2013Rankings Massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

Introduction
Wherewelivematterstoourhealth.Thehealth ofacommunitydependsonmanydifferent factors,includingtheenvironment,education andjobs,accesstoandqualityofhealthcare, andindividualbehaviors.Wecanimprovea communityshealthbyimplementingeffective policiesandprograms.Forexample,people wholiveincommunitieswithsmokefreelaws arelesslikelytosmokeortobeexposedto secondhandsmoke,whichreduceslungcancer risk.Inaddition,peoplewholivein communitieswithsafeandaccessibleparkand recreationspacearemorelikelytoexercise, whichreducesheartdiseaserisk. However,healthvariesgreatlyacross communities,withsomeplacesbeingmuch healthierthanothers.And,untilnow,therehas beennostandardmethodtoillustratewhatwe knowaboutwhatmakespeoplesickorhealthy oracentralresourcetoidentifywhatwecando tocreatehealthierplacestolive,learn,work andplay. Weknowthatmuchofwhatinfluencesour healthhappensoutsideofthedoctorsoffice inourschools,workplacesandneighborhoods. TheCountyHealthRankings&Roadmaps programprovidesinformationontheoverall healthofyourcommunityandprovidesthe toolsnecessarytocreatecommunitybased, evidenceinformedsolutions.Rankingthe healthofnearlyeverycountyacrossthenation, theCountyHealthRankingsillustratewhatwe knowwhenitcomestowhatismaking communitiessickorhealthy.TheCountyHealth Roadmapsshowwhatwecandotocreate healthierplacestolive,learn,workandplay. TheRobertWoodJohnsonFoundation collaborateswiththeUniversityofWisconsin PopulationHealthInstitutetobringthis groundbreakingprogramtocountiesandstates acrossthenation. TheCountyHealthRankings&Roadmaps programincludestheCountyHealthRankings project,launchedin2010,andthenewer Roadmapsprojectthatmobilizeslocal communities,nationalpartnersandleaders acrossallsectorstoimprovehealth.The programisbasedonthismodelofpopulation healthimprovement:

Inthismodel,healthoutcomesaremeasures thatdescribethecurrenthealthstatusofa county.Thesehealthoutcomesareinfluenced byasetofhealthfactors.Countiescanimprove healthoutcomesbyaddressingallhealth factorswitheffective,evidenceinformed policiesandprograms. Everyonehasastakeincommunityhealth.We allneedtoworktogethertofindsolutions.The CountyHealthRankings&Roadmapsserveas bothacalltoactionandaneededtoolinthis effort. snapshots;orShareinformationwithothersvia Facebook,Twitter,orGoogle+.Tounderstand ourmethods,clickonLearnabouttheDataand Methods.Youcanalsotakeadvantageofthe UsingtheRankingsDataguidetohelpyou explorethedataandfigureoutmoreabout whatisdrivingyourcommunityshealth.To learnaboutwhatyoucandotoimprovehealth inyourcommunity,visittheRoadmapsto HealthActionCenter.Finally,youcanlearn whatothersaredoingbyreadingCommunities StoriesandvisitingtheProjectShowcase.
www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts 1

GuidetoOurWebSite
TocompiletheRankings,weselectedmeasures thatreflectimportantaspectsofpopulation healththatcanbeimprovedandareavailable atthecountylevelacrossthenation.Visit www.countyhealthrankings.orgtolearnmore. Togetstartedandseedata,enteryourcounty orstatenameinthesearchbox.Clickonthe nameofacountyormeasuretoseemore details.Youcan:CompareCounties;Download dataforyourstate;Printoneormorecounty

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

CountyHealthRoadmaps
TheRankingsillustratewhatweknowwhenit comestomakingpeoplesickorhealthy.The CountyHealthRankingsconfirmthecriticalrole thatfactorssuchaseducation,jobs,incomeand theenvironmentplayinhowhealthypeopleare andhowlongwelive. TheCountyHealthRoadmapsmobilizeslocal communities,nationalpartnersandleaders acrossallsectorstoimprovehealth.TheCounty HealthRoadmapsshowwhatwecandoto createhealthierplacestolive,learn,workand play.TheRobertWoodJohnsonFoundation (RWJF)collaborateswiththeUniversityof WisconsinPopulationHealthInstitute(UWPHI) tobringthisgroundbreakingprojecttocities, countiesandstatesacrossthenation. TheRoadmapsprojectincludesgrantstolocal coalitionsandpartnershipsamong policymakers,business,education,public health,healthcare,andcommunity organizations;grantstonationalorganizations workingtoimprovehealth;recognitionof communitieswhosepromisingeffortshaveled tobetterhealth;andcustomizedguidanceon strategiestoimprovehealth. RoadmapstoHealthCommunityGrants TheRoadmapstoHealthCommunityGrants providefundingfor2yearstothirtystateand localeffortsamongpolicymakers,business, education,healthcare,publichealthand communityorganizationsworkingtocreate positivepolicyorsystemschangesthataddress thesocialandeconomicfactorsthatinfluence thehealthofpeopleintheircommunity. RoadmapstoHealthPartnerGrants RWJFisawardingRoadmapstoHealthPartner Grantstonationalorganizationsthatare experiencedatengaginglocalpartnersand leadersandareabletodeliverhighquality trainingandtechnicalassistance,and committedtomakingcommunitieshealthier placestolive,learn,workandplay.Partner granteesincreaseawarenessabouttheCounty HealthRankings&Roadmapstotheirmembers, affiliatesandallies.AsofFebruary2013,RWJF hasawardedpartnergrantstoUnitedWay Worldwide,NationalBusinessCoalitionon Health,andNationalAssociationofCounties.

