Thompson

During the Tuesday Marshall County Board of Health meeting, residents were urged to complete the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and Community Health Improvement Plan (HIP).

Marshall County Public Health Director Pat Thompson said every five years, the assessments are provided by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services. Residents have until the middle of August to complete the online survey. Then, Thompson needs to turn the results in to the state department in November.

“My job is to get the information out there so people take the survey,” she said. “I know it’s not fun to take a survey, but please do the best you can because this is important.”

The CHA and HIP assessments, completed by local public health entities in Iowa, help build a foundation for improving the health of the public across the state. By completing the survey, Thompson said health needs of the county and concerns of the people will be identified.

“This is not the first time we’ve done the survey,” Thompson said. “I’ve been doing this almost 20 years and this is the fourth one I have been involved with. We know not every need will be met, but it will identify the more prominent ones, and help create a health improvement plan.”

Some of the questions regarding community health asked in the survey include:

In general, how would you rate the overall quality of the health care delivered to your community?

Are there health services in your community or neighborhood that you feel need to be improved and or changed? (Please be specific.)

Participants are also asked questions about whether or not they partake in health practices, such as exercise; to rate medical services, such as hospitals, eye care and mental health; and if certain conditions are problems for the community, such as diabetes, cancer and sexually transmitted diseases.

To prepare for the assessment and to get an idea of possible health needs of the community, the Board of Health held a town hall at the Marshalltown Public Library in May with “stakeholders.” According to Thompson, those included YSS, Big Brothers Big Sisters, McFarland, the Salvation Army and more.

“I sent out a lot of invitations, and 23 people showed up,” she said.

In other business:

A brief discussion was held regarding the impending departure of Thompson. She will retire from her position at the end of January 2024. After the meeting, Thompson said there have only been discussions. A job posting has not even been created yet. During the May Board of Health meeting, it was revealed Poweshiek County approached Marshall County and asked about the possibility of working together. Thompson stressed Marshall County did not seek assistance in trying to find a successor for her, nothing has moved forward with Poweshiek, and discussions have only just begun.

“That’s on hold,” she said. “Nothing has been proposed. Nothing is in writing. It is just a discussion about what everyone is looking for, how they might make it work and about possible resources.”

Thompson said while succession plans are in progress, options are still being weighed. She said she is still working for another seven months.

HEALTHCARE SURVEY AVAILABLE ONLINE:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdjuR2n_UgYUwfUdkcZYZD-2tegCOiNhustmXIAM-1mIUuEGw/viewform

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Contact Lana Bradstream at

641-753-6611 ext. 210 or

lbradstream@timesrepublican.com.