What goes around comes around: Planning for the next CHA/CHIP report cycle

You have submitted your Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan (CHA/CHIP). Congratulations! After working long and tedious hours on the report it is good to take time to celebrate. After the celebration is over, it may seem odd to start thinking about the next report right away because you have five whole years until it is due. However, you may be surprised how fast those five years can go by in the world of public health. Here are a few tips to make sure you are staying on track to avoid rushing at the end.  

Take time to meet as a team and reflect on lessons learned. This will be helpful for remembering what did or did not go well while the process is still fresh. You will thank yourself later when you are deep into the CHA/CHIP process and can look back and reference these notes. To help guide the reflection process refer to the five questions below. These could be used for ANY project, especially the CHA/CHIP.  

You could ask your team… 

• What went well while gathering information for the CHA/CHIP report? 

• What steps did you take to prepare and stay organized to meet the timeline? 

• How did you prioritize tasks?  

• What assessment process did your team use, and would you use it again? (RBA, MAPP, other) 

• If you had more time, what would you improve on the report?   

Once your organization has reflected as a team, the next step is to create a plan for the following CHA/CHIP cycle. It may seem early, but creating a timeline can help reduce surprises, the feeling of being rushed at the end, and allow the ability of delegating tasks and roles so staff are aware of their expectations.  

To get started, download this CHA/CHIP Timeline Template created by MDH. Once you have downloaded the timeline, complete the following  

1. Edit the milestones and timeline based on the needs of your jurisdiction. 

2. Decide on timelines of when you want the tasks completed. 

3. Identify partners or contractors that you may want support from.  

4. Delegate staff members to lead and make sure tasks are completed.  

5. Continue to review and edit the timeline through the CHA/CHIP process.   

Creating a timeline is just one approach to planning. To read about other planning tools, check out the Community Health Assessment and Planning: Handbook for local public health developed by MDH.  If you are unsure what your jurisdiction's CHA/CHIP looks like, be sure to reach out and ask!