EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health Assessment Page 1 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS A thank you to the members of the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) Operations Team and the Evanston Health Advisory Council for all of their work and input into the EPLAN: Creating a Healthier Evanston Community Health Assessment and Improvement Plan. The development of this plan could not have been done without them. Thanks also to all of the MAPP Operations Team members, who were integral in planning and executing all of the assessments; Brina Auguste, Carl Caneva, Dr. Bruce Doblin, Christina Ferguson, Elizabeth Lassiter, Indira Perkins, Charlotte Picard, Kristin Preihs, Maitreyi Sistla, and Dr. Don Zeigler. Sincerely, Evonda Thomas-Smith, City of Evanston Health & Human Services Department, Director EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health Assessment Page 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY In order for the City of Evanston’s Health and Human Services Department to recertify as one of the four recognized local municipal health departments, the Illinois Department of Public Health requires a local assessment and strategic health plan for the next five years. Illinois refers to this process as IPLAN, the Illinois Project for Local Assessment of Needs. While local health departments conduct their own needs assessments, the state uses the findings from the local processes to conduct a state-wide needs assessment and develop a plan for the entire State of Illinois. In Evanston, we refer to our local process as EPLAN, the Evanston Process for the Local Assessment of Needs. EPLAN is designed to prioritize top health needs so that public health resources can be directed most effectively toward health improvement. EPLAN is a community-driven process that is coordinated by the Health & Human Services Department. It directly involves community members, health professionals, academics, and others knowledgeable about and interested in the health of the community. For this iteration of the EPLAN cycle, the Evanston Department of Health & Human Services (EDHHS) collaborated with the Evanston Health Advisory Council (EHAC) to conduct a needs assessment and produce a collaborative health improvement plan that spans from 2016-2021. The community health assessment process began in February 2015, and culminated in September 2015 with the selection of three health priorities. For this EPLAN, the Mobilizing Actions through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) tool was used. Four assessments were conducted between February and September of 2015. Once results were reviewed, community leaders voted on three health priorities for the public health system to focus on from 2016-2021. The three health priorities selected were: 1. Mental Health 2. Violence 3. Obesity This document details the results from the Community Health Assessment. EDHHS and EHAC recognize Community Health Assessment as an important health blueprint that serves as the precursor for the Community Health Improvement Plan. EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health Assessment Page 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS .................................................................................................................. 2 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .................................................................................................................... 3 INTRODUCTION TO IPLAN AND MAPP ............................................................................................ 5 OVERVIEW OF EVANSTON, ILLINOIS AND THE EVANSTON DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES ........................................................................................................................... 7 COMMUNITY HEALTH ASSESSMENT PROCESS ............................................................................ 8 A. Purpose ........................................................................................................................ 8 B. Methods ....................................................................................................................... 8 C. Community Participation ............................................................................................. 9 D. Timeline ........................................................................................................................ 9 THE FOUR MAPP ASSESSMENTS ................................................................................................ 10 A. Community Themes and Strengths Assessment .................................................... 10 B. Forces of Change Assessment ................................................................................ 18 C. Local Public Health System Assessment ................................................................ 21 D. Community Health Status Assessment ................................................................... 27 a. Community Health Survey Results ............................................................. 27 b. Community Health Survey Correlation Results.......................................... 38 c. Other Evanston Data ................................................................................... 40 d. County Health Rankings Summary ............................................................. 47 HEALTH PRIORITY SELECTION..................................................................................................... 50 APPENDICES ................................................................................................................................. 51 A. Appendix A: Focus Group Guide and Questions ..................................................... 51 B. Appendix B: Forces of Change Assessment Organization Attendees ................... 54 C. Appendix C: Local Public Health System Assessment Organization Attendees ... 55 D. Appendix D: Health Priority Selection Organization Attendees .............................. 56 E. Appendix E: Local Public Health System Assessment Results .............................. 57 F. Appendix F: Community Health Status Assessment Questions ............................ 64 G. Appendix G: Community Health Status Assessment Correlation Results ............. 82 EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health Assessment Page 4 INTRODUCTION TO IPLAN AND MAPP The Illinois Project for the Local Assessment of Needs (IPLAN) was developed in 1992 by the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) to establish a process for local health departments to conduct strategic planning within their communities. IPLAN is a series of planning activities led by a local health department, which result in a Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan. The Illinois Administrative Code mandates that all local health departments conduct an IPLAN process every five years for recertification. IDPH guidelines mandate that health departments submit a Community Health Needs Assessment, Community Health Plan, and Organizational Capacity Assessment as part of their IPLAN application. The Administrative Code allows local health departments to use an equivalent planning process, Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP), for state certification. MAPP was developed by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) and the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) as a community-driven strategic planning tool for improving community health. The tool helps communities apply strategic thinking to prioritize public health issues and identify resources to address them. The culminating products of MAPP include a Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). In January 2015, the Operations Team at the Evanston Department of Health & Human Services decided to use MAPP for their 2016-2021 IPLAN application. MAPP was chosen for numerous reasons: it provided a well-established structure for the creation of a Community Health Assessment and Improvement Plan, and could be easily tailored to fit with the Department’s resources. As a municipal health department within the largest County in Illinois (Cook), the MAPP process would also provide the City with Evanston-specific data. The MAPP process is divided out into two main phases: the Community Health Assessment and the Community Health Improvement Plan. There are four assessments that are conducted for the Community Health Assessment: the Community Themes & Strengths Assessment, the Forces of Change Assessment, the Local Public Health System Assessment, and the Community Health Status Assessment. Once these assessments are complete, the community uses the data collected to identify health priorities for the next five years. Once health priorities are selected, the Community Health Improvement Plan process begins. Subcommittees of community leaders and subject matter experts are created for each health priority, and an action plan is drafted to address each health priority from 2016-2021. Measurable goals for each priority are also created to drive progress. The image on the next page is a depiction of the MAPP process. Each step of the MAPP process encourages community participation and collaboration, so as to create a comprehensive Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan for Evanston. EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health Assessment Page 5 Source: http://www.healthynashville.org/index.php?module=InitiativeCenters&func=display&icid=8 EPLAN: Creating A Healthier Evanston, Community Health