Healthy Places Rockingham County
Working in Rockingham County
Rockingham County sits along the Virginia border in central North Carolina, just north of Greensboro. Grist and textile mills established on the banks of the Smith and Dan Rivers drove the early economic engine of the community. Robust coalitions and an innovative community foundation help cultivate and scale health improvement programs in Rockingham, and a scenic rural setting provides opportunities to attract hikers, bikers, and other outdoor enthusiasts.
We partner to prompt change.
Since 2013, Rockingham County and Healthy Places NC have targeted key health issues including low levels of physical activity, lack of access to healthy foods, diabetes, opioid abuse, and access to behavioral health care services. Through Healthy Places NC, Rockingham County residents have identified substance misuse and obesity reduction as two key issues to address.
Community Approaches
We support the community in their efforts to achieve the following goals:
Obesity reduction.
Local partners are working to increase healthy eating and active living by:
- Promoting countywide wellness through the coordination of free community healthy eating and active living opportunities.
- Supporting an enhanced mobile food pantry to travel throughout Rockingham and refer families with low incomes to relevant resources.
- Completing a community center that will provide equitable opportunities for healthy eating and active living for K-12 students.
- Implementing a whole child, whole school, and whole community approach to improving physical activity amongst students and their families.
Substance misuse.
Local partners are working to reduce rates of substance misuse and overdose deaths by:
- Supporting community-based research that engages residents in collecting data, identifying gaps, and determining best practices to reduce substance misuse rates.
- Supporting systems change approaches from the community planning process, which may include addressing organizational capacity within health systems, coordination within and across systems, community education and engagement, and advocacy.
- Supporting evidence-informed and evidence-based approaches to prevent substance misuse among vulnerable populations.
- Improving medical, behavioral health, medical transportation, and community resources.