Community Health Improvement

According to the CDC, "our health and well-being are products of not only the health care we receive and the choices we make, but also the places where we live, learn, work, and play. Community health improvement (CHI) is a process to identify and address the health needs of communities. Because working together has a greater impact on health and economic vitality than working alone, CHI brings together health care, public health, and other stakeholders to consider high-priority actions to improve community health."

 

                   Image taken from CDC CHI Navigator, adapted from County Health Rankings

 

 

Community Health Improvement Partnership

To improve health in New Orleans, the New Orleans Health Department (NOHD) has brought together a diverse group of individuals and organizations across sectors to form the New Orleans Community Health Improvement Partnership. Together, we develop a shared vision for health in our city, which defines all collective actions. CHI partners share a vision for health improvement, goals, resources, and accountability. 

 

"We envision a safe, equitable New Orleans whose culture, institutions and environment supports health for all"                                                                    -CHI Partnership vision, 2017 

 

Community Health Assessment

To identify the health needs in our city, we conduct a community health assessment in collaboration with a broad collection of community organizations, health system partners, decision-makers, and residents. The aim is to get a comprehensive picture of what health is like, directly from the people who live, learn, work and play in New Orleans. We do this by looking at four main focus areas and asking the questions below:

  1. Community Health Status
    • How healthy are our residents?
    • What does the health status of our community look like?
  2. Local Public Health System
  3. Community Themes and Strengths
    • What is important to our community?
    • How do we view quality of life in our community?
    • What assets do we have that can be used to improve our community’s health?
  4. Forces of Change
    • What is occurring or might occur that affects the health of our community or the local public health system?
    • What specific threats or opportunities are generated by these occurrences?

 

To view the most recent Community Health Assessment report, click here

Community Health Improvement Plan

The results of the Community Health Assessment guide partners in identifying the most pressing health issues in our city. To improve health in each of these areas, partners develop action plans informed by research and best practices, with a focus on addressing health disparities. Together, these action plans make up the New Orleans Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). The CHIP acts as a living document, which means that although specific goals, objectives, performance measures and targets are captured on paper, plans grow and evolve over time in order to stay relevant in an ever-changing public health environment. From the 2019 Community Health Assessment, CHI partners identified the three priority areas for health improvement below. 

 

                   Increase Access to Care           Improve Economic Stability        Ensure Community Safety
 

To view the most recent Community Health Improvement Plan, click here.