"The best evidence of MAPP's effectiveness is the comments from participants."
Carlos Yunsan, Director of Health Promotion, East Tennessee Regional Health Office
At first glance, the four communities showcased under User Stories may appear to have little in common. The communities include:
- A rural region experiencing a huge influx of Latinos;
- A rapidly growing county with a heterogeneous population that includes large numbers of Haitian immigrants and African-Americans;
- A depressed and predominantly white semi-rural county; and
- A destination region with a distinctive cultural flavor yet an increasingly suburban identity.
All four shared a desire to improve local community health, and in each case public health leaders were willing to take risks to fulfill this ambitious desire. These leaders turned to MAPP to find the best way forward.
Reading these case studies, you will meet (or, perhaps, just become better acquainted with) some public health practitioners whose career trajectories have been strongly influenced by MAPP. They include:
- A recent public health school graduate who now has a 15-county profile;
- A nurse who made a mid-career switch and then won recognition for an historic contribution to her community;
- A public health practitioner who catapulted her way from a county department to head an important state office; and
- A county department planning director who rose to prominence.
User Stories
Nebraska: New Health Department Finds its Place "on the MAPP"
In the East Central District of Nebraska—a state without a tradition of multicounty health departments—architects of a new regional department were determined to build the department strategically and in a business-like fashion. They began with only $30,000, no local tax base, and not much time. Six years later, the state's East Central District Health Department had increased service coverage from two to four counties, and boosted its annual budget from $30,000 to $3.75 million.
Washington: MAPP Helps County Show Public Health Success
In the southwestern corner of Washington State, a semi-rural area admired for its majestic conifer forests and rugged Pacific coastline, lies Cowlitz County. Through the health director's leadership and talent for blending initiatives, the data generated by Cowlitz County's MAPP process helped demonstrate that the health department was meeting state performance standard targets.
Tennessee: Unique MAPP Implementation Helps 15-County Region Frame Comprehensive Public Health Policies
In most counties of rural East Tennessee, poverty rates are high and educational attainment is low. In 2001, the Regional Health Director introduced the MAPP process to address the root causes of local health disparities and to evaluate the effectiveness of a previous community assessment approach. What followed was a powerful process uniquely focused on workforce development. The success of East Tennessee's MAPP process can be attributed to three distinguishing characteristics: a focus on university partnerships, model regional assessments, and an unwavering emphasis on the value of dialogue.
Florida: County Health Department Uses MAPP and Performance Standards to Reach Full Potential (coming soon)
In St. Lucie County, Florida, the health department started with a customer focus and a strategic plan, articulating a long list of goals. The department was part of a state structure that had its own quality improvement system. The department combined this system with MAPP and National Public Health Performance Standards in a new quest for excellence. Along the way, the department encountered an enormous public health challenge.
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