Community Health Profile
Community Health Needs Assessment -- While clinical care is vitally important, only a small portion (15–20%) of overall health and longevity can be attributed to clinical care. Individual behavior, available services, access and barriers to health care and social, physical, and economic environments and conditions (collectively referred to as the “social determinants of health”) have a far greater impact on how long and how well people live than their direct medical care. The 2023 study offers a statistical profile of Portsmouth residents and, wherever possible, compares each measure to Rockingham County, the state of New Hampshire and the US. This profile is a snapshot in time of the social determinants of health -- the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age -- and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life. The statistics in this report also point out areas of concern where health needs suggest remedial action.
The Community Health Improvement Plan offers specific recommendations for consideration by City Council and staff to address the challenges identified by the Community Health Profile.
Background:
In 2005, the NH Department of Health and Human Services (DHHS) awarded the City of Portsmouth a grant to establish a New Hampshire Public Health Network similar to other regional health networks across the State. The purpose of the network grant program is to develop regional approaches to emergency response and public health planning. The Greater Portsmouth Public Health Network (GPPHN) incorporates the City of Portsmouth, and the towns of New Castle, Rye, Newington, and Greenland.
The Greater Portsmouth Public Health Network completed the Center for Disease Control’s Local Public Health Assessment in May 2005; participants prioritized four Essential Services that became the Public Health Improvement Plan’s (PHIP) Scope of Work. One of the priorities was to Monitor Health Status by obtaining data that provides information on the communities’ health. The GPPHN decided that the development of this data, would take the form of a Community Health Profile.
The 2007 Community Health Profile was developed by the Community Health Institute. This profile uses available data to paint a picture of who is living in the Greater Portsmouth communities and seeks to identify the leading health issues facing residents. It is our hope that the information presented in this profile will be useful as agencies focus on individual organizational strategic planning initiatives and work towards improving the health of all residents