Community Engagement Award: Be Well Nampa

The Nampa Public Library serves as a cornerstone for our community providing diverse gathering spaces, opportunities to learn, access to vital resources and programs for the enrichment of all. The Library continually evaluates ways to accommodate emerging community needs and to engage the public outside of the library to strengthen community relationships. With funding from this grant, the Library plans to launch a eight-month Be Well Nampa project for the primary objective of improving the quality of life in our community. Our goal is to enhance access to existing health services by offering the Library as a centralized, neutral location. The project will employ four primary outreach methods; provide individualized treatment and referral services with professional healthcare workers and 12s; increase access to reliable online health information at our Be Well Nampa library computer center; offer a variety of health and fitness classes and events led by certified health practitioners and; develop an information campaign to promote awareness of the rise in sexually transmitted diseases in our area. The City of Nampa is one of the more impoverished and underserved communities in Idaho. Be Well Nampa will make use of key partnerships to create an innovative approach to offering health, medical and wellness information to our residents. By using the Library as a central location, the public will be able to consult with healthcare providers, use on-line resource and attend interactive workshops on nutrition, weight loss, fitness and other needed wellness related topics. By providing bilingual services and training library staff, we will be better prepared to lead patrons to accurate, current and relevant health and medical resources.