Want to participate? Get involved!
We are always looking to connect with new partners! If you are interested in getting involved, receiving updates, or connecting with other community organizations involved in the CHIP, please fill out this survey.
Every three years, Washington County Public Health (WCPH) creates and releases a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) in collaboration with community partners. The CHIP is a community plan for action that defines how Washington County and partners come together to improve access to health-related opportunities and address priority health issues. It is based on a comprehensive assessment of local data, including the Healthy Columbia Willamette Collaborative Regional Needs Assessment and local community engagement and data sources.
Updates and Current Work
WCPH held a CHIP Forum in the fall of 2024 to share:
- The history and context of the CHIP
- How data and partners inform the CHIP
- WCPH’s plans for developing the next CHIP
- And how you can participate
Recordings of the forum presentation, related slides and transcripts are available below in English and Spanish.
WCPH plans to release a “CHIP Bridge” in July 2025. This smaller CHIP focuses on improving processes and incorporating feedback from our community engagement efforts as well as lessons learned from the COVID-19 response. Once released, WCPH will work with partners to create and release a full CHIP in July 2026.
If you would like to receive updates on this work and learn about opportunities to participate, please fill out the survey linked at the top of this page so we know how to contact you.
Community Engagement
WCPH is wrapping up a year-long community engagement process to inform the next CHIP and other Washington County Public Health plans. This process included 45 engagement sessions – including tabling at community events, listening sessions, knowledge exchanges, and focus groups – across Washington County. You can learn more about this process and the findings by watching the recording of our Community Data Party below:
The Spanish transcription of the Aug. 26, 2024 data party is also available:
Past Community Health Improvement Plans
WCPH has created community health improvement plans every three years since 2014. You can see each of these plans below.
CHIP Community Grants Program
Since 2019, Washington County Public Health has offered a Community Grant opportunity through the CHIP each year. Community organization applied for up to $35,000 or up to $70,000 for collaborative projects that address at least one of the CHIP foundational goals and at least one of the CHIP priority areas. Washington County is developing a webpage to document these projects and their impact over the last six years please stay tuned for more information!
Washington County is in the process of developing the next Community Health Improvement Plan (to be released in July 2026) and is making improvements to CHIP processes and to the grant program. During this time, the grant program will be paused. Please sign up for our email list above to make sure you receive updates on the CHIP and funding opportunities.
Toolkit
Making sure everyone has fair access to health and well-being and using Trauma Informed Care (TIC) are guiding principles for Washington County Health and Human Services and the Washington County Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP). To ensure these values are implemented throughout our collaborative health improvement work, this toolkit was created by the CHIP Leadership team to serve as a guides and templates for CHIP committees and to support partners in addressing service gaps and using trauma-informed approaches.
These tools are meant to be examples, guides and templates that can be used as-is or adapted to meet the needs of committees and community partners. This toolkit is a “living document” that will grow and change as we continue to learn how to best support and foster collaboration across our many partnerships in Washington County. Updated versions will be provided to CHIP partners and posted regularly.