Community-Led Health Planning

Community-Led Health Planning is an approach to planning health activities and initiatives with the local community. The approach sees the local community directly involved at all stages and often leads to improved health outcomes. The activities are designed directly by the people who use and need them.

In a first for the Murrumbidgee region, 2019 - 2020 saw the communities of Deniliquin and West Wyalong, working with MPHN, the Murrumbidgee Local Health District (MLHD) and an external consultant to collaboratively determine health priorities and activities for these communities.

There were four distinct stages in the process including:

1. Project initiation and planning

2. Determining project activities to gather research to gain a better understanding of the community’s health needs

3. Using the research findings and data to identify community health priorities

4. Co-design workshop to develop local initiatives to address identified priorities

Future Community Led Health Planning opportunities will be available for selected communities. Research gathered during the process is also used to help guide MPHN’s Health Needs Assessment.