USF Health Survey

[swrinfla]

Owners will be receiving the long-awaited survey from USF Health later this week (that is, about 02/11/12).

I urge all to take the time to complete the 7-page survey. In the long run, your participation may well help the next generation of Villagers to live an even better life than we do now.

USF hopes that all 88,000 or so of us will respond. Considering that Villagers are many times more likely to take part in something as potentially game-changing as this survey, I think we should really blow away the minds of researchers by having a better than 98% return rate! :-)

Please. I am behind The Villages' partnership with USF 1,000%.

SWR
:beer3:

[Walker]

In the Health Survey, if they ask for suggestions on exercising and staying active, I'm going to suggest that the existing fitness centers (gyms) should be INCLUDED in the amenities. I may not play tennis or pickleball, but would use the workout machines once in a while. The other 55+ community I was interested in had a fitness center included. Even if they charged a dollar for towel service or the attendant it would much better than what they have now. I also wonder if they are going to build a new one for Sanibel or are they all supposed to go to Colony?

[Bogie Shooter]

In the Health Survey, if they ask for suggestions on exercising and staying active, I'm going to suggest that the existing fitness centers (gyms) should be INCLUDED in the amenities. I may not play tennis or pickleball, but would use the workout machines once in a while. The other 55+ community I was interested in had a fitness center included. Even if they charged a dollar for towel service or the attendant it would much better than what they have now. I also wonder if they are going to build a new one for Sanibel or are they all supposed to go to Colony?

This is a health survey not a survey for wants and needs.
That survey will be coming later from the developer, there you can raise your concerns about having an attendant, etc.

[duffysmom]

How anonymous are these surveys? I notice that each survey has a different number for each person. In this day and age I'm skeptical about giving out so much information. I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks

[al & jane]

Think the survey is an excellent idea but we were confused as there were two similar but slightly different forms in our packet. One had 51 survey questions and the other 61.....

[rubicon]

Save yourself some ink and just write across it the Greek philosophy "Moderatio in all things."

[swrinfla]

duffysmom:

"Completely anonymous." That's what the folks from USF assure us. And, I am 99.9999% certain that that's true.

Yes, each survey is (will be) coded with a tracking number. Theorhetically, that number could be tracked to you, personally, BUT, it would take a dedicated and hard-working slueth to decode it.

The tracking number was assigned to be sure that the results don't expose 1,000, 100 or even 2 responses from the same number.

True, the number of surveys each home will receive was determined by an analysis of TV homeowner data. Thus, if TV records show that there are 3 people at 1234 Whatever Street, then there will be 3 surveys for that address, each with a different tracking number.

As one who once upon a time designed and administered surveys, always seeking anonimity yet completeness, I have been hugely impressed by the original design of this study.

Yes, it will ask personal questions. BUT, if any member of the research staff at USF should bother to try to identify who an individual may be, I will vouch that it will be virtually impossible to tie a particular survey response to a particular individual.

I hope that you will all set aside any confidentiality concerns.

SWR
:beer3:

[Skip]

duffysmom:
"Completely anonymous."
I hope that you will all set aside any confidentiality concerns.
SWR

By definition a Tracking Number is so the response can be tracked to its source. Why else would you go to that expense to put a unique number on every survey?

Therefore it's NOT anonymous.

Skip

[billethkid]

you will also note that if you get two surveys for your residence, if they are like the ones we received, they are slightly different. It doesn't matter who fills out which one. There are no questions included that could be viewed as privacy oriented....not at all. I am sure they can match up addresses and tracking numbers if they want and determine who submitted what. There is nothing personally invasive what so ever.
A very bland, plain vanilla (and boring) survey. Like all surveys, designed to get the perspective they are looking for from individuals.
And of course very TV like.

btk

[graciegirl]

By definition a Tracking Number is so the response can be tracked to its source. Why else would you go to that expense to put a unique number on every survey?

Therefore it's NOT anonymous.

Skip

In gathering medical information or any information the survey would not be valid or credible if a person filled out more than one. I don't think there is any reason to worry.

I typed the above before I filled out the questionaire. I don't think there was anything on the questionaire that would cause me to worry about people tracing it to me.

[uujudy]

Think the survey is an excellent idea but we were confused as there were two similar but slightly different forms in our packet. One had 51 survey questions and the other 61.....

I'm curious Al & Jane, how did you decide who answered the 61 question survey. Paper, scissors, rock? We haven't received our surveys yet, so I'm anticipating. I want to get it right.

Another question I have is about the deadline to return the surveys. They want them returned in a few weeks, right? If one member of the household won't be back in TV until well after the deadline, do they want the survey back even if it's late? Should I just fill it in for him? I'm sure I'm not the only one with this dilemma. Or maybe the answer to this is on the survey, and I'm just borrowing trouble...:p

[pqrstar]

If someone wishes to complete the survey online, they can do so by using the tracking number in the top right corner.

If your spouse is away they can complete the survey online.

I would also think the tracking number is used to prevent someone submitting the survey both ways, online and on paper.

[uujudy]

pqrstar, thanks for the info!

[skyguy79]

I just completed the survey online. No problem and I had no hesitation to answer questions because I feel that if they were really trying to track my personal information individually, they wouldn't have included the two separate surveys in a single envelope. They would have mailed the separately. Doing it the way they did, they couldn't know if it was me or my wife. Besides you can leave blank any question you don't want to answer.

[Taltarzac725]

We got three different surveys. One with 58, another with 51, and the third with 68 questions.

