Lower 8 Community Health Assessment: Crawford County

The following report is based on data collected from 857 residents in Crawford County in 2012, and summarizes the responses to the multiple-choice questions. Responses to the write-in questions are found in the appendix of this report.

AGE
62 and above 13%

18-25 10%

41-62 42%

26-40 35%

The chart above shows the age range of those 18 and older that completed the survey. Approximately 42% of Crawford County respondents were in the age group of 41 to 62.

Question 1
In the following list, what do you think are the three most important factors for a Healthy Community? (Those factors that would most improve the quality of life in your community.)

Good jobs & healthy economy Good place to raise children Good schools Low crime/safe neighborhood Access to health care (e.g., family doctor) Healthy behaviors & lifestyles Strong family life Clean environment Religious or spiritual values Parks & recreation Affordable housing Low level of child abuse Arts & cultural events Excellent race relations Low adult death and disease rates Low infant deaths Other

373 370 353 257 235 191 180 177 144 108 105 45 21 20 16 12 5

Based on the number of survey participants (857), almost 44% chose Good jobs & healthy economy as an important factor for a healthy community, while 43% chose Good place to raise kids and 41% said Good schools. When compared to the Lower Eight region, the same choices are in the top three, but they vary in order.

Question 2
In the following list, what do you think are the three most important health problems in your community? (Those problems that have the greatest impact on overall community health.)
Cancers Diabetes Heart disease and stroke Mental health problems Child abuse/neglect Teenage pregnancy Aging problems Dental problems Domestic violence High blood pressure Other Respiratory/lung disease Motor vehicle crash injuries Sexually transmitted diseases Infectious disease Rape/sexual assault Farming related injuries HIV/AIDS Infant death Homicide Firearm-related injuries 385 304 257 225 222 192 188 168 166 161 58 56 56 43 40 23 15 14 8 7 6

Based on the 857 surveys from Crawford County, Cancers was the most prevalent choice, having been selected by 10% more respondents than Diabetes (35%). Heart disease and stroke was the thirdmost-common choice. These choices align closely with those seen in the Lower Eight region as a whole. This is to be expected due to Crawford County having the largest number of survey participants among the eight counties. Seven percent of participants chose Other as one of their responses and wrote in their thoughts. Approximately two-thirds of these comments related to Drug use/abuse or Obesity, while the rest varied. A few participants mentioned the High cost of medical service.

Question 3
In the following list, what do you think are the three most important risky behaviors in your community? (Those behaviors that have the greatest impact on overall community health.)

Drug abuse Alcohol abuse Being overweight Poor eating habits Lack of exercise Tobacco use Dropping out of school Not using birth control Unsafe sex Racism Not using seat belts/child safety seats Not getting "shots" to prevent disease Other

595 466 412 218 210 207 129 107 87 78 45 29 11

Drug abuse was the most-often-selected risky behavior, chosen by 69% of respondents. Coming in second was Alcohol abuse (54%), followed by Being overweight (48%).

Lower 8 Community Health Assessment: Crawford County Write-in Responses