A new centralized health information website intended to compare local statistics with national trends and inform users of the latest medical treatments is under preparation by a coalition of health groups led by the Horizon Foundation.
The coalition working on Howard Health Counts is seeking feedback from medical professionals and agencies, but expect it to be available to the public in about two months, according to Dr. Richard Krieg, president and CEO of Horizon, the health foundation formed when Johns Hopkins Medicine took over Howard County General Hospital.
"It's rare to have one site that's so broad it can be used by the whole community," Krieg said. The Howard County Health Department is providing an epidemiologist to help with local information, and Howard County General Hospital and the Association of Community Services are also involved.
Krieg said the site could be used by everyone from county public school students writing reports to physicians and patients searching for the latest treatment options for specific conditions. The site will provide a sort of health report card for the county, and health news will also be featured, he said.
Based on a model in use in Sonoma County, Calif., and Dade County, Fla., and a template created by Healthy Communities Networks (created at the University of California at Berkeley), the site will also integrate national health statistics and trends with local statistics for comparison. Krieg said Horizon paid a $65,000 licensing fee and will pay $30,000 a year to keep the site running.
Krieg said Horizon has been talking to county health officials for two years about creating the site. "A lot of people are looking at this now," he said. "We were really ready to take the plunge."