Noticed the numbers on the surveys are 6 digit and non-sequential.

The 100000 level one is 68 questions.

The 200000 level one is 58.

While, the 300000 is 51.

I wonder if this is standard?

I will fill mine out.

Hard to trace that it was me though that filled out one of these from the pool of three we received, unless I put in something in the one I am filling out that would make me stand out in some way.

The survey does instruct you not to put in any linking information.

I may put in the suggestion that the USF Health Survey take some kind of role in getting links to Victims of Crime as well as Mental Health resources from both the 3 Villages' Sheriffs Offices' websites as well as the 3 public library websites. I doubt if they have them even though I had made some suggestions about this in the past 4 years or so.

The Villages Daily Sun even did an article (by Gary Corsair) a few years back about my efforts with the three local public library systems and the link to the Florida Victim Services Directory. http://myfloridalegal.com/directory

I remember being in a study back in San Francisco at a prominent medical school in March 1993 where the researcher had actually taken an interest in the role of libraries getting practical information to victims of crimes AFTER I had finished with the last interview. She seemed to think it was a good idea even if there was very little practical information for victims of crimes yet available. There's a great deal now.

If other TOTVers think this is a good idea to have these links from the public libraries and the sheriffs' offices, please help with the effort! The USF Health Study could make this happen and I will not stand out in the survey response pool if other TOTVers also put in this suggestion.

Some of my lack of success with other FL counties' public libraries and the link to the Florida Victims Services Directory

http://myfloridalegal.com/directory was that I was the only person actually making this suggestion. I even talked to a Pasco Co. reference librarian who had said as much point blank a number of years back.

[PaPaLarry]

I will be happy to fill out survey!!! Down the road, it will be helpful to all of us who care. Judging by the amount of people who attend the medical talks at Recreation Centers, there are plenty of people interested. Who cares how many questions on survey etc?? I'll just answer questions and send it on in. They still don't have your medical records, unless you want to volunteer them. I think this is a great idea to do this survey. So much more will come from it, plus we will be helping our fellow man and woman!!:a040::bigbow:

[Yorio]

We attended the session at Savannah and we will definitely answer the survey and it will be nice to be called America's Healthiest Hometown in addition to being called Florida's Friendliest Hometown. Usually political surveys are around 2,000 plus to make it quite accurate give or take a few points up or down. So, 87,000 seems like over kill but..... I was hoping for a survey like they did in Farmingham, Mass. where they tracked people for decades. In our case, they may not have to do it for a long time unless they can follow us up above. The key question for me and for the future seniors will be whether the life style we lead including those happy hours will contribute more than 50% of the Villagers to a healthy life well passed 90+. In that regards, I don't mind being a guinea pig like the population of Farmingham with all the physical baggage I own.:)

[saratogaman]

Who funded this effort...private foundation, corporatations or we taxpayers?

[graciegirl]

Who funded this effort...private foundation, corporatations or we taxpayers?

It is probably funded by a research grant to USF. Sometimes that is from business and sometimes from government.

[Villages PL]

How anonymous are these surveys? I notice that each survey has a different number for each person. In this day and age I'm skeptical about giving out so much information. I would like to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks

On the cover page it gives a phone number that you can call if you have any concerns about the survey. When you call them to voice your concern about privacy, there's a recorded message that says: "We are not available to take your call at this time. At the sound of the tone, leave your name and phone number and we will call you back." :) There's your privacy.

[Bogie Shooter]

The tracking number was assigned to be sure that the results don't expose 1,000, 100 or even 2 responses from the same number.

[Skip]

The tracking number was assigned to be sure that the results don't expose 1,000, 100 or even 2 responses from the same number.

What you're saying is that some people would go to the trouble of counterfeiting the form 1,000 times and sit and fill in the blanks for about 60,000 questions, then counterfeit the envelopes too and stuff them in the amenities box a few at a time. All this to tilt the average response a little.

That's very clever!

Wonder why they're going through The Villages first and not sent back to USF Health in Tampa directly who is suppose to be doing the tallying?

Skip

[graciegirl]

What you're saying is that some people would go to the trouble of counterfeiting the form 1,000 times and sit and fill in the blanks for about 60,000 questions, then counterfeit the envelopes too and stuff them in the amenities box a few at a time. All this to tilt the average response a little.

That's very clever!

Wonder why they're going through The Villages first and not sent back to USF Health in Tampa directly who is suppose to be doing the tallying?

Skip


Boy Howdy.

[zcaveman]

I don't understand why there are two different questionaires. The missing questions are fairly important.

Maybe we will only do the one with the most questions and trash the other one.

[Bogie Shooter]

Another conspiracy in The Villages. That bad developer is at it again!

[uujudy]

. . .
Wonder why they're going through The Villages first and not sent back to USF Health in Tampa directly who is suppose to be doing the tallying?

Skip

Skip, I think I figured it out.
If you look at the envelope the surveys came in, you'll see that they're printed with a non-profit permit. Over top of the permit is a sticker stamped with $00.85 postage. For some reason, the non profit permit couldn't be used, so they paid the first class rate to mail the surveys to ~ 40,000 households. According to my calculator 40,000 x $0.85 = $34,000. I think it would have been approximately half that amount if they could have used the non profit permit.

By depositing the surveys in the box at the mail station, I think they save the first class postage cost to send them directly to Tampa, especially since the postage cost was double what they expected to spend.

Jessica Fletcher