Bridging the gap between data and people: A CBPR approach to community health needs assessment

Traditionally, community health needs assessment (CHNA) processes have involved organizations working in isolation to collect high-level data then presenting this information back to the community. Often, this process produces data that may not be truly representative of the community, and do not directly include community perspectives.  Additionally, this top-down, organization-driven approach to community health assessment often results in several separate “health improvement plans” for the same community administered independently by separate institutions.

In contrast, this presentation will illustrate a community-based participatory action research approach to community health needs assessments using a case study from the North Jersey Health Collaborative (NJHC).  With over 50 partner organizations from a diversity of sectors, the NJHC enables partner organizations to meet needs assessment requirements and address community issues with greater impact than any one organization could accomplish alone. This process involved a variety of research methods, including collection and analysis of quantitative health data through the NJHC website (njhealthmatters.org), key informant surveys directed at community leaders and partner organizations and a community art project that incorporated elements of PhotoVoice.  This initial wave of data was followed with opportunities for community prioritization and further data collection, as directed by the community.  Results of this process include engagement by a broader array of community partners, better data and a shared plan of action with increased resources for implementation. After a detailed description of this process, the presentation will conclude with key findings, as well as research methodology and lessons-learned that can be applied to other contexts.