Posted: April 11th, 2015

How Healthy is Your Community?

To prepare for this Discussion, first learn a little about the health statistics for your county. If you are not located in the U.S., pick a state and county you might like to visit or know more about to complete this assignment. Go to the Community Health Status Indicators Report, and select your state and county to review your local report.
http://wwwn.cdc.gov/CommunityHealth/homepage.aspx?j=1

Then, go to the Walden Library and find at least one recent (within last 5 years) article in addition to your Learning Resources to document, and support, the concepts you include in your Discussion post. For suggestions to help with your search, visit the Library http://library.waldenu.edu/908.htm

Post a comprehensive response to the following:

Using the information available on the Community Health Status Indicators Report, provide a summary of the following information in your county. Use the article(s) you located, as well as your Learning Resources, to support your answers to the following questions in your post:

1. Identify your county and state. ( California)

2. How healthy is your county? What evidence did you use to come to your conclusion?

3. What vulnerable populations are identified in your county? Are there groups of individuals who have health disparities? Are there issues related to access to care within your county? If so, what are they?

4. Highlight the risk factors for premature death and environmental health concerns seen in you county.

5. Where does your county excel or fall behind in preventive health? Provide examples.

• Learning Resources

Required Resources

Readings

• Course Text: Public and Global Health Essentials

•
o Chapter 3, “Evidence-Based Public Health”

What is the etiology and burden of disease in a population? Has it changed over time? Data from public health sources provides essential information for those professionals as they work to understand the problem and strive to improve the health of people around the world.

• Article: Brennan Ramirez, L. K., Baker, E. A., & Metzler, M. (2008). Promoting health equity: A resource to help communities address social determinants of health. Atlanta, GA: U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/healthycommunitiesprogram/tools/pdf/SDOH-workbook.pdf

o Introduction (p. 4)

o Chapter 1, “Achieving Health Equity” (pp. 6–11)

The link between social determinants of health, including food supplies, housing, economics, relationships, and the overall environment to public health outcomes is widely recognized. This workbook from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention provides an explanation, examples, and a plan for reducing health inequities in a community. This week, you will read Chapter 1 to better understand health equity, health disparities, and the social determinants of health. You will be reading other chapters later in this course.
• Article: World Health Organization. (2008). Closing the gap in a generation: Health equity through action on the social determinants of health. Retrieved from http://whqlibdoc.who.int/hq/2008/WHO_IER_CSDH_08.1_eng.pdf
World Health Organization (2008). Closing the Gap in a Generation Health Equity Through Action on the Social Determinants of Health. Copyright (C) World Health Organization. Used by permission.

Health equity and social justice affect the way people live, their chance of illness, and their risk of premature death. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), health and illness follow a social gradient: the lower the socioeconomic position, the worse the health of those individuals. The WHO report, Closing the gap in a generation, provides recommendations to reduce disparities and improve health equity through global action on the social determinants of health. This Executive Summary, from the Commission on Social Determinants of Health, will help you gain an appreciation of the health challenges facing citizens around the globe.

• Article: Friel, S., Chopra, M., & Satcher, D. (2007). Unequal weight: Equity oriented policy responses to the global obesity epidemic. BMJ, 335(7632), 1241–1243. Retrieved from http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2137064/
A growing global problem of obesity is unequally distributed between and within countries. This article, from the British Medical Journal, through the example of obesity, demonstrates the critical health equity concepts covered in class this week. Use the permalink in the Syllabus and the online classroom.

• Slides: CDC. (2009). State-specific Prevalence of Obesity Among U.S. Adults by Race/Ethnicity, 2006-2008..
Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity and Obesity, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 1600 Clifton Rd. Atlanta, GA 30333, USA. Used by permission.

In recent years, the obesity rates have seen a dramatic increase across the U.S. The CDC, using data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS), shows recent trends in obesity in non-Hispanic whites, non-Hispanic blacks, and Hispanics in the U.S.
Websites
• CDC: Overweight and Obesity
http://www.cdc.gov/obesity/data/adult.html

Obesity rates have been climbing across the country. This Centers for Disease Control and Prevention webpage shows trend data and links to information about overweight and obesity issues in the United States.

• CDC: National Center for Health Statistics
http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/
The National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) is a valuable source of information about America’s health. NCHS uses data from many sources to identify disparities, monitor trends in health status and health care delivery, as well as compile statistical information to guide actions and policies to improve the health our citizens. NCHS is a key element of our national public health infrastructure, providing important surveillance information that helps identify and address critical health problems.

• U.S. Department of Health & Human Services. (2009). Community health status indicators. Retrieved from http://wwwn.cdc.gov/CommunityHealth/homepage.aspx?j=1