The survey and promotional materials have been translated into several of the most-spoken languages in the county, including Arabic, Bengali, Chinese – Hong Kong, Simplified Chinese, Gujarati, Hindi, Italian, Korean, Spanish and Vietnamese.
County Commissioner and Chair of Commissioners Jamila Winder said it is important for the survey to be inclusive..
“Certainly as a commissioner, I’m prioritizing our most vulnerable populations,” Winder said. “Be it our seniors, be it people of color, be it those from the LGBTQ+ community, those groups that maybe have historically been on the margins, and have maybe faced health inequities.”
The survey is available online and community members are encouraged to respond through the middle of May. Miller said that, so far, about 1,600 people have responded; the county’s target is 5,500.
Results from the assessment will be published online at some point this summer. Winder said some of the information gathered might lead to policy and legislative changes.
“This information will really just help us as commissioners, and as we’re setting policy and working with our Office of Public Health and our head of Health and Human Services, it will really help to shape where we focus our energy and effort,” she said.
Miller said it’s a big payoff for a small investment of time.
“The 10 minutes that our residents spend completing the survey informs the work that their Office of Public Health does for the next three years,” she said.