Stoddard County continued to rank poorly in the state in a compilation of national statistical health rankings, but still was one of the top ranked counties in the Bootheel. The data compiled by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute recently was released in "County Health Rankings and Roadmaps."
The Bootheel in general was ranked at the bottom of the overall state rankings. Pemiscot County ranked last in both Health Outcomes and Health Factors. The only Southeast Missouri County to rank among the tops in the state was Cape Girardeau County.
Stoddard County ranked 92nd in Health Outcomes for 2017, while the county was ranked 91st last year and 102nd in 2015. The county was ranked 87th in Health Factors, compared to 71st last year and 79th in 2015.
Rural areas generally score much lower in the health statistics, but areas in the northern part of the state outperformed those in Southeast Missouri. Area data with low scores in Southeast Missouri include the ratio of primary physicians, mental health providers and dentists to the general population. Other factors that contribute heavily to low scores in the county are the number of premature deaths, adult obesity and teen births. Stoddard County is also above the average in terms of adult smoking with smokers estimated at 24 percent compared to 22 percent statewide.
County Health Rankings & Roadmaps compares the health of nearly all of the 3,000-plus counties in the United States to others within its own state, and supports coalitions tackling the myriad social, economic, and environmental influences on health.
This marks the eighth year for the rankings to be released. The data is intended for use by health care agencies, organizations and community groups to target health deficiencies and promote programs to address these issues.
The annual County Health Rankings measure vital health factors, including high school graduation rates, obesity, smoking, unemployment, access to healthy foods, the quality of air and water, income, and teen births in nearly every county in America.
The ratio of primary care physicians to county residents is 2,300:1, compared to 1,420:1 in the state. The ratio is 4,270:1 compared to 1,840:1 for dentists and 2,300:1 compared to 630:1 for mental health providers.
Stoddard County just below the state average in terms of people in poor health (19 percent compared to 17 percent in the state), adult smoking (24 percent compared to 22 percent) and adult obesity (33 percent compared to 31 percent).
Unemployment is higher in the county than in the state (6.6 percent to 5 percent) and children living in poverty is higher (26 percent to 20 percent) are two other areas cited in the report. The county outperforms the state in children in single parent households (27 percent to 34 percent) and violent crime (168 to 442).
Other areas of concern in the county are the food environment, physical activity and access to exercise opportunities. The data shows access to exercise is 37 percent compared to 76 percent in the state, while physical inactivity is rated at 31 percent compared to 25 percent in the state.
Following are the Health Factor rankings for other counties in Southeast Missouri:
Pemiscot 115; Dunklin 113; Mississippi 109; Scott 100; Ripley 112; New Madrid 111; Butler 98; Stoddard 87; Bollinger 90; Carter 103; Iron 105; and Cape Girardeau 16. Ironically, St. Louis City is ranked at 114.
Following are Health Outcomes in Southeast Missouri:
Pemiscot 115; Dunklin 114; Mississippi 113; New Madrid 112; Butler 110; Ripley 102; Scott 98; Stoddard 92; Bollinger 69 and Cape Girardeau 44.
The goal of the County Health Rankings program is to help communities identify and implement solutions that make it easier for people to be healthy in their neighborhoods.