Central PA Food Bank neighbor insights and qualitative research specialist Dawn Watson spoke about the importance of gathering qualitative data to “go a little deeper” and “allow us to be more deliberate.”

“A survey can only do so much,” she explained.

Watson conducted interviews for the food bank’s 2023 Hunger Mapping Study (PDF), in which some neighbors voiced difficulty accessing pantries and lack of available of preferential foods.

Resilient Engaged Active Community Health (REACH) director Andrea Murray noted that health nonprofits needed to focus on identifying gaps in their coverage.

Lebanon’s 44 percent Hispanic population, she said, falls behind in metrics of health.

She said that it is important to break down data to understand why trends emerge and work with a community to learn what they need.

She urged nonprofits to never tell a community what they need, emphasizing the need to listen.

WellSpan Health Systems Community Health director Stephanie Voight urged nonprofits to be focused when deciding what data to collect.

Some data, she says, may have already been collected, and it is important not to spend time and money on data they will not be able to use.

She urged attendees to be critical when examining data, and find outlets for storytelling within data.

She cited WellSpan’s 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment Report, which details health-related statistics for Lebanon and other studied counties.

Lebanon County Christian Ministries executive director Bryan Smith — who introduced other speakers Tuesday — celebrated local nonprofits that have enriched and developed programs around need identified in the data.

“What we want to do now is to celebrate the act part, but also inform you all about all of the actions that are taking place in our community.

Lebanon Family Health Services vice president of communications and education Maggie Progin promoted her organization’s Teen Intervene program.

While the program started addressing teen vaping, it has since expanded to include other teens with mild to moderate drug problems, following feedback from schools.

She emphasized the need to address mental health problems of youth in the community, with these problems often occurring in tandem with substance abuse.

She said that when after starting a program, nonprofits should think about what adaptations can be made. For instance, Teen Intervene’s collaboration with probation has led to 20 of the program’s 64 referrals.

SARCC board member and Connected Together coordinator Caitlin Lockard discussed how to “change our community long-term, reduce violence, utilize data, and make recommendations that each organization could benefit from.”

She zoomed in on data surrounding youth in the area, including that 40 percent of kids from 8th to 12th grade don’t see importance in attending school. She also noted high depression rates in 10th grade girls (40 percent) and 10th graders identifying as neither male nor female (54 percent).

She said the organization is developing a Community Action Plan to make recommendations to foster a healthier and safer community. The plan will come out around the end of the year, she said.

Laurie Crawford, co-director of the Lebanon Bicycle Recycle, which gives free bikes to residents, discussed starting up and building a program.

When starting the Bicycle Recycle, Crawford said she leaned on Lancaster’s Common Wheel, Harrisburg’s Recycle Bicycle, and Lebanon’s existing Earn-a-Bike program (which serves adults only) as the program was shaped.

Since being formed in 2021, the grant- and community-funded program now has a workshop on Chestnut Street (open Mondays 6 to 8 p.m.).

The program relies on help from the community, both through donations of old bikes and volunteers who train as mechanics to repair bikes.

WellSpan representatives Jenn Weitkamp and Katie Wilt told how, when WellSpan became aware of the amount of avoidable bed days per year, it started its Arches to Wellness program.

The program partners with local shelters to provide safe places for patients to independently transition out of hospital care, including support accessing other resources if they need it.

“Hospitals are not designed for long-term stays for patients,” Weitkamp said.

The 30- to 45-day program saves the healthcare system around $700 per day, Weitkamp said, in addition to helping patients.