Health concerns of adults: Qualitative data of the bridge to health survey

Objective: To examine health concerns of Midwestern adults as part of regio nal health planning. Method: Randomly selected households received mailed s urveys. Responses (n = 2,209) to open-ended questions about most important health concerns were analyzed. Results: Insurance costs/access and high cos t of health care were most-cited health concerns. Differences were found in identification of community and state/nation concerns and in urban versus rural residence. Conclusion: Qualitative results Identified different healt h priorities than those revealed by quantitative measures of health status and behavior in the same survey. Analysis of residents' health concerns has potential to improve community health planning.