, and reduce or eliminate health inequities for all people.
The network acknowledges the many First Nation traditional territories that are within the Mount Waddington region, where the Mount Waddington Health Network operates, including; the Gwa'sala-'Nakwaxda'xw, 'Namgis, Dzawada’enuxw, Gwa-Wa-Enuk, Whe-la-la-U Area Council, Quatsino, Kwakiutl, Kwicksutaineuk, Da'Naxda'xw Awaetlala, Tsawataineuk , Mamalilikulla Qwe Qwa Sot Em, and Tlatlasikwala First Nations.
Website: www.mwhn.ca
Contact: Angela Smith, coordinator@mwhn.ca, 250-902-9015
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