The purpose of the assessment is to evaluate how the local residents view the hospital, the local health care professionals, and the overall system of care. The community assessment survey instrument used by the Center for Rural Health has been successfully implemented in a number of communities. It assesses hospital utilization, attitudes toward the hospital, physician utilization, attitudes toward the clinic, health care services, individual health status, attitudes toward the community, and insurance. Prior to a decision to implement the survey process, hospital CEOs are encouraged to share the survey instrument with their departmental managers and trustees for review and comment. An important aspect to the FLEX program is community involvement and input.
Hospitals can use the survey process to gain needed input from the community and service area.
The input can be used to assist the administration in planning and decision making. Planning assistance can be addressed in many ways. The Flex Steering Committee is available for initial site visits to discuss the CAH program, community-technical assistance, or other process options. Information gathered from a community assessment process, focus group, or community forum can be incorporated into the planning process. A nominal group process is generally used as a facilitation technique.