Kristin Dahl
Intro to Public Health
Lewis and Clark County
I spoke with Mike Henderson, administrator of the Disease Control
and Prevention Division for the Lewis and Clark County. He told me these trends
in the community and where to find more information on them on the county’s
website.
1.
First case of the flu in Lewis and Clark county
was October 24th of this year. He said there have been 11 cases
reported this year. I think it is important to track these sicknesses so they
can be controlled and the county can remain healthy. If these things were not
cared for or overlooked sickness could spiral out of control. The community
could be in danger and we should be thankful for the public health programs
that are in place.
2.
Suicide is 21 percent of the deaths of youth and
adolescents in Lewis and Clark country. They have implemented chat lines and
programs to help counteract this mode of action. In the public schools there
are posters of how to overcome this type of death. This shows the importance of
public health. Programs implemented and counselors in the school help these
people cope with these thoughts of suicide.
3.
Cancer and heart disease are prevalent in the
elderly as the leading cause of death. Cancer seems to be a leading cause of
death overall in this county. However, heart disease is the number one killer
in the entire nation as a whole. This county just reflects that in their
elderly population. It’s important to know this information so we can try to
lower the amount of people that are dying due to these diseases. Although
Montana is a state with one of the lower rates of cancer.
4.
There has been many people who have contracted
asthma in Lewis and Clark County. He said many people in Montana have asthma.
This could be due to the fact that it is so much wilderness. There is a lot of
animals and different plant species in the area and likely cause many peoples
allergies to spike and asthma as well. I did a little research and found out
that high school students are the highest percentage of asthma amongst the
different age groups.
5.
There have been a couple cases of gonnorhea in
the county but less than three. He also said that most people in Lewis and
Clark County receive their immunizations. These are both good trends within the
community and it is cool that they keep a running tab of all of these cases.
Public Health is reaching out to people and making communities flourish and be
as healthy as possible. Hopefully these programs will continue to be reinforced
and help people throughout the state, nation, and the entire world.
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