Community Assessment
Chapter 6
Community Assessment
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
Defining the Community
Aggregate of people
The “who”
Share personal characteristics and risks
Location in space and time
The “where” and “when”
Physical location frequently delineated by boundaries and influenced by the passage of time
Social system
The “why” and “how”
Interrelationships of aggregates fulfilling community functions
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Diagram of Assessment Parameters
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Figure 6-1
Community Assessment Parameters
Geography
Population
Environment
Industry
Education
Recreations
Religion
Communication
Transportation
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Public services
Political organization
Community development or planning
Disaster programs
Health statistics
Social problems
Health manpower
Health professional organizations
Community services
Healthy Communities
A movement to help community members bring about positive health changes
Interconnectedness between people and the public and private sectors is essential to make changes.
Each community has its unique perspective.
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Assessing the Community
Windshield survey
Gain an understanding of environmental layout
Locate possible areas of environmental concern through “sight, sense, and sound”
Gives nurse an opportunity to observe people and their role in the community
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Windshield Survey
Community vitality
Indicators of social and economic conditions
Health resources
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Environmental conditions related to health
Social functioning
Attitudes toward health and health care
Assessing the Community (Cont.)
Sources of data:
Census data and other census reports
Vital statistics
NCHS survey data
Local, regional, and state government reports
Locally generated data collection
Analysis of demographic information provides descriptive information about the population
Copyright © 2015, 2011, 2007, 2001, 1997, 1993 by Saunders, an imprint of Elsevier Inc.
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Assessing the Community (Cont.)
Needs assessment
Used to understand the community’s perspective
Interview key community informants
Use community forums, focus groups, or surveys
12 Steps in a Needs Assessment
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Steps in the Needs Assessment Process
Identify aggregate for assessment
Engage the community in planning the assessment
Identify required information
Select method of data gathering
Develop questionnaires or interview questions
Develop procedures for data collection
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Steps in the Needs Assessment Process (Cont.)
Train data collectors
Arrange for a sample representative of the aggregate
Conduct needs assessment
Tabulate and analyze data
Identify needs suggested by data
Develop an action plan
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Nursing Process
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The nursing process can be applied to the community as a client.
Needs assessment
Diagnosing health problems (actual and potential)
Planning
Intervention
Evaluation
Format for Community Health Diagnosis
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Figure 6-3 Redrawn from Muecke MA: Community health diagnosis in nursing, Public Health Nurs 1:23-35, 1984. Used with permission of Blackwell Scientific Publications.
Epidemiological Studies Used Throughout the Nursing Process
Support planning by establishing effectiveness of certain interventions in specific aggregates
Construct benchmarks to gauge achievement of program objectives
Compare data with other rates
Identify objectives of successful programs
Document effectiveness with epidemiological data
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