The Kitsap County Health District is sponsoring a community-wide telephone survey of health status and local community needs. The “Kitsap County 2003 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey” will be conducted throughout the year and will conclude in December.

It includes questions about health behaviors including exercise, smoking, cancer screening, and access to health care services. The survey result will be used to evaluate the health status of adults in Kitsap County.

Approximately 750 randomly selected adults, aged 18 years and older, will be interviewed. Professional interviewers working for a survey company with offices in Bremerton and Seattle will make the calls. Calls will be made primarily during the evening hours, and some may occur on weekends.

The interviewer will ask to speak to a randomly selected adult. Households with unlisted phone numbers may also be called, since the telephone numbers are picked randomly by a computer and not from the phone book. The interview will last about 20 minutes for each adult. Answers to the interview will be kept strictly confidential, and no one will know who has responded to the survey.

The findings from the survey will be available in the Spring of 2004. The Health District will use the result to develop services that meet the needs of Kitsap County residents.

Anyone having questions about the survey can call the Health District’s Assessment Program at (360) 337-5258. Additional information is also available on line at www.kitsapcountyhealth.com.