Marion County Community Health Improvement Plan

The Community Health Improvement Plan, or CHIP, was developed during a yearlong effort to address community health problems and provide strategies for improvement.

The CHIP focuses on mobilizing the community to improve the social determinants that often are the drivers in the health of a community. Social determinants are the social factors and conditions — income, education, employment, housing and others — that lead to healthy people and communities.

The plan addresses community health problems and provides a strategy for improvement. It follows research published in the Marion County Health Needs Assessment and the Robert Wood Johnson/University of Wisconsin County Health Rankings.

Marion County Community Health Needs Assessment

The 2012 Marion Community Health Needs Assessment provided the data needed to develop an effective Community Health Improvement Plan. The assessment evaluated four key areas: community health status, the local public health system, community themes and strengths, and potential forces of change.

Health Needs Assessment Technical Appendix Report

The Health Needs Assessment Technical Report contains detailed data that can be used to understand the health needs of Marion County and its various communities and sub-populations.

Robert Wood Johnson County Health Rankings

The County Health Rankings are an annual check-up that highlights the healthiest and least healthy counties in every state, as well as those factors that influence health, outside of the doctor's office. The rankings highlight the importance of critical factors such as education rates, income levels, and access to healthy foods, as well as access to medical care, in influencing how long and how well people live. The rankings consider factors that affect people's health within four categories: health behavior, clinical care, social and economic factors, and physical environment.