What is CWS?
The Child Wellness Survey (CWS) is a survey for families with children aged 6 months to 11 years across Washington state that started in 2024. The survey explores how families are doing by asking about the health and development of their child, access to childcare, and other topics.
The survey will run every other year and will be administered by our contractor, Market Decisions Research. The project is funded through Foundational Public Health Services, which is a collaborative public health governance system between the State Department of Health, American Indian Health Commission, and Washington State Association of Local Public Health Officials.
Survey questions
View a copy of the 2024 Child Wellness survey questions (PDF)
Why take part in the survey?
Parenting is hard work, and we hope that this survey will help us to learn how to best support families. Learning about your experiences as a parent, your child’s health, family strengths, and community support will help children in Washington State including your own to grow up to be healthy and happy. Those who complete the survey will also receive a $20 gift card.
How does it work?
The child’s name and their parent/guardian contact information are randomly drawn from a list of eligible households with young children across our state.
Our contractor will contact eligible households on behalf of the Washington State Department of Health. Families will be contacted through the mail, email, and/or a phone call. The survey can be completed online or by phone and does not involve any in-person or door-to-door interviews.
All questions are voluntary. You can resume, reschedule, or end the survey at any time. If we call you at an inconvenient time or you are unable to complete the survey, you can schedule another time to complete it.
How will you keep my information secure and confidential?
Family and children cannot be identified. All names are removed to keep responses confidential and only summarized results will be shared publicly. Only trained staff have permission to work with confidential information and survey data is saved using secure technology.
We will never ask for you or your child’s:
- Social Security Number
- Credit card information
- Bank account information
- Money or donations
How long does it take?
The survey may take up to 20 minutes.
Thank you!
We greatly appreciate your willingness to take part in this important health survey. If you have questions, please contact the Child Wellness Survey team at child.wellness@doh.wa.gov.