The AHSR project is organized by the Anchorage Department of Health and Human Services in cooperation with you, our community partners, to identify, develop, and publish annual health indicators that provide a “snapshot” of maternal and child health needs in Anchorage.
Rationale for Project:
AHSR will improve the health of families, women, and children by enabling our community to assess needs, monitor health status and problems, develop policies and programs, and evaluate and assure the quality, efficacy and effectiveness of interventions in Anchorage. This will allow our community to use information specific to Anchorage rather than relying solely on, the more often reported, state and national level measures. There are many stakeholders in our community who will benefit from having reliable Anchorage MCH data including:
- Anchorage Families – Families will benefit from more effective services targeted to their needs. Parents and voters will have reliable local data to help inform parental and voting decisions related to maternal and child health.
- Policy Makers – The State Legislature, Anchorage Assembly, and many health leaders make policy and funding decisions that affect maternal and child health. AHSR will inform their decisions and prioritization of funding.
- Program Designers and Managers – Programs designed to improve maternal and child health can use data to direct, prioritize, and shape their efforts.
- Program Evaluators – Local data will enable programs to determine effectiveness of interventions designed to promote family maternal and child health.
This initial effort will lay the foundation for further indicator development to extend beyond maternal and child health in order to build and report a more complete picture of Anchorage’s health. "Anchorage Health Status Report" will be an ongoing resource for programs and projects to identify priorities, to direct resources, and evaluate interventions.
Key Project Goals:
- Identify key MCH indicators which take into consideration those environmental, economic and social factors unique to the Anchorage Community
- Develop a means of collecting and disseminating the identified data
- Develop effective dissemination strategies such as health bulletins, internet tools and community presentations
- Identify trends in MCH and update indicators annually
- Publish annual Anchorage Health Status Report
Data Sharing Promise:
There are always concerns regarding the sharing of data between organizations. To address those concerns:
- We will consult all data contributors regarding the limitations of and sensitivities surrounding the MCH and Health status data to ensure that the final data accurately represents the demographic community it purports to represent.
- We will present data only at the population level and in a manner which assures individual privacy and the anonymity of the data providers to assure the privacy of internal or proprietary data. Memorandums of Understanding will be drawn up as needed to assure those who share data are comfortable with the use and level of detail provided.
AHSR Documents
For more information contact Tari O’Connor - mailto:WWHHS@ci.anchorage.ak.us
This project was formerly titled Maternal and Child Health Anchorage Indicators (MCHAI)
