September 19, 2013
(MANASSAS, Va.) —The Prince William Health District (PWHD) has posted the results of a 2013 GPWA Community Health Assessment at https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/LHD/PrinceWilliam/. This assessment will help guide the GPWA’s efforts to improve health. It will also aid community partners whose work has an impact on public health issues, by giving them concrete data about health topics that are important to our community. The assessmenthelps answer questions such as:
- How healthy are our residents?
- What does public health look like in our community?
- What areas of public health need improvement?
The health assessment efforts began in early 2012 when the PWHD received a CDC grant to create the “Live Well!” Coalition of community leaders interested in public health issues. The Community Health Assessment expands upon the Coalition’s work by including the results of a “Health Check” survey of GPWA residents, input from community organizations, statewide statistics from the Virginia Department of Health, and information from nationally-recognized sources. The survey’s top public health concerns include:
- Access to Healthy Foods
- Aging Issues
- Child Abuse/Neglect
- Cost of Healthcare
- Dental Care
- Distracted Driving
- Lack of Exercise
- Mental Health Issues
- Obesity
- Substance Abuse (includes Alcohol Use/Abuse and Drug Use/Abuse)
This Community Health Assessment report offers detailed information about these topics, as well as existing community assets and resources. As a next step, the PWHD and partners/stakeholders will work to address priority areas among the public health concerns listed above, and develop a GPWA Community Health Improvement Plan.
The PWHD serves residents of Prince William County and the Cities of Manassas and Manassas Park. For more information, visit https://www.vdh.virginia.gov/LHD/PrinceWilliam. You can also follow the Health District on Twitter @PrinceWilliamHD or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/PrinceWilliamHealthDistrict.