PRESS RELEASE
April 30, 2001
Contact: Gay Gross at 294-5313
ggross@cityofmadison.com
Picture of Health 2001- Community Health Status Report
To help celebrate Public Health Month, the Madison Department of Public Health is publishing the second edition of the Picture of Health. This community health report card has information on key health status indicators for Madison. A unique feature is comparison of Madison health status to national standards to point out areas aligned with national goals, health areas needing improvement and key health trends to watch. Health indicators selected are access to health care, leading causes of death and hospitalization, selected chronic diseases, behavioral risk factors, use of preventive health services, maternal and infant health, infectious diseases, and environmental health.
Madison is in fact a picture of health with an adequate supply of health and dental providers, ambient air and drinking water quality which meet national standards, and because Madison has already met many of the Healthy People 2010 objectives -- deaths due to heart disease, diabetes and injuries. (Healthy People 2010 are 10-year health goals for the nation developed by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.) But, for other Healthy People 2010 leading indicators there is room for improvement. Madison is not meeting national standards related to deaths due to all cancers, obesity, tobacco, alcohol misuse, use of preventive health screenings, some infectious diseases associated with improper food handling, Tuberculosis, and toxic air emissions.
Healthy People 2010 central themes are to increase quality and years of life and eliminate health disparities. Yet, almost 1/3 of community residents are without dental insurance, and 10% of the population lack health insurance, a major barrier to accessing health and dental care. There are clear disparities in the health status of mothers and infants. Latino and African American mothers are less likely to begin early prenatal care and are at greater risk for delivering low birth weight infants than white mothers. Infant mortality is a universal indicator of the health of a community, but infant death rates for non-white babies are 2 ½ times greater than for white babies.
In 1995 the Madison Department of Public Health initiated the HealthQuest community health improvement process by publishing the first edition of the Picture of Health. Since data is the cornerstone of community health assessment, it is time after six years to again examine the health of the community. Picture of Health 2001, second edition, gives a snapshot of the health of Madison.
For a complete copy of the health status report contact Gay Gross at 294-5313.
Resources Available
The Madison Department of Public is already addressing many of the health disparities noted in Picture of Health 2001, and additional information is available on the Department's web site. For more information about the Health Quest community health improvement process and the strategic priorities click on: http://www.cityofmadison.com/health/health/commhealth/health_quest.html
For information about resources for pregnancy, child health, and prenatal care click on: www.cityofmadison.com/health/phn/pregnancy.html or for information on the Women, Infants and Children Nutrition program click on: http://www.cityofmadison.com/health/phn/wic.html
For information about immunization resources click on:
http://www.cityofmadison.com/health/phn/immunizations.html
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