MISSOULA, Mont. — Public Health has a lot of moving parts for officials to understand.
Whether that be the state of the community’s physical health or mental health, getting an exact reading can be difficult.
But Missoula Public Health (MPH) recently conducted a survey county-wide, knocking on several hundred doors to get a first-hand account of the state of the community.
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“It's really about getting out and asking the questions and understanding what matters to people in the area that we serve so that we can move forward in a really informed way,” said Jeanna Miller, chief health officer at MPH.
Miller says that they got boots on the ground to survey various neighborhoods across the county, with the goal of obtaining more responses than a typical mailed survey may receive.
“We were really excited to try it, and it worked out well, and we're excited about the data that we got,” Miller said.
The surveying was done with close to a dozen volunteers, including Mikayla Bilyeu, who went out and asked community members about immunization, chronic conditions, mental health and access to healthcare.
For Bilyeu, one factor stood out: the connection to community.
“I don't know why I had that thought that maybe people would not be willing to talk to us, but actually it was really great. I had a lot of fun doing it, and everybody that we talked to was so kind and willing to talk to us. We got invited into many different people's homes who just wanted to sit down and chat with us,” said Bilyeu.
After all that work, MPH was able to access the data immediately after the surveying of 210 households was complete.
That data revealed several key findings about the community's health. Overall, it looks to be in a solid state.
77% of respondents said they have no concerns about staying in their current living situation.
86% said that their household feels connected to their community.
82% of those surveyed said their household can get the healthcare they need — with 89% reporting that they have seen a primary care provider within the last year.
There were also findings surrounding wider health factors.
34% reported that someone in their household has a chronic health condition — conditions like diabetes and chronic pain.
37% responded that someone in their household is experiencing a mental health condition.
“I, again, think the biggest takeaway is what is possible if you invest the time to go talk to people where they are. Just meet people where they're at and take the time to establish a relationship and get their true and honest input on something like health, which is so important on an individual and community level,” Miller said.
