Naomi Cottoms, MA
Community Health Leaders
2011
Area(s) of Expertise:
Health disparities
Access to care
Long term care
Leader's Biography 2011:
When college administrator Naomi Cottoms returned to her hometown Helena, AR, a small and economically depressed community on the Mississippi River, she began working to ensure that even the poorest residents could get access to health care. Cottoms developed the Community Connectors a program to train and send local workers door-to-door to gain the trust of local residents and teach them about health and social services available to them. The program grew to include initiatives that address health, education and economic disparities throughout the Delta region. A multi-year evaluator of the program by the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences Center found that the programs that diverted elders from nursing homes to using community-based care generated important savings to the state, as well life-changing benefits to the clients themselves. With an array of collaborators from the public and private sector, Cottoms encourages marginalized members of the community to speak for themselves and take charge of their own health.
Where this leader can be reached today:
Executive Director
Tri-County Rural Health Network, Inc.
419 Cherry Street
Helena, Arkansas 72342
Phone: (870)-338-8900
Fax: (870)-338-7891
Email: NCottoms@aol.com
Naomi inspires me to believe that isolated, underserved populations in rural areas can be reached with information about accessing benefits and services when you partner with a local community-based organization. In a recent healthcare fraud prevention program, recognized as outstanding and ground-breaking by the AR Administration on Aging, participation by Naomi’s Community Connectors was key to earning “grassroots” trust in the target communities – more important to effective communication than overcoming economic, racial and literacy barriers.
-- Nominator