/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
As promised, when the Navajo County Public Health Department rolled out the results of the Navajo County Health Assessment last year, a new, interactive dashboard is now available for the public to access.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
Chief Health Officer Jeff Lee said, “I am excited to share this dashboard with our community. It outlines the five priorities that we will be addressing over the next three to five years.”
In addition to looking at the problems facing the county, the dashboard offers a large number of resources available within the communities to help people change their lives and make a difference.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
In October of 2018, staff from the Navajo County Public Health Department presented the results of the assessment, which found that the county ranks highest among Arizona counties for air quality, hiking trails and city parks, small towns and community social support and knowledge of healthy habits.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
On the negative side, alcohol-related deaths are 66 percent in Navajo County per 100,000 deaths compared to 18 percent in Arizona, while drug-related deaths are 23 percent in the county compared to 20 percent in Arizona.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
The median income in the county is $36,900, while the median income in Arizona is $51,300 and the median income in the United States is $55,300. Thirty percent of the county residents live at or below poverty.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
Regarding mental health, the county’s suicide rate is twice that of the U.S., with more than 9,000 emergency room visits every year related to mental disorders.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the county followed closely by cancer. The numbers of people with diabetes living within the county are double the state and national rates.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
Sexually transmitted diseases are a growing epidemic, with the county’s rates of gonorrhea, syphilis and chlamydia are the second highest in Arizona.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
Lee noted that overall the county faces dire health challenges that are cutting the lives of residents short. Challenges in poverty, chronic disease, addiction, emotional health, and reproductive health are making residents sicker. Poor health is impacting the entire county.
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
“Improving health is a community-wide effort, and we must come together to solve these complex issues,” Lee continued. “We want to foster new partnerships and strengthen existing ones that improve health for everyone: tribal and non-tribal residents, across religious beliefs and across neighborhoods.”
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
With the dashboard now available Lee said, “My hope is that our residents utilize the information to help better their health, to gain insight on what is on-going, and to get involved with one or more of the priorities. We face significant challenges, however working as one, we can and will improve the health of our community.”
/wp:paragraph
wp:paragraph
The dashboard can be searching Navajo County Community Improved Plan or by visiting https://dashboards.mysidewalk.com/navajocountychip/navajocountychip.
/wp:paragraph
