Who are the NKY Partners for Health?

Partners for Health is a coalition of organizations with an interest and investment is having Northern Kentucky be one of the healthiest regions in the nation. To help meet that goal and guide its actions, Partners for Health conducts the Healthy NKY survey every five years. By asking the people who live here what they see as the most important health-related issues in the region, we can then understand their needs and prioritize our work.

What is a Community Health Assessment (CHA)?

Every five years, the Northern Kentucky Health Department engages the community in a health assessment and planning process for the purpose of improving health for everyone in Northern Kentucky.  The FY23-FY27 Community Health Assessment and Improvement Plan for Northern Kentucky has been created to address the priority health outcomes and issues identified through extensive data collection, analysis, and partner collaboration.

The Community Health Assessment (CHA) provides comprehensive information on the community’s current and past health status, factors contributing to higher health risks and poorer health outcomes, disparities, needs in the community, and community resources available to improve health.

The CHA helps aid community partners, stakeholders, and residents in identifying priority health issues, developing goals, and selecting strategies to improve residents’ health. The data come from multiple sources including surveys and surveillance systems. Using multiple data sources allows for a comprehensive picture of the community.

The CHA will be instrumental in developing the Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). This strategic plan will help guide health-related activities and will be created in consultation with community partners. It will also align with existing regional and state strategic plans.

What is a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP)?

After learning about the health status and health priorities of the NKY Health population, Partners for Health developed a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). The Public Health Accreditation Board (PHAB) defines community health improvement planning as a long-term, systematic effort that addresses health problems based on the results of community health assessment activities, local public health system assessment, and the community health improvement process. The resulting CHIP is used by health and other government, educational, and human service agencies, in collaboration with community partners, to set priorities, coordinate action plans, and target resources.