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BACKGROUND: The Community Health Status Indicators (CHSI) Web-application produces health profiles for all 3,143 counties in the United States. CHSI was initially launched in 2000 and updated to an online format in 2008 and 2009. The Health Resources Services Administration hosted the website with continued support from an expanded partnership that included the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the National Library of Medicine, the Public Health Foundation, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials, National Association of County and City Health Officials, National Association of Local Boards of Health, and Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health. CDC acquired primary responsibility for CHSI in 2012 and launched a re-designed website in the spring of 2014.
METHODS: The new CHSI website utilizes a population health framework of health outcomes and health determinants including behavioral factors, health care, and the social and physical environments. A new Summary Comparison page allows users to quickly identify how they compare to their peer counties on 40 of the 42 health outcomes and determinants recommended for Community Health Assessment. The content improvement process included a review of current CHSI indicators as well as newly proposed indicators that aligned with a population health model and conformed to the highest data quality standards. Enhancements to the user interface reflected the updated framework, new peer county grouping methodology, and improvements in data display. CDC reconvened past CHSI partners and reached out to new collaborators to guide these efforts. A review of frequently used indicators, published literature, and solicited feedback from subject matter experts shaped the final product.
RESULTS: The newly revised CHSI went live in the spring of 2014 with updated data, a more cogent set of indicators structured around a population health framework, and a user-friendly web interface that elucidates the relationship between individual indicators and overall health. A refined set of peer counties provided a more guided process for comparison and benchmarking. The ability to map health indicators at the census tract was retained where data was available.
CONCLUSIONS: The new CHSI website provides local public health agencies, non-profit hospitals and community groups another tool for assessing and improving their community’s health. The presentation will include an overview of the methodology to identify peer counties, a summary of the included indicators, a live demonstration of the site navigation, and plans for future improvements.