Benton County Community Trends

James Brandenburg

Charlie Fautin- Benton County, OR Health Administrator/Deputy Director

            Charlie is the lead Public Health Administrator in Benton County, OR. He pointed me towards the Oregon Health Status Report and the trends in it, which statistics are found in the following trends.

In terms of communicable diseases, chlamydia is by far the most common reportable disease in Benton County and rates are increasing. Chlamydia is a bacterial STD. Most of the time people are unaware that they have it but it can cause infertility; cause a higher chance of HIV infection, and fatal pregnancies in women. The highest rates are seen among women that are 15-24. Although rates are increasing, the rates in Benton County continue to be lower than the state rates.

            In terms of chronic disease, cardiovascular disease has very bad ratings in Benton County because of a high stroke death rate. The overall cardiovascular disease rates are actually declining, but they are still the leading cause of death in Benton County. The strokes are more prominent in males but between 1995 and 2005, strokes decreased by 20% in Benton County. Factors of aging are considered in the statistics since the chance of stroke increases with age. Unfortunately, the rate of stroke mortality still isn’t meeting Healthy People 2020 standards.

            In terms of socioeconomic health, Benton County has a high rate of poverty. More specifically, Benton County has more individuals below the poverty line between the ages of 18-64 than the U.S. and Oregon average rates. 24% of the people in this age group in Benton County are under poverty level. In Oregon, it is 13.2% and in the nation it is 12.3%. Benton County almost doubles the national average. Because of this and the high number of single parent- mother families living under the poverty level, Benton County is higher in overall percentage of individuals living in poverty than both the state and the nation averages.

            In terms of maternal and child health, birth risk factors in Benton County are low in comparison to average state levels, but in comparison with Healthy People 2020 goals, the rates are bad due to a high degree of smoking during pregnancy. It is largely the younger age groups that cause Benton County to scream past the Healthy People 2020 goals. Females in the 20-24 age group are more likely to smoke during pregnancy in Benton County than any other age group. The 18-19 year old age group is also very high. Rates significantly decrease after the 20-24 age group.

            Child immunizations have decreased steadily since 1995. The Benton County average is lower than the state average. In 2009, only 53.6% of 24-35 month-old kids had up-to-date immunizations as compared to 75.3% in 2005. The particular antigen that is most neglected is the Haemophilus type B flu vaccine. The Oregon-run Public Health WIC program has helped individuals in getting their kids immunized looking as how 57.6% of WIC enrolled individuals are immunized as compared to the 50.6% average among non-enrolled individuals.