Reports Cast Area's Health Rankings in Different Lights

STAFF PHOTO JASON IVESTER Felipe Villagomez, left, and Roberto Estebane, both with Boulder Construction, spread dirt Friday around the edge of the Razorback Greenway near the crossing at Pleasant Grove Road in Rogers.

STAFF PHOTO JASON IVESTER Felipe Villagomez, left, and Roberto Estebane, both with Boulder Construction, spread dirt Friday around the edge of the Razorback Greenway near the crossing at Pleasant Grove Road in Rogers.

Sunday, March 30, 2014

Benton and Washington counties own the title of healthiest in Arkansas, but it's akin to having a cold while everyone else fights the flu.

A pair of reports released last week paint different pictures of the health of area residents.

At A Glance (w/logo)

The Reports

The 2014 County Health Rankings are a report by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation is a health-focused philanthropy working to improve American’s health and health care.

The report ranks counties in each state based on 29 factors that influence health, including smoking, physical inactivity and access to healthy foods. This is the fifth year for the report and it included new measures this year, including housing, transportation and access to mental health providers.

Benton County has ranked first and Washington County second on all five reports.

The 2013 State of American Well-Being ranked 189 cities and Metropolitan Statistical Areas. The report is compiled by data and research firms Gallup and Healthways.

The study was based on more than 500,000 interviews with people asking about topics ranging from emotional and physical health and access to food to job satisfaction and community safety.

This was the well-being study’s sixth year.

Arkansas ranked 45th in 2013, up from 46th in 2012.

The Natural State ranked even lower in the 2013 America’s Health Ranking. Arkansas ranked 49th, only ahead of Mississippi, in the report compiled by the United Health Foundation, the American Public Health Association and Partnership for Prevention.

Source: Staff Report

Web Watch

Rankings

countyhealthranking…

At A Glance (w/logo)

Northwest Arkansas

Benton and Washington counties scored low in recent health rankings in the category of clinic care. Benton County has one primary care physician per 1,820 residents. Washington County’s ratio was one per 1,322 residents. The national benchmark is one primary care physician for every 1,067 people.

A report released earlier this month by the state Department of Health identifies northeastern Benton County as a medically underserved area. The Health Services and Resources Administration defines underserved areas as a part of a county, whole county or group of nearby counties that have a shortage of personal health services.

Source: Staff Report

The 2014 County Health Rankings released Wednesday puts Benton and Washington counties as the first and second healthiest counties in the state.

But the 2013 State of American Well-Being released Tuesday ranked the Northwest Arkansas Metropolitan Statistical Area 44th out of 189 areas measured. The local statistical area includes Benton, Washington and Madison counties and McDonald County, Mo.

The well-being report drops the area even lower when it compares the country's 435 congressional districts. The 3rd Congressional District, which includes Benton and Washington counties, ranked 233. The state's other districts ranked 287, 426 and 428.

Arkansas ranked 49th in the 2013 America's Health Ranking.

"Being No. 1 is just a ranking. You don't want to assume things and you don't want to get complacent," said Loy Bailey, administrator of the Benton County Health Department.

Bailey gave a quick overview of the County Health Rankings to members of the Benton County Community Coalition on Thursday. The coalition is a community health issues group formed as part of the state Health Department's Arkansas Hometown Health Improvement initiative. Each county has a coalition.

"The rankings are really meant to catch people's attention and allow a community to look at the data -- the good and the bad," he said. "It's a starting point to make changes."

Northwest Arkansas is made of groups and individuals working together to make the area healthier, said Jill Kaplan, vice president of strategy and communications for the Endeavor Foundation. The foundation launched EnergizeNWA in January 2013. The Endeavor Foundation is a charitable community foundation based in Springdale.

Kaplan said more than 200 people took part in the program's kickoff last year and created a framework for what a healthy, active area would look like. EnergizeNWA asked for grant proposals for projects that increase access to physical activity and healthy food. The foundation received 43 proposals and issued 12 grants worth more than $400,000.

"People really want to change the way we create our communities and want to change our culture," she said.

The County Health Rankings come with a section that includes ideas and examples to improve a community's health. Bailey said the suggestions help people "connect the dots" and "leaves no excuse" for a community to ignore an issue.

Julie Willems Van Dijk, deputy director of County Health Rankings & Roadmaps, said the rankings are only as meaningful as the action they inspire.

"You won't stay in the top of the rankings if you don't keep your eye on the ball," she said during a webcast of survey results. "You need to compare yourself to other top performers and strive to be in the top U.S. performer category."

She said there are resources available for people to continue improving their health no matter where an area ranks.

Getting Active

The reports released last week point out similar areas of improvement for Northwest Arkansas.

The adult obesity rate increased in both counties between 2010 and 2014, according to the County Health Rankings. Benton County's rate was 27 percent in 2010 and 28 percent this year. Washington County's rate were 25 percent and 29 percent.

The state posted a 33 percent adult obesity rate this year and the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that 35 percent of adults were classified as obese last year.

Emerson Goodwin, executive director of Bridges to Wellness, is working to get community members more active. Bridges to Wellness is a nonprofit organization made up of health care providers and business and community leaders promoting health and wellness in the Siloam Springs area. The program started in 2006.

