Community Health and Population Focused Nursing
Community Assessment
Western Governor’s University
Mary Piersanti

Identification of Community
The city of Gilbert, AZ lies southeast of the metropolitan area of Phoenix, AZ. Gilbert has a population of 229,972 residents. The city of Gilbert is in the county of Maricopa. Land area is
43 square miles with approximately 5,354 residents per square mile. The metro area of Phoenix,
AZ (including Gilbert and it’s other suburban areas) is known for the hot desert climate. Average temperatures are 80-100 degrees, with greater than 300 days per year of sunshine. With less than 10” rainfall annually, the area is considered to be arid.
Summary of Tools, Description of Selected Community and Interpretation of Selected Data
The following information will summarize the characteristics of the City of Gilbert, disaster assessment and planning, neighborhood safety, cultural assessment, a windshield survey of the community and a community scavenger hunt of available resources for Gilbert citizens.
Population Economic Status Assessment
Of the 229,972 residents in Gilbert, 48.7% are male (112,056). The median age is 32.2 years, with the median age for Phoenix residents being 36 years. 72% of Gilbert residents are
White, 16.2% Hispanic, 5.5% Asian, 2.4% Black, 0.6% American Indian, 0.3% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander, 2.8% two or more races.
Median household income is $79,916 ($68,032 in 2000) as opposed to the Arizona median income which is $47,826. Estimated per capita income is $31,035.
Median housing value is $209,300, as opposed to Arizona median housing value of
$151,500. Median gross rent is $1,262. Cost of living index in Gilbert is 92.9 (US average is
100).

96.3% of residents over the age of 25 have completed high school, 40.3% have completed a Bachelor’s Degree, 12.4% have completed a graduate or professional degree.
Approximately 5% of the Gilbert population is unemployed. There are seven institutions of higher learning located nearby.
59.5% of residents over the age of 15 are married. 27.3% have never been married.
9.1% are divorced. Separated and widowed citizens comprise 4.1% of the population.
There are three hospitals in Gilbert, one hospice company, two home health companies, three dialysis companies, and one physical therapy company.
The median household income in Gilbert is above state average, unemployed percentage is below state average, length of stay since moving in is below state average, house age below state average, and the percentage of population with a bachelor’s degree or higher is significantly above the state average, making Gilbert a young, upwardly mobile community that is a great place to live and enjoys a higher standard of living and good health overall. The homeless population in Gilbert, AZ is very low.
Air quality in Gilbert is good. The City of Phoenix and Maricopa County do not fare as well, however. Statistic brain reports that Phoenix is at Number 8 of major American cities with the worst air pollution. Water quality in the City of Gilbert is good presently, but has been cited for deficiencies in the past, according to the Gilbert City website.
Neighborhood /Community Safety Inventory
According to FBI statistics, the city of Gilbert, AZ is rated as the safest city in the
State of Arizona. Gilbert boasts a well-funded and active police and fire department.
Neighborhood watch programs are in effect in many neighborhoods in the community. Since the

weather is very temperate, many citizens spend large amounts of time outdoors in parks, dog parks, playing sports, swimming, playing tennis and other recreational activities, thus having the ability to “keep an eye” on their own property, as well as others’ property. Teenagers have access to many community pools, parks and recreation centers to keep them from loitering in neighborhoods. There are many teens in the community, but the teenage crime rate is low.
Gilbert’s highways, streets and sidewalks are in good repair. Much of the community is comprised of newer buildings, with the exception of “old” town, the original downtown of
Gilbert, dating back to the early 1900’s when Gilbert was a predominantly agricultural community. There is still much agricultural activity in Gilbert, as well as new businesses and other commerce.
Cultural Assessment
The population of Gilbert is predominantly Caucasian and upper middle class. The problems that poverty brings are not present in the town of Gilbert. There is low unemployment and most of the population enjoys a lifestyle that includes movies, eating out, shopping, etc.
Those that do live in the community that live around or below the poverty line still have good access to healthcare and adequate supplies of food, with Gilbert being an agricultural community. Windshield Survey
The city of Gilbert is part of the larger metropolitan area of Phoenix, AZ. Phoenix is encompassed in Maricopa County. Maricopa County offers multiple services to its’ residents, including a WIC office, the State of Arizona Health Department, Food Pantry, Meals on Wheels,
Department of Human Services, Fire and Police Departments, Substance Abuse treatment

