Methods
The focus of this project was to develop and present indicators of women’s and minority health. The emphasis was to develop indicators that could be compared across time and across geographical areas to permit planners at the local, state, regional and national levels to assess health disparities and to monitor progress toward Healthy People 2010 goals. (More information on Healthy People 2010 is available from CDC Wonder and from the Healthy People 2010 website.) Therefore, current and anticipated availability of data was a consideration. In all cases, an attempt was made to obtain data at the lowest geographic level (preferably county) and for the most refined racial and age categories for the indicators identified. These objectives presented different challenges, depending on the particular data being sought. For some of the topics of interest (e.g., women taking folic acid, women suffering from osteoporosis), no data readily exist at the state level, not to mention for lower geographic areas. For other issues (e.g., incidence of diabetes), state level survey data exist but county data are not available. Other data were available at the county level, but had to be obtained from the individual states (e.g., infectious and chronic diseases), which involved not only major data collection efforts but also required standardizing the data provided from the different sources. Yet other data were available at the county level and from a consolidated source (e.g., mortality and natality data) but have privacy restrictions when there are few occurrences at the county level.
Because most regions are comprised of both dense and sparsely populated areas, and the population is often over 80% Caucasian, rates can become distorted where a single or very few births, deaths, or incidences of a disease may make a rate appear unrealistically high. This problem is especially common for data broken out by race. Users are cautioned to consider these data across time and in conjunction with other local information prior to making policy or funding decisions. Despite the cautionary note, the data in this database are the best estimates available for assessing the health status of women and minority populations in the region. The data are provided primarily to serve as a baseline for assessment of potential problem areas.
The database is organized into 11 topic areas; these are: Codes and Status, Demographics, Mortality, Infectious and Chronic Diseases, Mental Health, Reproductive Health, Maternal Health, Violence and Abuse, Prevention, Access to Care and Healthy People 2010. HP targets displayed in the system correspond with the HP 2010 Midcourse Review.
The methods for data collection and presentation are described for each topic area, as are the details of the material presented in the database. Also, the computational approaches, definitions, and factors employed are detailed.
Native Americans on reservations are included in all county and state data, unless otherwise noted.
It should be noted that no tests were performed to determine the statistical significance of the data. Further, it should be noted that throughout this database persons of Hispanic (or Hispanic/Latino) origin may be of any race. In the majority of tables displaying race and ethnicity data, the sum of White, Black, American Indian, and Asian/Pacific Islander equals total population. For Census data for the year 2000 and beyond, the total population is the sum of White, Black/African American, American Indian/Alaskan Native, Asian, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islander, Other single race, and Two or more races.
Sources
Data source information for the Office on Women’s Health’s Quick Health Data Online system is presented according to topic area. Department names and, when available addresses and web addresses, are shown for the state agencies providing data for the database.