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Benefits of Using a Specific Model to Assess a Community
Using a specific model to assess a community is valuable because it enables a structured,
systematic approach to identifying, understanding, and suitably addressing community health
needs (Ravaghi et al., 2023). According to Ravaghi et al. (2023), a model also helps identify the
stakeholders relevant to the assessment and the factors that influence the health of the specific
community or group. Additionally, a health assessment model establishes an actionable plan to
address identified needs and tracks the plan's progress and effectiveness. These benefits inform
planning on the improvement of community health and resource allocation, and utilization. The
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) developed or participated in the development
of several community health assessment models/tools. The Community Health Assessment and
Group Evaluation (CHANGE) is a community health assessment model or tool developed by the
CDC.
Agencies to Include in a U.S. Department of HHS Healthy People 2030 Assessment
A Healthy People 2030 assessment should involve federal, state, and local governments and the
related health departments, agencies, and partners, private sector stakeholders, and the
community (Healthy People 2030, 2025). The HHS, particularly the Office of Disease
Prevention and Health Promotion, manages Healthy People 2030, while agencies such as the
CDC provide the necessary data. The National Institutes of Health (NIH), the Substance Abuse
and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), and the Centers for Medicare &
Medicaid Services (CMS) are federal government agencies that constitute the interagency
workgroup central to the Healthy People 2030 assessment. Stakeholders in the private sector and
the community include healthcare organizations and professionals, education institutions, faith-
based bodies, and non-governmental organizations.
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A Reasonable Time Frame in Which to Complete a Community-Wide Assessment
The time required to complete a community health assessment varies across the models (CDC,
2024). However, the CDC states that three to five months may be required to complete a
comprehensive community health assessment successfully. The timeline can shift due to various
factors, including the size and availability of the data collection team, the pace of work, and the
processes involved, such as assessment facilitation. The assessment timeline affects the tracking
of the initiative's impact.
The Role of the Public Nurse in the Implementation of the Chosen Model
The roles and responsibilities of a public nurse in implementing the Community Health
Assessment and Group Evaluation (CHANGE) tool include facilitating and coordinating team
mobilization, leading data collection and analysis, and engaging in health education, planning,
communication, and health advocacy. According to Pazzaglia et al. (2023), because of their
proximity to communities, public nurses convene the relevant stakeholders to collaborate in
implementing community health promotion initiatives, including assessments and surveys. Their
close ties to communities and groups make them well-suited to collecting public health data. As
with the other models, completing the CHANGE tool requires collecting specific information
from a community, thereby making nurses indispensable. Furthermore, nurses educate
communities, convey public health-related messages, participate in planning public health
initiatives, and engage in public health advocacy.
Reasons the Model will Work Well for the Student’s Community Assessment
The student finds the CHANGE model appropriate for a health assessment of her society because
the tool is flexible and versatile, can be tailored to local contexts, allows collaboration of
stakeholders in the healthcare, focuses on policy and environmental factors, and is congruent
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with preventive care initiatives and programs such as the Healthy People 2030. As such, the tool
can fit within the student’s target community and help evaluate the environmental and health
policy-related factors that affect the community’s health. Based on the student’s observation of
the target community's needs, focusing on policy and environmental factors would help make a
significant impact on the community’s health.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) (2024). Community Planning for Health
Assessment: Frameworks & Tools: Common Elements of Assessment and Planning
Frameworks. [Link]
public-health-strategies-for-community-health-assessment-models-frameworks-
[Link]
Healthy People 2030 assessment (2025). Healthy People 2030 assessment.
[Link]
Pazzaglia, C., Camedda, C., Ugenti, N. V., Trentin, A., Scalorbi, S., & Longobucco, Y. (2023).
Community health assessment tools adoptable in nursing practice: A scoping
review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(3),
1667. [Link]
Ravaghi, H., Guisset, A. L., Elfeky, S., Nasir, N., Khani, S., Ahmadnezhad, E., & Abdi, Z.
(2023). A scoping review of community health needs and assets assessment: Concepts,
rationale, tools, and uses. BMC Health Services Research, 23(1), 44.
[Link]