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County Scores Low In Statewide Health Ratings

MAYVILLE — Among 62 New York state counties, Chautauqua ranks 58th in the category of Health Outcomes and 57th in the category of Health Factors, according to a report released this week by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. These figures are slightly worse than the 2017 rankings of 54 for Health Outcomes and 48 for Health Factors.

“We have known for some time that there is much work to be done to improve health in Chautauqua County, but these data points reinforce the need for community action to improve health behaviors such as tobacco use, nutrition, and physical activity,” said Christine Schuyler, Director of Health and Human Services. “The most recent CDC surveys indicate that Chautauqua County has the highest adult smoking rate and adult obesity rate in New York State. We all play a role in making our community healthier, and it’s time to step up and make changes — individually and at the organization and community levels.”

The Health Outcomes category focuses on mortality (death) and morbidity (illness) and looks at factors such as premature death, number of poor physical and mental health days, and occurrence of low birth weight among babies. A higher rate of premature death was seen compared to many other counties in New York state, which looks at the years of potential life lost rate — deaths prior to age 75. Premature death in Chautauqua County is primarily due to heart disease, cancer, suicide, and fatal drug overdoses. Deaths to younger people impact the rate greater than deaths of older people, such as 65-year-olds who have heart attacks.

The Health Factors category consists of subcategories including health behaviors (smoking, obesity, alcohol consumption, etc.), clinical care, social and economic factors (unemployment, education, crime, etc.), and the physical environment (built environment and quality of environment).

In the Health Behaviors subcategory, Chautauqua County ranked as 62 out of 62 counties, largely due to elevated rates of adults who smoke (24 percent) and adults who are obese (33 percent), according to CDC surveys. The county’s high teen birth rate of 29 births per 1,000 females ages 15-19 (compared to 18 births per 1,000 females ages 15-19 in New York state) also factored into the poor rank.

Chautauqua County did well in the Clinical Care subcategory, ranked 21 out of the 62 counties. Contributing to this positive measure were a lower percentage of individuals uninsured, lower than average preventable hospital stays, and a relatively high percentage of female Medicare enrollees who had received mammography screenings. This rank also considers patient to provider ratios and diabetes monitoring.

The subcategory of Social and Economic Factors is an area for improvement, with a rank of 55 out of 62. High rates of children living in poverty and unemployment negatively influenced our ranking in this subcategory, while a high rate of social associations benefitted the county’s rank.

“Childhood poverty is prevalent in Chautauqua County- impacting nearly 30 percent of all children,” said Schuyler. “The issue is even greater for minority populations, with 56 percent of African American children and 55 percent of Hispanic children living in poverty in our County. We know that social determinants — income, education, employment, etc. — greatly influence health. Our Department will continue to work creatively to address the needs of our most at-risk residents.”

Chautauqua County’s biggest improvement, and best rank, was seen in the Physical Environment subcategory. Number 13 out of the 62 counties, this ranking was affected most by the absence of any major public water violations.

“Many collaborative efforts to help us positively impact the health and welfare of all are underway through our communities,” said Schuyler. “Along with that, individuals need to take responsibility for their own health and well-being and that of their loved ones — this includes making good lifestyle and behavior choices.”

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