County health study: Greene near bottom, Washington in middle
Washington County may be in Southwestern Pennsylvania, but health-wise, it is in the middle of the state.
County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, a Madison, Wis.-based organization, evaluates the health of almost every county in the U.S. Results were released Wednesday morning, and of the Keystone State’s 67 counties, Washington is 34th overall – squarely in the middle.
That is a solid spot, but also a big drop from 21st – top third – in 2016.
Greene County did not fare as well, finishing 55th. Yet that was an improvement from 59 a year earlier, and a quantum leap from 65th in 2011, when the study went national.
Data is gathered and more than 30 factors – including education, housing and jobs – are examined. The Wisconsin Population Health Institute does the lead work on the rankings, which the institute released jointly with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
Jerry Spegman, a community coach for County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, explained that overall rankings – Health Outcomes – are determined by results in four categories. They are social and economic factors (40 percent); health behaviors (30 percent); clinical care (20 percent); and physical environment (10 percent).
Examining the local figures, Spegman said Washington’s overall standing was good, but there is a concern. He pointed out that Washington was a lofty 16th in social and economic factors, but was 34th overall and in health behaviors (adult smoking, adult obesity and excessive drinking among the subcategories).
“What’s surprising is if you have a good number in social and economic factors, you might be might be expecting a good number in health behaviors. That doesn’t carry through in Washington County,” he said. “The county has a big gap between 16 and 34. You really have to pay attention to the individual measures. We ask that you look closely at them and don’t get to wrapped up in rankings.
“Community leaders there should not stop at 34. If they stay there, it’s a big mistake.”
Washington is better than or on a par with state averages in many categories, but does lag in three subcategories in clinical care. The county has 1,200 residents for every mental health provider, twice the statewide ratio. It also lags behind in residents to dentists (1,670:1 vs. 1,530:1 statewide) and primary care physicians (1,300:1 vs. 1,230:1).
Greene County, on the contrary, ranked below Washington in three categories: health behaviors (56th to 34th among counties); clinical care (64th to 46th) and social and economic factors (58th to 16th). Greene was 18th in the state in physical environment compared with 42nd for Washington.
“By our figures, it looks like Greene has a challenging number of health problems,” Spegman said. “But as a profile, Greene County has more consistent numbers than Washington.”
County Health Rankings & Roadmaps introduced a new subcategory this year – disconnected youth. They are 16- to 24-year-olds who are not in school or working. Greene’s figure, 19 percent, is well above the state (13 percent) and Washington County (11 percent) rates.
Fayette had the lowest health ranking of Southwest Pennsylvania counties, 65th – two from the bottom. Butler was the highest in this region, seventh, followed by Westmoreland (16), Allegheny (29), Washington, Beaver (38), Indiana (49) and Armstrong (50).
The top five, for the second year in a row, are Chester, Centre, Union, Montgomery and Cumberland. Sullivan and Philadelphia counties are at the bottom, following Fayette.
For more information, visit http://www.countyhealthrankings.org.