The Relationship Between Local Public Health Agency Characteristics and Performance of Partnership-Related Essential Public Health Services

Abstract

The relationships between characteristics of local public health agencies and their self-reported scores on partnership-related indicators of the Ten Essential Public Health Services were examined. A retrospective cross-sectional study using secondary data from the National Public Health Performance Standards Program (NPHPSP) and the 2005 Profile of Local Public Health Agencies from the National Association of City and County Health Organizations (NACCHO) was completed. Participants. Local public health systems that participated in both the NPHPSP and the NACCHO surveys. Partnership-related elements from the NPHPSP data set were used as dependent variables, whereas combined focused elements from the NPHPSP and the NACCHO surveys served as independent variables. Local public health agencies' increase in partnerships over the preceding 3 years and involvement in a community health improvement process were significantly related to numerous partnership performance scores--more so than other agency characteristics. Involvement in the Mobilizing Action through Planning and Partnerships process was inversely related to some partnership performance scores. Future research must continue to identify and explore additional community- and agency-level predictors of partnership performance.