Survey to gauge citizens’ health, state’s COVID-19 response

The Delaware Division of Public Health will conduct a series of community health assessments to better understand the concerns and needs of Delaware communities during the COVID-19 pandemic and to improve the overall health of Delawareans in the future. As part of Delaware’s State Health Improvement Plan, DPH is working with the University of Delaware’s Partnership for Healthy Communities and Epidemiology Program to conduct a survey in each of Delaware’s three counties.

Households that have been randomly selected to participate in the voluntary survey will receive a postcard in the mail followed by a survey packet with instructions on how to complete it online or by mail. Incentives will be provided for completed surveys. The first set of packets will be mailed to Kent County households this week. In late February, teams of students and community volunteers will canvass Kent County neighborhoods, knocking on doors of  selected households that haven’t completed the survey. Similar assessments will occur for New Castle and Sussex counties over the next two months. Sussex County mailings will be sent out the week of Feb. 21, and canvassing will begin March 25.

“Delaware’s current five-year State Health Improvement Plan covers 2018 through 2023 and was initially developed prior to the pandemic,” said DPH Director Dr. Karyl Rattay. “Community assessments related to COVID-19 and broader conditions now impacting the health of Delawareans are critical to helping inform the current plan and guide the next state health needs assessment and planning process.”

In addition to community assessments being conducted at the household level to assess COVID-19 mitigation efforts, perceptions of risk, and preventative actions taken by Delaware households, two series of community conversations are being planned to learn more about broader health impacts on communities. 

Officials said the purpose of the Delaware State Health Improvement Plan is to describe how DPH and the community it serves will work together to improve the health of Delaware's population. The plan helps to prioritize areas, such as chronic disease, maternal and child health, mental health, and substance use disorder, officials said.

To learn more about Delaware’s State Health Improvement Plan, visit DelawareSHIP.org.