Module 5: Conducting Community Service Assessments in Native Communities

Goal of Module 5:

To provide Community Services Assessment steps, tools, and resources for the development of an HIV/AIDS prevention intervention program.

This module contains the fundamentals for the systematic gathering of knowledge to better understand the needs and strengths in your community as they relate to HIV. The knowledge gathered will help to build a strengths-based and community-driven HIV prevention intervention program which responds to community needs. The model used is based on the Community Services Assessment (CSA). This module will take you through the steps of a CSA: needs assessment, resource inventory, and gap analysis.

Contents
7 Gap Analysis

This module helps you create and conduct a CSA to aid in planning your HIV prevention intervention program.

It includes information on:

A gap analysis identifies met and unmet needs and, where possible, quantifies met and unmet needs by focus population. It calls for integrating the following types of information.

1) Data about specific focus populations for the epidemiological profile.

2) Findings regarding the met and unmet needs of these focus populations from the needs assessment.

3) Information about existing resources, how they are funded, and the extent to which they are reaching and serving specific focus populations.

4) Where available, secondary source data about the extent to which existing services are available, accessible and appropriate for focus populations.

Exercise: Assessing Gaps

  • List and review each focus population.
  • Estimate the total need for each focus population.
  • Indicate major differences between need and demand for services for each focus population.
  • Identify barriers to services for each focus population.
  • Assess the suitability of available services for each focus population.
  • Estimate met need for each focus population.
  • Estimate unmet need for each focus population.

To view Our Town’s Gap Analysis click here.