Health Indicators of Essex County

Relatively speaking, Essex County fares similarly to the rest of the state and the nation in the indicators of Morbidity and Mortality. However, they have a slightly higher mortality rate than the rest of the state and the nation, in addition to having more poor or fair health as compared to the rest of the nation. The social and economic indicators show some more variation. The high school graduation rate of Essex is higher than the rest of New York, but the college attendance rates are lower. In addition, the unemployment rate is significantly higher than the state and the rest of the nation's. The violent crime rate is significantly lower than the rest of the state's, however, it is higher than the national average.

One health behavior indicator that stands out to me is the adult obesity rate of Essex. This rate is higher than the rest of the state and the nation. This strikes me as anomalous because I would have thought that being in the Adirondacks would promote a healthier lifestyle. I always assumed that it attracted a certain demographic of people that value physical activity, the outdoors, nature and nutrition. However, Essex county does encompass a broad range of New York state that does areas other than the Adirondacks. In addition, since Essex county is a rural county, it makes since that the adult obesity rate is higher on average. Rural counties tend to have less health networks and providers. In addition, more blue-collar people live in rural counties and this demographic tends to be less educated, as evidenced by the low college attendance rate.

The incredibly high ratio of primary care physicians per Essex County resident is evidence of the fact that rural communities have less health care providers. In fact, this ratio is nearly three times that of the state and national average. This statistic alone highlights the great need for more primary care physicians in Essex County. If this issue were to be addressed, I believe that many of the other health indicators would be improved as well.