Community Matters
(Community Health Assessment & Improvement Plan)

COMMUNITY MATTERS VISION STATEMENT:

“Jefferson County Alabama is an inclusive, thriving community of healthy and connected people.”

This vision statement provides focus and direction to the previous and current community health assessment processes conducted with community residents and supports changes in systems, policies, and programs to enhance community health through collective impact of local public health system partners.

The Community Matters process is guided by the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) tool, developed by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) and the leading public health agencies to provide the framework, structure, and best practices for developing healthy communities.

EVOLUTION OF THE MAPP TOOL

NACCHO created the MAPP tool in 2001 in response to a shift from traditional organizational strategic planning to a community-owned and systems-based approach to public health. Over the years, NACCHO and the public health entities updated MAPP to align with evolving national strategies. A national evaluation of the MAPP Tool in 2019 revealed that while MAPP remains an effective framework for guiding community health improvement processes, impact can be accelerated by further embedding health equity concepts and implementing frameworks that are more adaptable and responsive to community needs.

To address these recommendations, NACCHO led a MAPP Evolution Process through an exploration of field needs, promising practices, and expert guidance. The revised MAPP Tool was launched in late 2023.

The revised MAPP Tool consists of three phases. Phase One focuses on building the community health improvement foundation by establishing strategic stakeholder relationships, taking inventory of resources, setting goals for process improvement, and understanding how MAPP can be used to achieve health equity. Phase Two focuses on telling the community’s story through the results of three separate community assessments. Phase Three focuses on continuously improving the health of the community through the Community Health Improvement Plan.

The revised MAPP assessments are:

1. Community Status Assessment (CSA)
   The CSA collects quantitative data on the status of the community such as demographics, health behaviors, health indicators, and environmental and quality of life outcomes. The CSA contributes to the larger community story by answering questions about the status of the community and its sub-populations.
2. Community Partners Assessment (CPA)
   The CPA provides a structure for community partners to look critically at individual processes and capacities and the local public health system’s collective capacity as a network of community partners to improve health. The aim of the CPA is to identify current and future actions to improve health at individual and structural levels.
3. Community Context Assessment (CCA)
   The CCA is a qualitative tool to assess and collect insights, expertise, and views of people and communities through three domains: community strengths and assets, built environment, and forces of change. The CCA provides a greater understanding of the community’s strengths, assets, and community-based solutions for advancing community health

2019 COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT

Jefferson County Local Public Health System partners published the 2019 Community Health Assessment for Jefferson County, Alabama.

Between September 2018 and December 2018, over 1,800 community residents and public health professionals engaged in one of the following community health assessments whose summaries are available below:

• The Community Health Status Assessment (CHSA) measures the health status of the community. This assessment collects quantitative measures of health status, quality of life and risk factors that influence health.
  • CHSA Executive Summary
• The Community Themes and Strengths Assessment (CTSA) identifies community experiences, opinions and concerns related to health. This assessment gathers information from community members about what is important to the community, how quality of life is perceived and community-based assets that can be used to improve community health using a survey.
  • CTSA Executive Summary
• The Local Public Health System Assessment (LPHSA) uses the National Public Health Performance Standards Local Instrument to measure how well the local public health system delivers the 10 Essential Public Health Services. This assessment gathers information about the activities, competencies, and capacity of the local public health system.
  • LPHSA Executive Summary
• The Forces of Change Assessment (FOCA) identifies the forces, opportunities and threats that can affect the health of the community and the local public health system both now and in the future.
  • FOCA Results

2020 – 2025 COMMUNITY HEALTH IMPROVEMENT PLAN

Based on the findings from the Community Health Assessment for Jefferson County, Alabama, published in late 2019, five strategic issues were identified as the fundamental challenges that must be addressed to improve health and quality of life. A preliminary list of 102 potential strategic issues was reduced to 16 potential strategic issues based on community conversations, an open-ended survey, and a key issue prioritization survey.

On September 11, 2019, the Community Matters Strategic Issue final review group selected the final five strategic issues that will form the framework for Jefferson County Community Health Improvement Plan 2020-2025.

Approved Strategic Issues:

• Control Gun Violence and Improve Community Safety
• Provide a Timely, Safe, Equitable and Well-Maintained Public Transportation System
• Improve Mental Health Care Access and Utilization
• Decrease Obesity
• Advance Health Equity Through Equitable Policies and Access to Resources and Services

Please find below the Jefferson County Community Health Improvement Plan 2020-2025 Work Plan.

• CHIP Work Plan Revised June 2024
• CHIP Work Plan Revised December 2024

COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT AND STRATEGIC PLANNING HISTORY

Jefferson County’s journey with community health improvement plans began in 2006. To learn more about the first and second iteration of implementing the MAPP tool, please visit here.