The Assessment and Data team at Benton-Franklin Health District recently released a 2018 Health Disparities Report. This report was based on a model used by Kitsap Public Health and compiled local data for the bi-county region from multiple sources regarding a variety of health topics including health outcomes (diseases, hospitalizations, births, etc.) and health risk factors (healthy weight, physical activity level, poverty rates, etc.). The purpose of this report was to identify and highlight the health disparities that exist in the local community between demographic groups. The demographic groups examined in this report were based on race, gender, and sexual orientation.
In determining which health disparities to highlight in this report, the assessment team reviewed available data sources to identify indicators related to known health outcomes and issues in Benton and Franklin counties. Data sets from both counties were combined to provide a more holistic account of the region and the bi-county data was then analyzed and converted into relative risk ratios by population demographic groups. Data points, or indicators, that met both the threshold for statistical significance AND had already been identified as a key issue by local or state health assessments were then highlighted in the Key Findings section of the report. The local 2016 Community Health Needs Assessment for Benton and Franklin Counties and the 2018 Washington State Health Assessment provided guidance on known key health issues.
BFHD is currently presenting these findings to various community partners and coalitions, to help inform their decisions and programs. If your organization would like to learn more or discuss having the findings presented to your staff or members, please contact the Assessment and Data Team. If you would like to read about the specific findings, the full report can be found here.