Tool available to track progress of Community Health Improvement Plan

Mesa County Public Health (MCPH) launches a new public-facing dashboard to track the progress of the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). Developed by the MCPH Data Team, the dashboard provides updates on CHIP activities, offering transparent access to community health progress.

“This is a community-wide effort – and we’re making real progress. We’re inspired by how willing our community is to pull together. It really gives us hope for the future system building to come,” said Alli Howe, Chief Health Strategist at MCPH.

Current efforts are focused on two critical areas: economic stability and behavioral health. These two priority areas were selected through over 400 individual contributions from in-person engagement, digital surveys, and partner planning meetings.

One of the Economic Stability goals is to increase benefit program enrollment among the eligible population. Benefit programs include programs like the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and Medicaid. The CHIP activities will help improve the enrollment process.

One of the goals for Behavioral Health is to mobilize the community to address mental health care needs in children and youth. To help achieve this, there is collaboration underway with youth and partners to create a communication campaign to reduce stigma and educate the community about mental health issues in youth.

“This dashboard marks the final step in a three-year cycle dedicated to improving the health of our community,” said Howe. “We began by assessing the overall health of Mesa County, then identified priority areas with targeted activities to improve outcomes. Now, we’re in the implementation and monitoring phase. We want everyone in the community to stay informed with our progress.”

Visit the CHIP dashboard to explore Mesa County’s health priorities and track ongoing progress.

Priority Area Background

Economic Stability in Mesa County

Household economic stability is an important factor for health outcomes because healthy behaviors depend on adequate financial resources to meet basic needs, access health care and nutritious foods, and ensure safe and healthy environments. In addition, many health outcomes improve as income and household economic stability increase.

While many people enjoy financial stability in Mesa County, others struggle to reach economic self-sufficiency. The median household income for female single parents is less than half of what is required for economic stability for a mother with a preschooler and school-aged child.

Behavioral Health in Mesa County

Behavioral health impacts physical health in a cyclical way. Behavioral health is impacted by health behaviors, but it can also impact a person’s ability to pursue healthy choices. In addition, behavioral health challenges can lead to direct health outcomes such as substance use disorder and suicide crisis.

According to the 2022 Tell Us Community Survey, Mesa County residents, regardless of age or income, were overwhelmingly in favor of increasing support for mental health and substance abuse services. Only 13% of residents agreed that Mesa County provides adequate support for these services and 50% completely disagreed.