What are the most serious problems impacting the health of Chippewa Valley residents, and what can be done to solve them? Those are the questions motivating a survey being conducted through Sept. 24 by a coalition that includes public health agencies and health care providers.

The Chippewa Valley Community Health Survey is open to all adults who live or work in Eau Claire, Dunn, or Chippewa counties. The survey, which should take only 5 minutes to complete, is available in English, Spanish, and Hmong. Participation is anonymous and confidential.

The survey is conducted every three years, and it’s just the first step in gathering community opinions, the Eau Claire City-Council Health Department said in a media release. “The partnership plans to hold several community conversations later this fall across all three counties to discuss survey results, talk about other health data, and ask people what factors contribute to health issues in our area,” the release said. “At the end of this process, a report called a Community Health Assessment will be released for each of the three counties. These reports will then be used to build Community Health Improvement Plans, which are used to work on solutions for the health issues that Chippewa Valley community members decide are the highest priorities.”

The survey can be taken electronically at surveymonkey.com/r/CVsurvey2023 by Sunday, Sept. 24. To get a paper copy, contact Alex Craker at the Eau Claire City-County Health Department by phone (715-271-9902) or email (alex.craker@eauclairecounty.gov).

The partnership that created the survey includes the Chippewa County Department of Public Health, the Dunn County Health Department, the Eau Claire City-County Health Department, HSHS Sacred Heart Hospital, HSHS St. Joseph’s Hospital, Marshfield Clinic Health System, Mayo Clinic Health System, United Way of Dunn County, and United Way of the Greater Chippewa Valley.