Jackson County launches health assessment survey

The health department has partnered with the national research firm PRC based in Omaha, Nebraska, to conduct the Community Health Assessment (CHA) survey with Western North Carolina residents. The confidential survey will ask about residents’ health, behaviors and experiences.

Randomly selected households will receive a call from “WNC Health” and the survey is estimated to take around 20 minutes to complete.

Jackson County is one of 18 counties participating in the CHA across WNC. The survey covers various health-related factors, including demographics, socioeconomics, health status, disparities, behaviors, clinical care, physical environment and quality of life. This data is the basis for efforts to prioritize and address health challenges over the next three years.

Jackson County plays a vital role in the regional CHA strategy, which is led by the WNC Healthy Impact initiative, a collaborative endeavor involving hospitals, health departments and dedicated partners committed to enhancing community health across the region.

The Community Health Assessment is supported by hospitals in WNC and bolstered by contributions from The Dogwood Health Trust, and aims to collect comprehensive data needed for understanding and addressing regional health challenges.

The survey, made possible through this collective funding, equips stakeholders, including valued funders, healthy impact partners and policymakers with insights to guide targeted public health interventions for the betterment of residents across WNC.

The JCDPH encourages all residents to take part.

“We strongly encourage residents to complete the survey if contacted,” Health Education Supervisor Meagan Cagle said. “This survey helps our community by providing information that aids us in determining the current and most important health needs for our county. The insights from the survey will help us identify areas that need attention and guide efforts to improve services and support systems for the health of all Jackson County residents.”

 Online survey

Residents of Jackson County can share their input by accessing the survey on the health department website at health.jacksonnc.org or by clicking www.prcsurvey.com/begin/WNC2024.

For Jackson County, the last community health assessment in 2021 helped highlight that 23 percent of residents participated in at least 150 minutes of physical activity a week and only 5.5 percent of residents reported consuming the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables.

This project is made possible through contributions of WNC hospitals and The Dogwood Health Trust.