Assessing Public Health Practice: Application of Ten Core Function Measures of Community Health in Six States

Factors Affecting the Progress of Community Health Assessment and Improvement Activities in Kansas

“…Factors associated with local health department (LHD) performance in improving community health status include (1) assessment of community health needs and public health services, (2) compiling information about high-risk groups to support prioritizing community health initiatives, and (4) fostering partnerships. 4,5 Local health departments and hospitals face a variety of obstacles in the pursuit of CHA-CHIP activities. Reported challenges include assembling and interpreting data 6 and having the capacity to perform CHA-CHIP activities, particularly in rural areas.…”

Structure and Functions of State Public Health Agencies

“…Moreover, if they are to be responsive, state health agencies must be able to provide the core functions of public health: assessment, policy development, and assurance across the domains of health protection and health promotion activities. 1,3 Although investigators have examined local health departments' performance of critical public health activities [4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15] and various aspects of state-level public health agencies, 13,[16][17][18][19][20][21][22] these studies have been limited in scope. None have assessed state health department structure or functions from a comprehensive vantage point.…”

From Measuring to Improving Public Health Practice

“…In one study of a national sample of 208 LHDs in 1993, the mean performance score on a panel of ten measures was 50% (56). In another 1993 study of 370 LHDs in six states, the mean performance score was 56% based on a panel of 26 items (44). The use of this same 26-item panel with a group of 14 LHDs that have been longitudinally followed since the 1970s produced similar performance patterns (30).…”

“…While the IOM core functions are often conceptualized as a linear process (assessment → policy development → assurance), it appears that the assurance function, at least in terms of emphasis, developed without commensurate maturation of the other core functions. The limited studies to date consistently identify higher performance on assurance-related practices rather than those related to either assessment or policy development (37, 44,45,55,56). However, improved local public health performance through implementation of APEXPH and its derivatives has been demonstrated (55).…”