Which type of secondary data is essential in a community assessment?

Conducting a community health needs assessment can help rural programs determine where and how to use limited resources to address health-related needs.

Nội dung chính Show

Resources to Learn More
What data collection method is used in community health assessments?
What are the primary data for to be use for community assessment?
How do community assessments collect data?
What are types of community assessment?

A community health needs assessment serves as the starting point to address a rural community’s needs. The assessment identifies and measures factors that impact health, such as gaps in services, as well as assets and strengths available to help resolve these issues. This assessment will help to identify topics and issues relevant to a community.

Data for determining community needs can be collected through surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, public meetings, direct observations, and interviews. Secondary data sources such as demographic data, vital statistics, hospital records, morbidity and mortality reports, and literature reviews also provide valuable information.

Community health needs assessment data can be collected from a variety of sources.

Table 1-1: Sources of Local Data

Source	Type
Chamber of Commerce	List of businesses Employment/Unemployment rates Area economic data
Civic organizations	Sources of involved community members Lists of charitable projects
Community college/local university	Enrollment/graduation numbers Fields of study available to students Academic research about the community
Employment Security Commission	Employment/Unemployment rates
Faith-based groups	Membership numbers Lists of members and community needs
Health Department	Immunization rates Disease rates
Hospitals and healthcare providers	Emergency room visits Chronic disease prevalence
Large employers	Products made Economic impact to the community
Law enforcement agencies	Crime incidence Arrests/convictions numbers Incidence of domestic violence Motor vehicle crash information
Library	Local history/Information unique to the county
Non-profit organizations	Types of services performed Number of people eligible for service Number of people served Plans for the future
Public School System	Enrollment numbers Graduation/drop-out rates Test scores

Source: Community Health Assessment Guide Book, North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services Division of Public Health, June 2014

It is important to talk to members of the community to understand the data. For example, data gathered across several years may show that there has been a notable change related to health outcomes, educational attainment, or employment. Conducting a focus group with community partners or community members can help to explain the reasons for why the changes have occurred. Combining quantitative and qualitative data can help to explain community trends.

For more information on how to conduct a needs assessment, see Conducting Rural Health Research, Needs Assessment, and Program Evaluation.

Resources to Learn More

A Handbook for Participatory Community Assessments: Experiences from Alameda County
Document
This handbook describes the process the Alameda County Health Department (California) took to conduct community assessments with the active participation of two neighborhood groups. It includes information about how to develop partners, choose data collection methods, collect the data, and share results.
Organization(s): Alameda County Public Health Department
Date: 2004

The Community Tool Box: Chapter 3 – Assessing Community Needs and Resources
Website
This chapter of the Community Tool Box contains 24 sections, covering topics such as different methods for collecting information and how to use the data collected to identify community needs and resources.
Organization(s): University of Kansas Work Group for Community Health and Development

Conducting a Community Health Assessment
Website
This website provides access to tools for identifying and selecting indicators for the community health assessment, data collection, analysis, examples, and presenting findings.
Organization(s): National Association of County & City Health Officials

County Health Rankings and Roadmaps
Website
The County Health Rankings measure the health of nearly all counties in the U.S. and ranks them within their states. This tool can be used to better understand the health of a community in comparison to other communities. The rankings are calculated using a variety of county-level measures collected from national and state data sources.
Organization(s): Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

HealthData.gov
Website
Warehouse of searchable databases that provide various health data.
Organization(s): U.S. Department of Health and Human Services

What data collection method is used in community health assessments?

Community health assessments typically use both primary and secondary data to characterize the health of the community: Primary data are collected first-hand through surveys, listening sessions, interviews, and observations. Secondary data are collected by another entity or for another purpose.

What are the primary data for to be use for community assessment?

There are several methods for collecting primary sources of data for your community assessment, including questionnaires, observation, focus groups, interviews, and case studies.

How do community assessments collect data?

Data for determining community needs can be collected through surveys, questionnaires, focus groups, public meetings, direct observations, and interviews.

What are types of community assessment?

There are four basic types of primary data (listed from strongest to weakest): community surveys, key informant interviews, focus groups, and community forums.