GROUP GIVES ORANGE COUNTY LOW GRADES FOR HEALTH

HILLSBOROUGH -- When it comes to health, Orange County mostly isn't making
the grade, according to Healthy Carolinians of Orange County.

The coalition of more than 100 residents has issued a report card for the
county, and the only grade above a C is that of tobacco use in youths and
adults. The coalition gave those two categories a B.

But when it comes to adult substance abuse, the county failed, with the
coalition citing an 11 percent increase from 1996 to 1998 in drug and
alcohol hospitalization rates. However, it noted that the percentage
increase may indicate a jump in residents seeking treatment for substance
abuse.

But the coalition also noted that drug arrests in Orange County increased
129 percent from 85 arrests in 1996 to 195 arrests in 1998.

Officials said they hope the report card grabs people's attention and
initiates changes in personal behavior and awareness of community health
resources, not only among community members but also among health care
organizations and professionals.

"Will people be glad we gave ourselves bad grades in these areas? No," said
Mary Beck, chairwoman of the Orange County task force.

But, she noted, the grades are not meant to discourage people in the county.

"People in Orange County are pretty diligent people," she said. "We're
proud of who we are and I think we need to lead the state."

The Healthy Carolinians task force was formed in 1996 and charged with
assessing, recommending and planning strategies with collaborating agencies
to begin to address identified health priorities.

Also receiving low grades this year were the areas of child abuse and
neglect, youth obesity, overweight adults and adult physical activity. Each
received a D.

Receiving Cs were adolescent pregnancy and adult nutrition.

In the area of child abuse, 86 cases of abuse per 1,000 children were
reported in the county in 1998 and 1999, with about 23 cases per 1,000
substantiated.

But, the coalition noted, some positive steps already have been taken in
that area. For instance, the Orange County Department of Social Services
has increased the number of social workers on staff to help thwart child
abuse and neglect, and also holds regular parenting classes.

In the area of weight, Orange County reported that nearly 28 percent of its
adult population was overweight in 1999, the most recent year for which
data were available. The state Center for Health Statistics reported that
56 percent of adults were overweight and nearly 20 percent were obese that
year.

Healthy Carolinians of Orange County has a goal of reducing the number of
overweight adults to 16.8 percent or less by 2010.

The goal of the report card is to align the county with state and national
health objectives by getting residents and health care officials to
recognize and outline goals.

"We want to open people's eyes about what's going on in the community,"
said Ellen Ipsen Young, coordinator for the county group.

The coalition wants to put the county in line with the state's 2010 Health
Objectives, established by the Governor's Task Force for Healthy Carolinians.

Last year, that task force prioritized statewide health risks and
recommendations to build a 10-year vision of "desirable" goals, such as
increasing the healthy life span for North Carolinians, removing health
disparities and promoting access to preventative health services.

But Orange County coalition members said assigning grades for the county in
line with the 2010 objectives was difficult, as the county's methods of
collecting data didn't always match the state's. For example, the county
reported child abuse and neglect cases per 1,000 children, whereas the
state reported the actual number of cases. Nearly 128,000 such cases were
reported in 1998 across the state, with nearly 38,000 substantiated.

"That was one of the biggest problems, finding databases that were
reflective across the board," said Donna King, a coalition member and
county director of health promotion and education services. "This was
really a learning process for us as well. We don't want to compare
ourselves to our neighbors. We want to compare ourselves to state and
national objectives."

Rosemary Summers, Orange County Health Department director and coalition
member, outlined several goals for the county, such as motivating young
residents to make healthy decisions, promoting resources, nutrition and
exercise among adults and just getting more residents involved in Healthy
Carolinians.

Recognizing that long-term health is a reciprocal process, the community
can help the coalition realize future questions to ask and outline actions
to take, she said.

"[The grades] mean that we have a long way to go as a community," she said.
"They aren't going to be fixed quickly. We hope that this is a way to get
folks involved in the process again."