National Health Outreach and Engagement Conference 2024

Poncher, E, Haney, S, and Azmy, J.
Background:
Missouri residents struggle to reach optimal health due to various access issues and structural
problems. The MO-RE program is a uniquely developed course meant to prepare Community
Health Field Specialists (CHFS) to understand and address the challenges in their regions. The
program strengthens Extension’s capacity to address shared and unique regional challenges.

Objectives:
To reimagine how Extension remains responsive to community health outcomes and needs.

Methods:
The MO-RE program utilizes quantitative and qualitative methods to identify trends in health
across the state while tailoring health goals to local conditions. By providing a CHFS in each
region, Extension aims to reduce the time lag in translating evidence-based research to
community-based interventions. Our comprehensive needs assessment and cross-regional
analysis examines priority areas in both urban and rural counties.

Results:
Cross-regional analysis identified high rates of heart disease mortality (age-adjusted per
100,000) in the Urban East (110.2), Northwest (185.0), East Central (209.3), and Southeast
(273.5). Similarly, lung cancer incidence rates were high statewide: 62.8 in the Urban East, 60.9
in the Northwest, 82.7 in the East Central, and 94.4 in the Southeast.

Conclusion:
A regional approach to needs assessing allows CHFS’s to identify regional priority areas while
also recognizing trends that are present across the state. The Community Health Engagement
and Outreach division of Extension will streamline statewide interventions while also creating
localized place-based health programming