MAPP PROCESS

Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) is a community-driven strategic planning process for improving community health. Facilitated by public health leaders, this framework helps communities apply strategic thinking to prioritize public health issues and identify resources to address them. MAPP is not an agency-focused assessment process; rather, it is an interactive process that can improve efficiency, effectiveness, and ultimately the performance of local public health systems.

– NACCHO MAPP Site, January 2015

In Fall 2014, the Hendricks County Health Partnership Advisory Board approved the use of the MAPP process to determine the future health priorities for the Partnership and Hendricks County. Upon their approval, the Community Health Improvement Process Committee was formed, comprised of Advisory Board members representing the Hendricks County Health Department, Hendricks Regional Health, IU Health West, the Top 10 Coalition, and Franciscan St. Francis Health.

The committee is charged with implementing the six phases of the MAPP process as outlined by NACCHO:

ORGANIZING: During this phase, the committee will organize the planning process and develop a planning partnership through the existing Hendricks County Health Partnership that builds commitment, engages participants, uses the participants’ time well, and results in plan implementation.

VISIONING: During this phase, the committee will guide the Partnership through a collaborative process that leads to shared mission, vision, and values statements.

ASSESSMENTS: During this phase, the committee will conduct four assessments to determine the health issues and needs facing the community:

Community Themes and Strengths Assessment, which gathers input through the 2015 Community Health Assessment Survey, focus groups, and town hall meetings from residents on what they feel are important health and quality of life issues.
Local Public Health System Assessment, which gathers input through the Hendricks County Local Public Health System Assessment Survey and SWOT analysis from entities that contribute to the public’s health about the capacity to provide the 10 Essential Public Health Services to the community.
Community Health Status Assessment, which identifies priority community health and quality of life issues through the collection of data from health registries, hospitals, and other entities.
Forces of Change Assessment, which gathers input from the committee and Partnership Advisory Board about the forces (such as legislation, technology, and other impending changes) that affect the community’s health and the local public health system.

STRATEGIC ISSUES: During this phase, the committee will compile the data made available through the assessments and present the findings to the Partnership to identify potential strategic issues and how those issues affect the achievement of the Partnership’s vision. These strategic issues will become the Partnership’s new Priority Areas.

GOALS/STRATEGIES: During this phase, the Partnership will review the identified Priority Areas and develop goals, objectives, and action items to address each area. A Priority Area Leader will be identified for each area, and the committee will work with the leader to develop planning and evaluation reports. By the end of this stage, the Partnership will have adopted a new Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan, which are scheduled to be released in January 2016.

ACTION CYCLE: During this phase, the Partnership and Priority Area Leaders will plan, implement, and evaluate the activities within each Priority Area. The leaders will report back to the Partnership Advisory Board quarterly on progress towards meeting their respective goals. The committee will review available data yearly and provided updated information for each Priority Area so leaders can adjust objectives and action items accordingly.

For more information about the MAPP process, contact us at HendricksHealthPartnership@gmail.com or (317) 745-9618.