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Introduction
Healthy Mendocino is an online resource through which community members and policy makers can learn about health and well-being in Mendocino County. It provides balanced information on topics including local health, local resources, promising best practices, news, and community events.
Help raise awareness about a community health issue by submitting content to demonstrate its importance to the well-being of the community and inspire strategic action.
You are invited to submit:
- Ideas for new data indicators
- Promising Practices
- Reports
- Articles
- Event Announcements
If you have questions or want to contribute other kinds of information, please Contact Us.
Advertising Policy
No advertising is permitted on Healthy Mendocino, and none of its content represents a political endorsement by the Healthy Mendocino Leadership Team or any of its partners.
The Healthy Communities indicator system provides easy access to information on health and well-being in Mendocino County in eight topic areas. The primary aims of the indicator system are to inform and facilitate positive change in our county by supporting priority-setting, decision-making, and coordination. Core indicator data is collected and reported by state and federal sources. The Healthy Communities Institute, which manages the site, updates indicators soon after they are updated by their respective data sources. The frequency and timing of the updates varies with the source.
The data sources meet the following criteria:
- Validated methodology for data collection and analysis
- Regular, scheduled publication of findings
- Focus on data values for small geographic areas, such as counties and postal codes that are available for all county-level locations in the U.S or locally through our community partners
Each indicator is described, and a link is given to the source of the data and what the values mean. The value for each indicator is shown along with comparisons that provide context for the information. The comparisons show how each value compares to those in other geographic areas (the red-yellow-green gauge), how Mendocino County is changing over time (green or red up and down arrows), and how we compare to a national or state average (blue/white or tri-color gradation gauge). In addition, the website provides comparisons to Healthy People 2020 objectives. It is important to remember that even if we are doing better on some indicators than other parts of the country or state or national averages, we should still work to improve our status for all indicators.
Criteria and Data Standards for New Community Indicators
Locally collected data can be posted on Healthy Mendocino. The staff will evaluate proposed new indicators using the following criteria:
- Does it add value? (Does it fill a gap? Is it a good enough proxy measure for an area for which we want an indicator? Is it better than a current indicator?)
- Is it scientifically valid? (Has it undergone a peer review process?)
- Is it a value for our county and is comparison data available?
- Can the indicator be dependably updated? (Is there the capacity for ongoing measurement?)
In addition, the staff will use these data standards to evaluate proposed new indicators:
- Data must be scientifically collected using quality research standards and/or be peer reviewed.
- Service statistics from local agencies are not typically scientifically collected data. This information can be incorporated into the site in other areas, but not usually as community indicators
- The source of the data is identified and if a conflict of interest could exist on the part of the data collector (for example, a commercial interest in the data), that will be clearly noted.
If you are interested in having a new data indicator created please email: healthymendocino@ncoinc.org
The database of over 2,000 promising practices, articles, and literature is a national resource created and maintained by the Healthy Communities Institute. The sources include health departments, federal agencies, universities, and community organizations (not individuals without an organizational affiliation). The Institute ranks the practices as either “evidence-based,” “effective,” or “good ideas.”
Local communities can add local content to this section. The interventions suggested for inclusion must be community-focused and related to local health and well-being and must meet the HCI standards noted above (evidence-based, effective, or a good idea). Healthy Mendocino’s site administrator will consult with the Healthy Mendocino staff and community experts/leaders in the topic area to determine the appropriateness of adding the suggested promising practice.
To contribute to the Promising Practices information provided on this site, please fill out this form.
The Resource Library contains reports and studies by reliable sources on Healthy Mendocino topic areas. Community members may submit reports for the staff's consideration for possible posting to the website. The reports should focus on health and well-being in Mendocino County or the region of which it is a part and be clearly written and grounded in careful research and analysis.
If you have a report that has information specific to this Mendocino County, please send an email to healthymendocino@ncoinc.org. Provide a 1-2 sentence summary and include the report as an attachment or provide a web address where the report can be obtained.
Feature Articles and Other Homepage Content
The Healthy Mendocino home page posts local feature articles; important health news on our area, the state, and the nation; and featured content designed to deepen understanding of community health issues and activities. Feature articles will often link to other website contents as well as additional resources. The stories posted and/or linked on the Healthy Mendocino home page are maintained by the Healthy Mendocino staff.
If you have a local feature article you would like to submit email: healthymendocino@ncoinc.org or fill out this form.
The event calendar provides a comprehensive clearinghouse for information on events in the county designed to enhance local health and well-being. There is no advertising on the site and classes will be considered. The calendar is maintained by the Healthy Mendocino staff.
You can submit an event announcement to be added to the community event calendar HERE.