County ranks as 24th healthiest in Ohio

DAVE MOSIER/independent editor

The health of Van Wert County residents has improved dramatically over the past three years, according to the fifth Annual County Health Rankings released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.

The county was ranked 24th out of the state’s 88 counties in health outcomes, while ranking 16th in health factors. This represents significant progress over the overall health ranking of 39th out of 88 Ohio counties in 2011. The 2014 County Health Rankings list adult smoking, adult obesity, physical inactivity, and alcohol-impaired driving deaths as specific health factors where there is room for improvement in Van Wert County.

Although the county had a good ranking in the state, a couple of neighboring counties did even better. Mercer County was fifth in the state, while Putnam County was second. Auglaize County was ranked 13th statewide, while Allen County was 39th and Paulding County 60th among the 88 Ohio counties.

The data and analysis provided allows health officials to see what it is that is making residents sick or healthy and how their county compares to other counties in their state. The rankings data also helps to provide information for health improvement efforts of governors, mayors, business leaders, and citizens across the country.

The County Health Rankings show that how long and how well people live depends on multiple factors that influence health. These factors include access to medical care, rates of childhood poverty, rates of smoking, obesity levels, teen birth rates, access to physicians and dentists, rates of high school graduation and college attendance, access to healthy foods, levels of physical activity, and percentages of children living in single parent households.

In order to better address the health needs of the community, the health department, Van Wert County Hospital and other local health stakeholders recently formed the Van Wert County Health Collaborative.  This group met regularly during the fall of 2013 to develop a Community Health Improvement Plan, drawing from multiple sources to identify priorities for improvement of overall health in Van Wert County.  The group meets regularly to work toward improvement in the priority areas of adult and childhood obesity and substance abuse.

The data and conclusions found in the 2014 County Health Rankings will inform and provide direction for the continued efforts of community health partners working together to create a culture of health in Van Wert County.  For more information on the 2014 County Health Rankings, visit www.countyhealthrankings.org.

To learn about the Van Wert County Health Collaborative and the Community Health Improvement Plan visit http://www.vanwertcountyhealth.org/community%20health%20improvement.php.