RWJFRoadmapstoHealthPrize InFebruary2013,RWJFawardedthefirstRWJF RoadmapstoHealthPrizesof$25,000tosix communitiesthatareworkingtobecome healthierplacestolive,learn,workandplay. TheRWJFRoadmapstoHealthPrizeisintended notonlytohonorsuccessfulefforts,butalsoto inspireandstimulatesimilaractivitiesinother U.S.communities.

RoadmapstoHealthActionCenter TheRoadmapstoHealthActionCenter,based atUWPHI,providestoolsandguidancetohelp groupsworkingtomaketheircommunities healthierplaces.TheActionCenterwebsite providesguidanceondevelopingstrategiesand advocacyeffortstoadvanceprohealthpolicies, opportunitiesforongoinglearning,anda searchabledatabaseofevidenceinformed policiesandprogramsfocusedonhealth improvement:WhatWorksforHealth.Action Centerstaffprovidecustomizedconsultation viaemailandtelephonetothoseseekingmore informationabouthowtoimprovehealth. Coaching,includingpossibleonsitevisits,is alsoavailableforcommunitieswhohave demonstratedthewillingnessandcapacityto addressfactorsthatweknowinfluencehow healthyapersonis,suchaseducation,income andfamilyconnectedness.

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

CountyHealthRankings
The2013CountyHealthRankingsreportranks Massachusettscountiesaccordingtotheir summarymeasuresofhealthoutcomesand healthfactors.Countiesalsoreceivearankfor mortality,morbidity,healthbehaviors,clinical care,socialandeconomicfactors,andthe physicalenvironment.Thefigurebelowdepicts thestructureoftheRankingsmodel;those havinghighranks(e.g.,1or2)areestimatedto bethehealthiest.

Oursummaryhealthoutcomesrankingsare basedonanequalweightingofmortalityand morbiditymeasures.Thesummaryhealth factorsrankingsarebasedonweightedscores offourtypesoffactors:behavioral,clinical, socialandeconomic,andenvironmental.The weightsforthefactors(showninparenthesesin thefigure)arebaseduponareviewofthe literatureandexpertinput,butrepresentjust onewayofcombiningthesefactors.

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts 3

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

Themapsonthispageandthenextdisplay Massachusettsscountiesdividedintogroupsby healthrank.Mapshelplocatethehealthiestand leasthealthycountiesinthestate.Thelightercolors indicatebetterperformanceintherespective

summaryrankings.Thegreenmapshowsthe distributionofsummaryhealthoutcomes.Theblue displaysthedistributionofthesummaryrankfor healthfactors.

H E A L T H O UT CO M ES

County Barnstable Berkshire Bristol Dukes Rank County 8 11 12 1 Essex Franklin Hampden Hampshire Rank County 6 7 14 5 Middlesex Nantucket Norfolk Plymouth Rank County 2 4 3 10 Suffolk Worcester

Rank 13 9

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

H E A L T H F A CT ORS

County Barnstable Berkshire Bristol Dukes

Rank County 5 9 13 4 Essex Franklin Hampden Hampshire

Rank County 7 8 14 2 Middlesex Nantucket Norfolk Plymouth

Rank County 3 6 1 10 Suffolk Worcester

Rank 12 11

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

SummaryHealthOutcomes&HealthFactorsRankings
Countiesreceivetwosummaryranks: HealthOutcomes HealthFactors Eachoftheseranksrepresentsaweightedsummary ofanumberofmeasures.

Rank
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

Healthoutcomesrepresenthowhealthyacountyis whilehealthfactorsrepresentwhatinfluencesthe healthofthecounty.

