Community Health Assesment Model

Running head: COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT MODEL
Community Health Assessment Model
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT MODEL 2
Community health assessment is known for the evaluation of community health needs. It may
refer to a state, tribe, territorial community or local where it recognises and assesses their
health needs through a systematic, widespread collection of data and their subsequent
analysis(Harris, 2016). It follows a “community health improvement plan” which provides a
organized approach to address the public health needs and issues, based on the result of the
community health assessment actions and the health improvement procedures.
One such instance of a community health assessment model is “Mobilizing for Action
through Planning and Partnership” (MAPP) which was established by the “National
Association of County and City Health Officials” and CDC in 2001. It provides a framework
for the development of community health at local levels(Gutilla, Hewitt & Cooper, 2017). It
gives a strong emphasis on the involvement and engagement of the community and
collaborates with them for the system-level planning after the assets and their needs are
successfully identified.
Community health assessment provides comprehensive information about the current needs
and requirements of the public, issues along with their health status. This information can be
utilized to form a “community health improvement plan” on the basis of allocation of
resources to meet the community needs and ensuring their well- being. The most significant
benefit of this “Community Health Assessment model” is the enhanced visibility and
accessibility of the Healthcare Department. Previously, the Healthcare Department used to
serve only the poor people, but now it provides health services for people of all
socioeconomic classes. It also strengthens the involvement of the community in decision
making and planning and encourages their participation.

COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT MODEL 3
The agencies which should be associated with the Community Health Assessment model are
RHA (Regional Health Authority) Boards along with RHA staffs, health service providers,
Government, community organizations and the general public.
According to the Affordable Care Act, the suggested time frame for completing a community
health assessment by non-profit hospitals is once every three years.
The nurses should address the health needs and issues of the public as their priority, assess
their health condition, gather information about the patient’s phycological, physiological and
sociological status and provide them with the best treatment. They should also be involved
with delivering education and knowledge to the community members on maintaining their
health so that the occurrence of diseases can be reduced to an extent. They should identify the
risk factors and the potential areas of concern among the community and develop health
policies which can improve the health condition of the patients and ensure their well-being.

COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT MODEL 4
REFERENCE:
Gutilla, M. J., Hewitt, S. J., & Cooper, B. (2017). Making the most of our community health
assessment by developing a framework for evaluation. Journal of Public Health
Management and Practice, 23, S34-S38.
Harris, M. (2016). Evaluating Public and Community Health Programs. Wiley.