Tulsa, Oklahoma is the only community of its size in the United States that does not have a community hospital within 100 miles of the metropolitan area. To compound this issue, Tulsa is now growing faster than 78% of all communities in the nation. Many in the Tulsa community face poverty issues combined with inadequate access to health care. Other major health issues burdening the local population are heart disease, cancer, violence, teen pregnancy, and infant mortality.

Tulsa's Turning Point Initiative is enabling the community to link its resources to develop solutions to improve its health and has established a community goal of making Tulsa the "healthiest city in America." Tulsa has a strong infrastructure of various coalitions; therefore, Turning Point will build upon what has already been proven to work. Tulsa's Turning Point has formed an Advisory Council comprised of approximately fifty members representing business, faith, social service, nonprofit, government, legislative, education, medical, and community-based organizations. A nine-member Executive Committee was elected from the Advisory Council and four sub-committees were established including Health Information/Planning, Public Relations/Marketing, Resource Development, and Policy/Systems Change.

How To Develop Successful Recruitment Materials

This partnership has found success in recruitment efforts by providing Turning Point information in concise, one-page, bulleted, easy-to-digest formats. Tulsa uses Powerpoint presentations, color graphics that present interesting, factual information, and an Internet website to present the Turning Point message. Below are some tips on how to develop successful recruitment materials:

• Clearly define the benefits of Turning Point involvement to potential coalition members, particularly for sectors of the community outside of the social service and medical arenas.

• Critically review the information from the target audience's perspective; it will  allow for a better understanding of each person's point of view and will break down communication barriers.

• Incorporate visual imagery.

• Use a variety of methods to disseminate and reinforce the Turning Point message.

Attracting and Maintaining Diverse Community Representation

In order to maintain interest and relevancy, it may be beneficial for an entity external to the process to take the leadership role. With a non-public health organization or individual leading the Turning Point efforts, the community's perception of how Turning Point relates to them might carry a significance that may not have been considered or accepted previously. Often times the community is not aware of how public health  affects them personally and economically. For example, the water they drink, the air they breathe, or violence in their neighborhood all relate to quality of life issues that have an impact on the economic success of the community. Using high-profile individuals (possibly from the faith and legislative sectors) provides a tremendous boost to coalition recruitment efforts. The three officers of Tulsa's Executive Committee are a real estate agent, an attorney, and a representative from the faith community.

The Advisory Council was successful in ranking what they, as community representatives, believe are the most important health issues facing Tulsa County. The comprehensive community health assessment report, Tulsa's Public Health: Lessons from the Past, Vision for the Future, was critical in educating the community on the health status of Tulsa County. Individuals interested in the health assessment report can access it at www.tulsa-health.org. The process of ranking the health issues in the community has provided a clear, focused approach to making Tulsa a healthier city and county and it allows for effective evaluation of the progress made. Perhaps more importantly, the Advisory Council's ranking of Tulsa's health indicators has provided the members with ownership of the Turning Point initiative, which in turn maintains the energy and momentum of the project.

The Power of Community Planning

Community planning is not a smooth, easy process embraced by all within the community - the process will take a considerable amount of time and effort and involves trial and error, but is well worth the investment. Aside from the tangible rewards of community planning such as a community health plan, many intangible, and perhaps more meaningful rewards, result from the process. A community that values public health programs will support and assist in making those programs successful, perhaps through volunteer work or financial donations. The broad-based community partnerships developed through Turning Point will exist beyond the completion of a community health plan and will provide many collaboration opportunities for the future.

Melanie Christian and Christy Edmonds are Co-chairs of the Community Health Foundation's Turning Point Project team that is part of the Tulsa Turning Point Initiative. Other Turning Point partnerships include Oklahoma State Turning Point Partnership and partnerships in Texas and Cherokee counties.