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| Knox County Health Department Celebrated "National Public Health Week" |
Knox County Health Department staff join the American Public Health Association in their annual celebration of the role of public health in our communities. For more than a decade, communities around the country have celebrated National Public Health Week each April to draw attention to the need to help protect and improve our nation's health.
This year's theme, "Building the Foundation for a Healthy American," is intended to emphasize that even though the United States is one of the wealthiest countries in the world, and spends more on health care than any other country; we have one of the lowest life expectancy rates among developed nations, and fall short in many of the important measures of what it means to be healthy.
"Building a healthy nation will require changes to how we protect and promote health in our country and locally as well," states Michele Fishburn, Director of Community Health Improvement for the Knox County Health Department. "National and local discussions surrounding health system reform must emphasize an effective public health infrastructure focusing on prevention."
In the United States, obesity rates have rose 36% in the past 20 years, and one of every two young people who start and continue to smoke will be killed by a tobacco-related illness. Locally, Illinois Behavioral Risk Factor Survey data indicates that in 2007, 32.2% of Knox County residents reported that they are obese, and 35.7% of Knox County residents reported that they are overweight. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, an estimated 17.6% of Knox County residents live in poverty, with 13.5% of residents reported that they had avoided seeing a doctor during the past year due to cost, and another 13.2% of individuals avoided filling prescription medication for the same concern.
Public health is all around us. From the clean water we drink, to the seat belts we wear in the car, to the many programs promoting physical activity, public health affects our communities. By recommitting ourselves to support our nation’s public health system, we can build on the successes of the past and establish the solid foundation needed for a healthy nation.
If you would like more information about the Knox County Health Department, CLICK HERE; or CLICK HERE for more information about Natioanl Public Health Week.
(Submitted by Knox County Health Department) |
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| 04 11 09 by Newsroom |
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