Skills, Knowledge and Values of Community Health Needs Assessment Managers

Abstract

Nonprofit hospital systems must complete a community health needs assessment (CHNA). In healthcare there is a lack of consensus on what skills, knowledge and values are important for the person managing CHNA departments, including educational background appropriate or needed to be successful. This is an exploratory study of one healthcare system. The study seeks to identify the perception of what skills, knowledge and values are necessary to be an effective CHNA manager, and how that aligns with the skills, knowledge and values taught in public health, community development and social work. The study utilizes grounded theory, inductive research and evaluative research methods. Question: What are the perceived most important skills, values and knowledge for the CHNA manager to be effective in their role by CHNA personnel? How do those skills, knowledge and values align with macro practice social work, public health, and community development education in healthcare?