Public Health in the Rockies 2026

Community health assessments and community health improvement plans (CHA/CHIPs) are essential tools for public health accreditation, community benefit, funding alignment, and shared action. Yet many agencies and partners experience these processes as time-intensive compliance exercises that result in reports but do not always translate into feasible, measurable improvement strategies. This session will showcase a practical approach for streamlining CHA/CHIP work while strengthening equity, data use, cross-sector partnership, and implementation readiness.

HMA and Metopio have developed and refined a set of CHA/CHIP tools and methods, including engagement instruments, survey approaches, qualitative and quantitative analysis processes, dashboard and reporting products, governance structures, and CHIP implementation and performance measurement templates. These methods draw from MAPP 2.0 principles and experience supporting local public health agencies, hospitals, regional collaboratives, and community partners. The session will present examples of how teams can integrate secondary data, community voice, facilitation, priority setting, and action planning into a more coherent and lower-burden process.

Participants will leave with practical takeaways about how to select data for specific decisions, align assessment findings with community priorities, move from findings to measurable strategies, and design processes that support both accountability and shared ownership. We are requesting a 1-hour session because the topic requires both presentation of examples and meaningful peer discussion. The additional time will be used for an interactive scenario-based exercise in which participants discuss what data they would choose, for what purpose, and how those choices shape priority setting and implementation. At least 15 minutes will be reserved for facilitated discussion and audience exchange.