SNAPSHOT VERSION OF COMMUNITY HEALTH NEEDS ASSESSMENT HIGHLIGHTS RECOMMENDATIONS FOR A HEALTHY COMMUNITY
Mesa County Public Health (MCPH) released the 2021-2023 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) in June and has just released a condensed Snapshot version of the findings and recommendations based on the data collected and presented in the assessment.
The CHNA, compiled every three years in partnership with area hospitals, presents information and analysis on the current status of the community, brings attention to areas of concern needing community action, and fulfills the assessment needs for all partners of the local public health system. The assessment is rooted in the belief that in order to solve our most difficult community challenges, we must understand the population groups experiencing significant differences and the barriers impeding their access to resources and opportunities.
“In Mesa County, we work hard, we play hard, and we take care of each other,” Jeff Kuhr, Director of Public Health for Mesa County said. Yet not everyone has the same opportunities to make choices that allow them to live a long and healthy life. People in Mesa County lose time, money, and years of their life to preventable behaviors and inadequate social and environmental community factors. “This Assessment does more than just present the numbers and causes of illness and death, it examines what we as a community can do about it,” Kuhr added.
The Snapshot highlights areas of impact rooted in the Social Determinants of Health. These are conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, outcomes, and risks. By organizing the assessment in this way, we provide recommendations to change course and improve the overall quality of life for all Mesa County residents.
Some of the recommendations include:
- Make quality child care more affordable for families.
- Work with local employers to provide internships and practical experiences for students.
- Enroll workers with low-income jobs in benefits programs for which they are eligible but not yet enrolled.
- Launch and support a community resource offering intensive case management for individuals needing mental health and economic stability assistance.
Click here to read the CHNA and interact with the Snapshot and other data presented.