3. The Assessments

Each assessment will yield important information for improving community health, but the value of the four MAPP Assessments is multiplied by considering the findings as a whole. Disregarding any of the assessments will leave participants with an incomplete understanding of the factors that affect the local public health system and, ultimately, the health of the community.

Phase 3 Highlights

What are the four MAPP Assessments?

The four MAPP Assessments—the third phase of MAPP—and the issues they address are described below:

The Community Themes and Strengths Assessment provides a deep understanding of the issues that residents feel are important by answering the questions: "What is important to our community?" "How is quality of life perceived in our community?" and "What assets do we have that can be used to improve community health?"
The Local Public Health System Assessment (LPHSA) focuses on all of the organizations and entities that contribute to the public's health. The LPHSA answers the questions: "What are the components, activities, competencies, and capacities of our local public health system?" and "How are the Essential Services being provided to our community?"
The Community Health Status Assessment identifies priority community health and quality of life issues. Questions answered include: "How healthy are our residents?" and "What does the health status of our community look like?"
The Forces of Change Assessment focuses on identifying forces such as legislation, technology, and other impending changes that affect the context in which the community and its public health system operate. This answers the questions: "What is occurring or might occur that affects the health of our community or the local public health system?" and "What specific threats or opportunities are generated by these occurrences?"

Assessments Overview
For an overview of the steps necessary for this phase.