HealthOutcomes
Dukes Middlesex Norfolk Nantucket Hampshire Essex Franklin Barnstable Worcester Plymouth Berkshire Bristol Suffolk Hampden

Rank
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14

HealthFactors
Norfolk Hampshire Middlesex Dukes Barnstable Nantucket Essex Franklin Berkshire Plymouth Worcester Suffolk Bristol Hampden

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

2013CountyHealthRankings:Measures,DataSources,andYearsofData
HEALTHOUTCOMES Mortality Morbidity HEALTHFACTORS HEALTHBEHAVIORS TobaccoUse DietandExercise Adultsmoking Adultobesity Physicalinactivity Excessivedrinking Motorvehiclecrashdeathrate Sexuallytransmittedinfections Teenbirthrate CLINICALCARE AccesstoCare QualityofCare Education Employment Income FamilyandSocial Support CommunitySafety PHYSICALENVIRONMENT EnvironmentalQuality BuiltEnvironment

Measure Prematuredeath Poororfairhealth Poorphysicalhealthdays Poormentalhealthdays Lowbirthweight

DataSource NationalCenterforHealthStatistics BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem NationalCenterforHealthStatistics

YearsofData 20082010 20052011 20052011 20052011 20042010

BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem NationalCenterforChronicDiseasePrevention andHealthPromotion NationalCenterforChronicDiseasePrevention andHealthPromotion BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem NationalCenterforHealthStatistics NationalCenterforHIV/AIDS,ViralHepatitis, STD,andTBprevention NationalCenterforHealthStatistics SmallAreaHealthInsuranceEstimates HRSAAreaResourceFile HRSAAreaResourceFile Medicare/DartmouthInstitute Medicare/DartmouthInstitute Medicare/DartmouthInstitute Primarilystatespecificsources,supplemented withNationalCenterforEducationStatistics AmericanCommunitySurvey BureauofLaborStatistics SmallAreaIncomeandPovertyEstimates BehavioralRiskFactorSurveillanceSystem AmericanCommunitySurvey FederalBureauofInvestigation CDCWONDEREnvironmentaldata SafeDrinkingWaterInformationSystem CensusCountyBusinessPatterns USDAFoodEnvironmentAtlas CensusCountyBusinessPatterns

20052011 2009 2009 20052011 20042010 2010 20042010 2010 20112012 20112012 2010 2010 2010 Statespecific 20072011 2011 2011 20052010 20072011 20082010 2008 FY2012 2010 2012 2010

AlcoholUse SexualActivity

Uninsured Primarycarephysicians Dentists Preventablehospitalstays Diabeticscreening Mammographyscreening Highschoolgraduation Somecollege Unemployment Childreninpoverty Inadequatesocialsupport Childreninsingleparenthouseholds Violentcrimerate Dailyfineparticulatematter1 Drinkingwatersafety Accesstorecreationalfacilities Limitedaccesstohealthyfoods Fastfoodrestaurants

SOCIALANDECONOMICFACTORS

Not available for AK and HI.

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

County Health Rankings 2013: Massachusetts

CREDITS

ReportAuthors UniversityofWisconsinMadison SchoolofMedicineandPublicHealth DepartmentofPopulationHealthSciences PopulationHealthInstitute BridgetBooskeCatlin,PhD,MHSA AmandaJovaag,MS PatrickRemington,MD,MPH Thispublicationwouldnothavebeenpossiblewithoutthefollowingcontributions: Data CentersforDiseaseControlandPrevention:NationalCenterforHealthStatisticsandDivisionofBehavioral Surveillance DartmouthInstituteforHealthPolicy&ClinicalPractice ResearchAssistance JenniferBuechner HyojunPark,MA ElizabethPollock JenniferRobinson MatthewRodock,MPH AnneRoubal,MS CommunicationsandOutreach BurnessCommunications AnnaGraupner,MPH KateKonkle,MPH KarenOdegaard,MPH JanONeill,MPA AngelaRussell,MS JulieWillemsVanDijk,PhD,RN Design ForumOne,Alexandria,VA RobertWoodJohnsonFoundation AbbeyCofsky,MPHSeniorProgramOfficer MichelleLarkin,JD,MS,RNAssistantVicePresidentandDeputyDirector,HealthGroup JamesS.Marks,MD,MPHSeniorVicePresidentandGroupDirector,HealthGroup JoeMarxSeniorCommunicationsOfficer Suggestedcitation:UniversityofWisconsinPopulationHealthInstitute.CountyHealthRankings2013.

www.countyhealthrankings.org/massachusetts

UniversityofWisconsinPopulationHealthInstitute 610WalnutSt,#524,Madison,WI53726 (608)2656370/info@countyhealthrankings.org