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This week there was an article in the Eagle about how new statistics indicate that where you live plays a role in your health. This comes from a new report that ranks health factors in each of the nation’s 3,000 plus counties. The report released this week (at http://www.countyhealthrankings.org ) examines county-level health. This new database ties standard measures - general health and the rate of premature death - with more fact ors that play a role in those outcomes, from smoking, obesity and binge drinking to the unemployment rate, childhood poverty, air pollution and access to grocery stores.
What was most interesting to me is that Berkshire County ranks 11th out of 14 counties in the state. Why is that? Well, comparing Berkshire County to the top 3 counties (Dukes, Middlesex, and Norfolk) what becomes evident are the factors that are not decisive. It is not due to the level of clinical care as measured by: the number of uninsured adults, the primary care provider rate, preventable hospital stays, diabetic screenings and hospice use-we are number one in that category! What?? We are number one in the categories that measure the efficacy of standard medical care and yet we are 11th out of 14 when it comes to general health and the rate of premature death? What that indicates to me is that "standard medical care" above a certain basic level is not the most important factor for improving our general health. It is also not the unemployment rate, or the number of liquor stores to population. It is not the number of days with high pollution rates. It is the percentage of college graduates (and the increase in number of children living in poverty that goes hand in hand with a decrease in that number) and the access to healthy foods. The 3 top counties have greatly increased numbers of college grads -42%, 48%, 47% respectively, to our 30%. Access to healthy foods is even more telling -50%, 61% 67% to our 29%. Education and healthy foods is what makes a difference! |
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