MAPP Frequently Asked Questions
Q. How can I participate in the MAPP process?
A. There are various points during the MAPP process to get involved. We hold community forums and conduct surveys to get your input about what's going on locally with regard to health. When we hold community events, they will be advertised on our County webpage, Facebook, and Twitter.
Q. I'm interested in making my community healthier. How can I volunteer to help with MAPP?
Please contact us at health@co.marion.or.us.
Q. How do you ensure that everyone participates in MAPP and has a voice?
We strive to hear from all groups within the community, however some are unfortunately missed. Our MAPP Steering Committee is made up of individuals with diverse backgrounds who provide oversight for the process and work to make sure that we are considering everyone in the community.
Q. How often does the community go through the MAPP process?
MAPP is ongoing and has no set end point. Once one cycle ends, a new one begins. Currently, we begin a new MAPP process every five years (e.g. 2018, 2023, 2028, etc.) to create a new Community Health Assessment (CHA) which informs a new Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP).
Q. How are members of the MAPP Steering Committee selected?
The MAPP Core Group nominates individuals to serve on the MAPP Steering Committee. If the Steering Committee approves these nominations, then these people are placed on the Committee.
Q. Who is on the MAPP Core Group and what do they do?
The MAPP Core Group is composed of members from Marion County Health and Human Services, Polk County Health Department, and Willamette Valley Community Health. This group is one of several groups that work on MAPP and they are mostly involved with the day-to-day operations and data collection. Additionally, they help form the MAPP Steering Committee and propose plans to them for approval.
Q. What are strategic issues and how are they selected?
Strategic issues are broad, cross-cutting themes, that we as a community come together to work on to improve health. They're informed by data collected from the Community Health Assessment (CHA) and framed as a question (e.g. How can we improve access to healthcare in our community?). So, for example, by improving access to healthcare in our community, we can improve many different aspects of health. However, we can only effectively work on so much at any given time, so it's necessary to prioritize strategic issues. Strategic issues are prioritized based on their potential impact and feasibility. The community then votes on the strategic issues that they believe are the most important to work on.
