Assignment: Community Assessment Worksheet, Rural Health Group
For the data and discussion we are using Community Commons, which combines data from the CDC, American Community Survey, census data and more.
Demographics
o What do population trends reveal (State, Local and National)?
o Has there been a change in population in people over 65 or under 5? (GO TO Change in population). Are some age groups in your county older/younger than the nation/state?
o How could growth or decline in growth in various age groups affect public health planning?
o Why do you think it is important to understand the population and race distribution? Discuss the race demographic trends (growth or decline) in your county/state/nation.
o How do changes in demographics affect public health programs/programming?
o Why does the site list race under Hispanic and Non-Hispanic and how do race and ethnicity, and origin differ? (See Notes at the bottom, and the Hispanic Population tab)
SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC FACTORS: Links within the section are in italics at the end of most questions, abbreviations to note for this section: FPL- Federal Poverty Level, SNAP- Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (food stamps).
o What percentage of children are eligible for Free/Reduced Lunch in your county/state/nation? Why is this an important indicator? (Children Eligible for Free/Reduced Price Lunch)
o What percent of children are living poverty in the county/state/nation? Do all races and ethnicities have similar percentages? (Children in Poverty)
o How is poverty linked to health?
o What are the High school graduation rates for your county/state/nation? And what is the Healthy People 2020 goal? Why is this relevant for health outcomes? (High School Graduation Rate, NCES)
o How is lack of social or emotional support relevant as a health indicator and what it is linked to? And how did your county and state compare to the nation? (Lack of social or emotional support)
o What are the rates of households receiving public assistance income in your county/state/nation? And why is this relevant to health outcomes? (Households Receiving Public Assistance Income)
o What is the Income Per Capita of your county/state/nation? What does income per capita include? How does this compare with the average new nurse salary in the area?
o (Income per Capita) Income per Capita is all income and wages a person receives in a year
o What is the percent of the population living in poverty in the county, state, and nation? And why is this relevant to health status? (Population in Poverty 100% FPL)
o What is the percentage of households receiving SNAP benefits? Why is this relevant to health? (Population Receiving SNAP Benefits, ACS)
o What percent of your county/state/nation do not have a high school diploma? How is this relevant to health status? Describe who and how Community Commons measures this. (Population with No High School Diploma
- For questions 11-13 please click on the (Freudenberg & Ruglis, 2007) link under Population with No High School Diploma.
o Why do these researchers refer to education as the elixir for public health?
o (From Table 3) Name 2 reasons students drop out from each column:
- Individual or family reasons
- Neighborhood or community causes
- School or School System causes
o Name 3 school-based health interventions that have evidence to support a reduction in school drop-out rates?
Health Behavior
o How does Kentucky compare to the USA regarding alcohol consumption? Why do you think the CDC asks about alcohol consumption? (Alcohol Consumption)
o How does Kentucky compare to the USA regarding Fruit and Vegetable consumption? What was the measurement and why is this important to health? (Fruit/Vegetable Consumption)
o How does your county and Kentucky compare to the USA regarding physical inactivity? What are implications might this have on the health care system? (Physical Inactivity)
o How does your county and Kentucky compare to the USA regarding tobacco use? Percent smoking, percent smoked over 100 cigarettes, quit attempts in the past 12 months. (Tobacco Usage: Current, Former and Quit attempts).
Health Outcomes: Look up the following health issues (below) discuss the incidence rate or percent comparison between the nation, state, and county. Do they differ a lot by race/ethnicity? In addition, address the specific question by each disease/health outcome and be thinking about what public health nurses could do to address these, for discussion you do not need to record here.
Asthma Prevalence: Name 2 issues that could exacerbate asthma.
Cancer Incidence- Lung: Name 2 issues that increase the incidence of lung cancer.
Cancer Incidence- Colon: Why are cancer rates addressed by the type of cancer? What is one lifestyle change you can do to reduce your risk of colon cancer?
Chlamydia: Why is this a concern for public health if it is treatable/curable?
Heart Disease(adult): What other indicators is this related to?
Diabetes(adult): What lifestyle/behavior factors increase rates in Kentucky?
Infant Mortality: Who is included in this rate? Why is this a good indicator of health of the community? Death before the age of 1 year
Poor Dental Health: How is this defined and why do you think the state has such high rates? 18+years with 6 or more perm. Teeth removed or lost from poor dental health
Format your assignment according to the following formatting requirements:
o The answer should be typed, using Times New Roman font (size 12), double spaced, with one-inch margins on all sides.
o The response also includes a cover page containing the title of the assignment, the student's name, the course title, and the date. The cover page is not included in the required page length.
o Also include a reference page. The Citations and references must follow APA format. The reference page is not included in the required page length.