The handbook, intended for rural citizens seeking to improve health care in their communities, concentrates on assessment of community health care. Sections cover four steps of the community assessment process, i.e., self preparation, organization, community identification of problems and goals, and community action plan development. "Step One: Self Preparation," contains six activities addressing the community, its citizens, and health services. "Step Two: Organization," provides two activities dealing with eliciting participation from the community, organizing Core Action Groups, and convening the first community meeting. "Step Three: Community Identification of Problems and Goals," contains six activities aimed toward getting as much advice from the community as possible."Step Four: Action Plan Development," contains four activities addressing the development of goals and a plan of action for dealing with community health services. Each of the four sections contains a checklist and a set of questions pertinent to the materials covered in the section. Appended is the "Data Outline for Community Health Assessment" instrument. (AH)