Summary
In 2023, collaborative efforts of community and organizational partners led by the OC Health Care Agency (HCA) created the Community Health Assessment (CHA), a comprehensive review of the current health status of shared communities and most pressing health needs.
The CHA’s data-driven review identifies priority areas of focus for Orange County’s Community Health Improvement Plan (OC CHIP). The CHA gathered recommendations from 174 participants for issue prioritization from individual community members, community-based organizations, public health agencies and health care systems, and hospitals to inform the drafting and implementation of the OC CHIP. The six priority areas identified by the community included mental health, substance use, diabetes/obesity, housing/homelessness, care navigation, and economic disparities. This report uses 2011–2022 California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) data.
The CHA provided a framework to gather structured feedback from subject matter experts, including individual community members, community-based organizations, public health agencies, health care systems, and hospitals. This feedback was used to define the goals, objectives, strategies, measures, and outcomes that would form the foundation for the ongoing work of the OC CHIP. The OC CHIP is critical for creating a shared roadmap of strategies and actions to address the top health priorities for the region. It enables the region to track progress, celebrate achievements, and modify course as the work unfolds to achieve greater and more equitable health for our shared communities.
The identified priorities were the result of months of community events, surveys, and engagement over two years. The pandemic highlighted inequities that have systemically existed and the significant detrimental impacts on specific communities.
