Identification of the demographic health needs of the community based on existing evidence and research.

Description

Community profile (word limit 3000 words)
Write on a community profile on a given local area. Your community profile should be based on your home town, village or city. Tables or charts can be included to help illustrate the needs of the community. You must make reference to these in your written text also.
The community profile should be split into four sections and should use these subheadings to guide the content.
a) Identification of the demographic health needs of the community based on existing evidence and research.

b) Critical discussion of the determinants of health in relation to the community using a theoretical framework such as a social determinants of health model and the health issues identified. It should consider why the data collected about the health needs looks like it does.

c) Impact of local policy on health needs in the community. This should look at what local or national policies currently exist and critique their effectiveness for the issues identified in parts a) and b).

d) Identification of future areas for policy related responses to reduce health inequalities.

Further guidance
What is a community profile?
A community profile is a way of collecting and organizing information for understanding health and health related problems in a defined community. The information that is collected should give the reader an accurate picture of what is happening within the community at that point in time. It shows the economic, social, educational, political and geographical conditions in the community. The profile should also show the direction in which the community is going AND the main issues that are currently affecting the health of the population.
Aspects you must address in your community profile
The community profile will be on a local area of your choice. This profile should address the following aspects relating to the health of the community:
a) the demography health needs of the community need to be identified
b) the determinants of health in relation to the community need to be critically discussed using theoretical frameworks
c) the impact of local policy on the health needs in the community needs to be addressed
d) future areas for policy related responses to reduce health inequalities will need to be identified

Key steps for the fieldwork and creating your community profile
The steps you need to follow to build your community profile are outlined below for your assistance. You are expected to have completed step 1 and step 2 during week 2.
Step 1 – Select the area
You need to choose the area where you are going to profile the needs of the community in that area. Please choose a small local area so this task is feasible to complete. For example, a small local area with a community of about 1000 people will be an ideal place to start with to create your first community profile. Your chosen area could be the area where you live or the area where you work.
Step 2 – Conduct an observational walk
You will need to visit the area this week (week 2) to explore what it looks like and document your findings. Explore the neighbourhood on foot to help you get a feel for what it is like. You can make notes, take photographs or draw maps to help you. If you are taking photographs do not take any photographs of people – just buildings/high street etc. You might want to look at local maps or draw a map of the community or things you see. Make notes about what you see but do not ask people questions as you do not have ethical approval to do this.
Please stay safe: Visit your community in the daylight and tell someone where you are going. Go in pairs, or with a friend, if you wish.
Below is a list of questions to ask yourself while you are visiting and researching your area. This is just a list of example questions as there are many other areas you can investigate. You will also need to start looking at your area using online data-based websites or news websites (step 3). The local library in that area may also contain information that is useful to you.
When you are researching your community you need to think about what you find and what this might mean for your area in terms of the health of those who live there. You should consider using a social determinants of health model (Barton & Grant model or Dahlgren & Whitehead model) to structure your profile. Information on both models is available in this week’s reading materials and these models will be discussed in more detail next week.
Example questions to ask yourself while you are visiting and researching your area:
The people who live there: Who lives in the area? What is their employment status? What is the age structure? What are the main cultural groups? What languages are spoken? What people can you see when you visit there? What does data tell you about this community and their lifestyle behaviours? Is the population fixed or transient?
The area as a place to live: What is the quality of physical environment? What does it look like geographically i.e. green spaces, roads, safe spaces, parks, shops? Is it well connected by public transport? What are the amenities? What type of housing? What are the local leisure facilities? How many schools are there? Are the schools good? What local businesses exist? What food is available? Are there any local markets or co-ops?
The area as a social community: What networks and assets exist in the community that you can see? What resources does it have to support health? What support groups are available for vulnerable populations? What health facilities are visible?
The area as an economic/political community: What are the income levels in that area? What is the level of deprivation (consider the Welsh Index of Multiple Deprivation score as a measure of relative deprivation; is there a similar score assigned to areas in your country)? What does the high street looks like i.e. prosperity? How much does it cost to live in the area?
The area as part of the city/county that it is part of: What infrastructures connect this area to the wider city/county? What makes this area different to others? Does this area have a specific local identity? How does your profile area compare to other areas i.e. neighbouring areas/county?
Step 3 – Collect the evidence
You need to collect evidence about your community to build up a picture of the community. Start by accessing online and library based sources of demographic information to build up
an evidence based community profile of the area.

Please search for similar sources as the above in your country and area. You can visit national or local health board data, read local newspapers, and visit community internet sites.
Step 4 – Analyse and discuss the evidence
Once you have collected evidence about your community you need to conduct the following steps:

1. Look at your data and identify inequalities in health both positive and negative. Make comparisons to local or national data to support these findings.
2. Critically discuss some of the determinants of health in relation to what you have found using wider reading / theory / frameworks i.e. why might these inequalities exist. Wider reading will help you to support main points.
3. A social determinants of health model can be used to help you structure you work.
4. You might want to choose a specific group for example children, older people, lone households or a cultural group in that area to focus your work on. It should be clear from your data why you chose that group.
5. Identify local or national policies or programmes that aim to reduce the inequalities in your profile and consider if they are working in your area (if you chose a group, link this to the group)
6. Identify areas for future policy/programmes that could help reduce inequalities in your area (and if you chose a group, the inequalities in that group). Think of this section like recommendations for the future.

Sample Solution