Listening Tour
Cottage Health, Santa Barbara County Public Health Department, University of California, Santa Barbara, and other partners identified a need for a deeper understanding of youth behavioral health, COVID-19 impacts, and maternal health equity in our community.
To facilitate this, we started by listening -- to those who work on the front lines and community members from diverse backgrounds.
The thoughts and perspectives shared during the Listening Tour gave insight into the needs and inequities across the county and opportunities to improve health outcomes.
Findings
This process was designed to glean key insights across the broader population and among those most vulnerable in the community. Conducted with the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessment, the Listening Tour included more than thirty focus groups and interviews with health providers, nonprofit workers, educators, government leaders, and members of the community.
Learn more about what we heard during the Listening Tour:
Findings per focus area help to highlight bright spots and opportunities within each topic:
A description of the methodology of the Listening Tour can be found here. Additional information on the Listening Tour, including a follow-up survey and the full protocol can be found in the 2022 Community Health Needs Assessments Report.
During the Listening Tour, we heard the voices of our community members, especially the most vulnerable. These conversations helped to identify and prioritize health and well-being needs and opportunities across Santa Barbara County and formulate recommendations for the greatest impact.