"We are trying to change the norms around physical activity and healthy eating, and that is not easy," he said.

The group offers free health care information classes and holds Wellfest, a collection of activities and games that encourage physical activity. Another program -- Eat Better. Move More. -- has people form teams and track their progress online.

"When people join up with like-minded folks, they are more likely to stick with it," he said.

Goodwin said they also hold Cooking Matters classes that teach about healthy food, some participants can take home with them.

"It's one thing to encourage health and another to provide the tools, and that is what happens with Cooking Matters," he said.

Bridges to Wellness was a recipient of an EnergizeNWA grant, and Goodwin said the money helps them reach the Latino community. He said about 25 percent of the town's population is Latino. Community members are working together to identify problems and solutions for this grant.

Goodwin said meetings will end in July and the group will have a final report complete in December.

"If you have people involved in the creation stage, they are more likely to participate in the program," he said.

Places To Go

Cities are also addressing the issue of access to exercise opportunities by increasing trails and sidewalks.

Only 64 percent of Benton County residents report having access to exercise opportunities; 79 percent report having access in Washington County.

The Razorback Greenway, a 36-mile trail running from north Bentonville to south Fayetteville, will provide more opportunities. Additional portions of the trail will be finished between now and the summer. The entire trail is scheduled to be done early next year.

The Northwest Arkansas Regional Planning Commission is working on the Northwest Arkansas Regional Bicycle and Pedestrian master plan that calls for a trail plan for every city in the two-county area with a population of more than 1,000. All city plans would be merged into a regional plan.

Cities also are building new sidewalks. Fayetteville plans on building 6.1 miles of additional sidewalks this year, three times the amount built in 2013.

Many new sidewalks in Rogers are wider like a trail.

Smaller towns also are getting in on the trail action. Laura Hamilton, Garfield mayor, said her town of 502 people has a one-third mile walking trail around Hamilton Park. The town built the park two years ago, but part of the trail was destroyed because of the widening of U.S. 62.

Hamilton said the full trail opened last week. The park also has a basketball and volleyball court.

"They are very popular and give people a place to get active," she said.

Healthy Food

Food insecurity is a national problem that many people experience in Northwest Arkansas. Food insecurity occurs when people have an ongoing worry about where they will get their next meal. Many community and school projects address this topic, including Tri Cycle Farms in Fayetteville.

Don Bennett started the 2-acre community farm about three years ago behind his home near the center of town.

Tri Cycle Farms is an urban farm park that works on a policy of one-thirds: one-third of food goes to volunteers, one-third to local food pantries and community meals and one-third will be sold to sustain the farm.

Bennett also was the beneficiary of an EnergizeNWA grant, and he's using it to create a neighborhood market.

"The goal is to create more access through more markets," he said.

The idea for the farm was developed after Bennett and a friend realized they were food insecure and underemployed. Research showed him 28,000 Washington County residents were facing the same problem, according to the 2010 Census.

The Census Bureau's 2011 Current Population Survey shows food insecurity impacted 16.8 percent of Washington County residents, or nearly 34,000 people. Benton County had a food insecurity rate of 13.7 percent or almost 30,000 people.

"The farm is designed as a community, teaching farm," he said. "The idea is to feed through sharing and teaching people how to feed themselves."

His drive to help people learn to feed themselves with healthy food drew him into the political world. Bennett was involved with the Food Policy Council that proposed Fayetteville's "urban agriculture" ordinance. The City Council recently approved the law and it goes into effect April 17.

The urban agriculture law allows goats, beehives and more chickens and ducks in residential areas. It also lets residents sell produce they grow from their homes.

Corporate Care

The State of American Well-Being concludes healthier populations create more productive and profitable businesses and more economically vibrant communities. The report advises employers to promote a culture of well-being across the organization and not treat it as a one-time activity.

Mercy Medical Center is practicing what it preaches. The medical system was named one of the 2014 Healthiest 100 Workplaces in America by the Healthiest Employers, a technology and data research company. The St. Louis-based system has more than 40,000 employees. About 20 percent of the 1,600 Northwest Arkansas employees take part in Healthification, its health and wellness program.

The program includes membership discounts for the Mercy YMCA in Rogers and free health assessments, said Kyle Brunen, Health & Wellness program manager. Program participants earn incentives including Mercy Bucks employees can use internally to pay for things such as lunch or co-pays for a doctor's visit.

"We feel like we have an obligation to walk the walk," he said.

Everyone at Mercy has an opportunity to earn up to $400 a year in Mercy Bucks. Brunen said if all 40,000 of Mercy's systemwide employees took part, the totals add up -- it could cost Mercy $16 million.

"Even that big number is still just a fraction of our health care costs," he said.

Elisabeth Graham has worked as a technician at a Mercy pharmacy since November 2012. She started the health program in January 2013. She had her wellness consultation and learned numbers such as her target heart rate and where she ranks on a national scale for her age group. She returned in three months to see her progress.

"I've gone to the YMCA every Monday, Wednesday and Friday and seen vast improvements in my general fitness capabilities," she said. "It's exciting to see those changes."

She estimates she earned between $300 and $400 last year in Mercy Bucks.

"It's important to be an example of health -- not only physically but also spiritually," she said. "People should get out and get active."

NW News on 03/30/2014