Community Health Needs Assessment

Mesa County is Unique. Our Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) is, too.

Community Health Needs Assessment

Mesa County is unique in our collaborative approach to the community health needs assessment. Local non-profit hospitals and the public health agency release one comprehensive document every three years to meet the requirements of all agencies. This facilitates a more unified approach to improving health and quality of life in our community

Snapshot of CHNA

In this condensed, Snapshot version you’ll find Key Findings, Recommendations, and Areas for Further Research.

A Community Health Needs Assessment is a critical tool used to understand the health status of a population or community. It presents information and analysis on important data measures and identifies areas where action and intervention can make a difference.
Jeff Kuhr, PhD

Executive Director, Mesa County Public Health

Explore by Section

Community Profiles

Understanding differences within our own community can lead us to opportunities.  Explore our diverse community in these community profiles.

Economic stability provides a context in which Mesa County residents can have good health outcomes. In this section, we consider what economic self-sufficiency looks like in Mesa County, and whether current industries are providing the types of jobs needed to earn at a self-sufficiency level.  Read the entire section here.

Mesa County is a regional health care hub with a variety of providers and specialists. However, it’s important to look beyond the presence of services to see whether residents are actually able to access the care they require. In Mesa County, nine out of ten people are insured and have a regular source of care. Nonetheless, rates of utilization are lower than the state, largely because of cost barriers and lack of access to timely services. Read the entire section here.

This section seeks to measure the relationships in our community (between residents and their friends, family, and co-workers, and with their community through civic engagement). Many of these measures are dependent on survey questions. We’ve included existing data measures to characterize social context and the questions we intend to answer as next steps. Read the entire section here

A solid educational foundation lays the groundwork for resources and resilience to strengthen health outcomes for Mesa County residents. Good educational outcomes—those that provide health literacy as well as economic stability—depend on successful navigation of elementary and secondary education. These years of education are in turn dependent on kindergarten readiness and high quality early childhood education opportunities. Read the entire section here.

Here we examine the built environment and environmental health factors in Mesa County by looking at the capacity of institutions within the county to effectively and efficiently execute their role. We find that in recent years, Mesa County residents have voted to prioritize funding for schools and public safety agencies, which have allowed them to update, expand, and create new facilities. Read the entire section here

Health implications include health behaviors and health outcomes. In this section, we explore the rates and key causes of illness, injury, and death in Mesa County. We find that when compared to Colorado as a whole, Mesa County has similar or worse rates of the majority of health behaviors and outcomes. Some bright spots are found in infectious disease rates, child welfare, adult asthma rates, and youth tobacco use and exposure. Read the entire section here.

Areas of Strength

Some areas of strength point to resources Mesa County can leverage in tackling larger issues. Some indicate areas where intervention has been successful, and continued support has the opportunity to continue improving outcomes.

Areas of Action

By focusing on these actions, we intend to build collective community strength and resilience, leading to a positive impact on our community’s health behaviors, outcomes, and overall quality of life.

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Explore More Data

Interactive data with comparison communities detailing graduation rates, demographic enrollment, and more.

Snapshot Key Takeaways

Areas where community action may yield measurable results and recommendations to get there.

Snapshot Areas for Further Research

Areas where learning more about the root causes of issues may lead to intervention opportunities.

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