CHES (Certified Health Education Specialist) Practice Exam 2025 – Your All-in-One Guide to Exam Success!

The primary goal of a health needs assessment is indeed to identify behaviors conducive to health. This process involves systematically collecting and analyzing data about the health status and needs of a population. By focusing on behaviors, a health needs assessment can pinpoint specific health-related practices or lifestyle choices that may be contributing to health outcomes within that community. Understanding these behaviors enables health educators and policymakers to design targeted interventions that promote healthier choices, ultimately benefiting the overall health of the population.

Identifying health behaviors is crucial because they are modifiable factors that can significantly influence health outcomes. For example, if a community assessment reveals high rates of smoking or physical inactivity, targeted initiatives can be developed to address these issues, such as smoking cessation programs or community exercise events.

While evaluating health policy effectiveness, assessing financial resources, and examining environmental impacts can provide valuable insights into a community's health landscape, they do not directly focus on individual and collective behaviors crucial for health improvements. Therefore, these aspects serve as supportive components of a broader health assessment but do not represent the core objective of identifying health-promoting behaviors.