PUBHLTH 371 Policy of Obesity Prevention and Management
Health Sciences Librarian
Room A273
Lederle Graduate Research Center Lowrise
740 N Pleasant St
Local Information
Try to get information that most directly relates to your specific community. Search local, state, and community sites. Try doing an internet search for the name of your community organization - many will have a web presence of some type that will provide information about their history, mission, goals, and who they serve.
- Massachusetts Department of Public HealthYou can do a Google search to find websites for Public Health Departments in other states.
- Massachusetts Health and Human ServicesYou can do a Google search to find websites for other states.
These are just a sample of Western Mass organization and community-specific sites.
A Google search for your specific community and the type of information you want will often yield results. For example: community health report amherst ma
- Mass.gov Community Health Data"Find Massachusetts health data by community, county, and region, including population demograhics. Build custom data reports with over 100 health and social determinants of health data indicators and explore over 28,000 current and historical data layers in the map room."
- Baystate Health Community Health Needs Assessments"Baystate Health is required to conduct a Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) and develop implementation strategies every three years. In addition, hospitals are required to submit annual Community Benefits reports to the MA Office of the Attorney General."
- Holyoke Medical Center Community Health Needs AssessmentAlso has links to Implementation Strategy
- Food Bank of Western MassachusettsVolunteer at the local food bank!
- Community Action Pioneer Valley"Community Action holds a long-term vision of safe, just, and prosperous communities throughout Franklin and Hampshire Counties and the North Quabbin region in western Massachusetts. We are committed to upholding the common good by offering leadership, advocacy, and concrete resources that support children, youth, individuals, families, and local communities to thrive."
Demographic Information
Some state and local websites might have some demographic data, but these national-level sites let you get data from various levels - country, state, county, town/city, and sometimes zip code.
- Explore Census Data (formerly American Fact Finder)Gather the most up-to-date demographic information on the US population including insurance coverage, access, education, age, and more. You can refine by state, county, and zip-code to get particular information.
- American Community SurveyData, statistics, interactive graphs/charts, publications, and reports on the US population. From the US Census Bureau.
- HealthLandscapeInteractive website where you can map county-level demographic and health data.
