Recognizing Public Health’s contributions during National Public Health Week

National Public Health Week, which is celebrated each year during the first week of April, is a time to recognize the contributions of public health. Our vision at Mesa County Public Health (MCPH) is for Mesa County to be a vibrant, caring, connected community where everyone has the opportunity to thrive.

“Public health is community health. We focus on addressing the root causes of our biggest health challenges. We have high standards and use best practices to gain insights into the quality of life in our community,” said Executive Director Xavier Crockett.

MCPH sees required services as just a starting point. Part of our approach includes looking at conditions in communities that impact people’s health and well-being, like access to safe walking trails, neighborhoods that promote health and safety, and economic stability.

Public Health plays a meaningful role in improving financial stability when it comes to food security, family support, health, and safety. Our Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program helps families pay for healthy groceries for pregnant women and children up to age five. Families support local grocery stores with benefits up to $125 per month. This frees up the family’s budget for other expenses. Meanwhile, Grand Valley Connects provides enhanced resource navigation for residents in need. Resource navigators work alongside residents to address their needs and find economic, medical, and behavioral health support.

We are data experts and utilize findings and insights to support community partners. We track disease in our community and ensure our health and medical partners know what is going around our community. We connect what physicians are seeing in their offices to the larger community in order to identify disease trends. When our medical providers know what diseases are increasing, patients receive better testing and quicker diagnosis.

We support and partner with local businesses. In 2023, MCPH performed nearly 900 inspections at local businesses including restaurants, body art parlors, pools, and schools. We work with businesses that people visit every day to make sure they are operating safely. 

Our team also works alongside community organizations. Our community initiatives work with businesses to make progress on shared community goals such as:

• Building safe gathering spaces for youth in Clifton.
• Increasing availability and quality of child care.
• Increasing access to outdoor recreation opportunities for locals. 
• Preventing youth substance misuse.
• Consulting with local and state healthcare providers on best practices for immunizations.
• Increasing our community’s ability to serve and meet the needs of Hispanic and Spanish-speaking residents.

We are excited to continue our work this year to improve and expand the systems that support the health and well-being of our community, including the expansion of our Regional Lab services and the release of the next Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). The CHNA is a planning document that showcases Mesa County data; we release it every three years to better serve our non-profit hospitals and other organizations that rely on this information to make decisions and apply for funding.

“We are grateful to serve the community and are ready to make the most of 2024,” said Crockett.