Improving health in the community needs to be a collaborative effort, said Advocate Good Shepherd Hospital President Karen Lambert at the Economic Summit, Jan. 31, held at Makray Memorial Golf Club and hosted by the Barrington Area Chamber of Commerce.

“The nation’s health care is unaffordable,” Lambert said. According to the Healthier Barrington Needs Survey 2011, many Barrington residents put off health care, even though they had insurance.

Lambert said that many see health care as unaffordable, even among those with health insurance in Barrington.

“One in five households put off health care because of costs. They have insurance but they can’t pay the deductible, so they are making decisions to put off health care,” she said.

Health care reform is a critical issue for 2012, Lambert said.

“You can’t be in my seat without thinking of (health care reform) everyday,” she said.

Lambert said one of the problems with the health care system is that it is fragmented. “Hospital providers don’t always talk to each other,” she said.

Lambert said that a more integrated health care system is the key to providing better care.

“As a system, we need to be more innovative, integrative and collaborative,” she said.

Another finding from the Needs Survey was that although help may be available in the community, people often don’t know where to find help. Lambert said the Healthier Barrington Project is working on a system in which someone could make one phone call and be put in touch with the appropriate providers.

“We need a cost efficient way to put people together and connect people who are in need,” she said.

Lambert said some of the biggest health issues facing the community are chronic illnesses, such as cancer and heart disease; falls by elderly residents and obesity.

Lambert stressed that improving the health of the community is not a task that Good Shepherd can accomplish alone.

“I feel privileged that we live in a community that really cares . . . Our commitment to the community is no greater than today,” she said.