centers, YMCA, Senior Centers, Community Centers, Youth Centers, Domestic Violence centers and shelters, Crisis Child Care Center, Homeless Shelter, Boys and Girls Club, Planned
Parenthood and the Chamber of Commerce.
These organizations target the population of the Maricopa County area that are in need of their services, i.e., the residents of Maricopa County that are in a lower socioeconomic status, who live around or below the poverty line, etc., or residents that are suffering problems with their job, financial issues or family problems. Services are advertised through billboards on the common roadways, pamphlets in physician’s offices, and at the facilities themselves.
Counseling offices also advertise and refer clients to needed services. Multiple languages are spoken at the facilities to serve as large of a client base as possible. Spanish is the predominant language spoken, after English. Most services are offered to clients on a sliding scale basis, i.e., those that aren’t able to pay as much are not charged as much for the service. Each of the organizations has a presence on the internet for those that have internet access. Maricopa County and the City of Phoenix have a good street/freeway system, as well as light rail, buses and taxis to help clients get to the offices they need to get to.
Epidemiological Indicators
According to the Arizona Department of Health and Human Services website, 3,363 live births occurred in Gilbert in the year 2014. 80 of those births were to mothers 19 years old and younger. 177 of those births were low birth weight children. 602 of those births were to unwed mothers. In the same year, 2014, there were 810 deaths in the City of Gilbert. Lung cancer accounts for the highest number of deaths at 246. Next is heart disease at 197 deaths. Suicide accounts

for 26 deaths. There were 17 drug-related deaths.

Next is breast cancer and firearm-related

deaths at 15 deaths each, motor vehicle accidents accounts for 10 deaths. There were no murders or alcohol-related deaths in the City of Gilbert in 2014.

Health Concerns
Based on the above analysis, I have chosen Diabetes, Access to Mental Health Services and Tobacco Use as my three health concerns for the community of Gilbert, AZ.
Since the community enjoys affluence, some of the population is overweight and is either suffering from diabetes or will be at some time in the future (pre-diabetics). Gilbert is not the only community with this problem. This is a public health problem all across the United States as access to processed and “fast” foods becomes more available and less expensive. With the third largest number of deaths behind heart disease and cancer being suicide, access to mental health services is very important, and according to the County Health Rankings website, there are a substantially lower number of mental health providers in Maricopa county than in other counties in Arizona or in other states. My third health concern is tobacco use - adult tobacco use and larger numbers of teenagers in Maricopa county are engaging in smoking cigarettes, chewing tobacco, or e-cigarettes.
Healthy People 2020 objectives for Diabetes state that the disease is becoming more wide-spread across the nation, which will cost more health care dollars, increase the need for more health care providers, and result in more pain and suffering for the individuals suffering from the disease.
The City of Gilbert has good health care providers and facilities to help with the diagnosis and treatment of Diabetes in those that have the disease and do not know it. The community of

Gilbert could be better in advertising and teaching its’ citizens ways to lessen the risk of getting
Diabetes.
Healthy People 2020 objectives for Access to Health Care Providers states that there will be an increased need for providers as the population grows. The population is also in need of having a medical provider/s they can count on and trust. Maricopa County has a definite shortage of mental health care providers. I am not sure what the reason for this is. However, as the population grows, the need will just get larger. The City of Gilbert needs to provide incentives or somehow entice Mental Health providers to the community. The government of Arizona also needs to recognize this shortage of mental health providers and attempt to discover why medical providers are not specializing in mental health and how to encourage more providers to do that.
Community health nurses could and should be instrumental in this challenge. Lastly, Healthy
People 2020 objectives for Tobacco Use state the risks associated with smoking, smokeless tobacco, and secondhand smoke. The goals are to reduce the amount of use of tobacco products through comprehensive education, raising the prices of smoking products and a campaign to educate the public about the dangers of using tobacco products.
Primary Prevention
I am choosing “Access to Health Services” as my primary prevention topic. As mentioned above, there should be a state-wide effort between Arizona government and agencies and facilities across the state to address the fact that there aren’t as many medical providers that are willing to pursue mental health careers (psychiatrists, licensed counselors, licensed clinical social workers, etc.), and how to encourage those that are interested in medical careers to pursue a mental health degree. Healthy People 2020 states that some of the barriers to accessing health/

mental health care are lack of providers, high cost to the patient, and lack of insurance to cover the needed services. Hopefully, the Affordable Care Act will help patients access the providers that are there so as to avoid experiencing the negative outcomes of a lower level of healthcare access, including premature death or disability related to the patient’s health care needs.
Overall, the City of Gilbert is a very healthy community with some of the same needs as communities all over the United States. With an astute public health team, some, if not all of these problems can be improved or solved.

References

Town of Gilbert, Arizona : Home. (2014). Retrieved May 17, 2015, from http:// www.gilbertaz.gov/ City-Data.com - Gilbert, Arizona (2014). Retrieved May 17, 2015, from http://

www.city-

data.com

Arizona Department of Health Services. (2013). Retrieved May 17, 2015, from

http://

www.azdhs.gov

Healthy People 2020. (2014). Retrieved May 14, 2015, from http://www healthypeople.gov

Statistic Brain | Numbers | Percentages | Financials | Rankings | Statistic Brain. (2014).
Retrieved May 17, 2015, from http://www.statisticbrain.com