Disease Prevention

This assignment relates to the following Areas of Responsibility for Health Educators:

Responsibility I: Assess Individual and Community Needs for Health Education; specifically, the ability to access existing health-related data, use computerized sources of health-related information, and distinguish between behaviors that foster and hinder well-being.

Responsibility VI: Serve as a Health Education Resource Person; specifically, the ability to access and use health-related info resources, and employ electronic technology for retrieving references.

You have just been hired by your State's health department to help develop a health promotion program. Your first assignment is to use the CDC database, WISQARS Leading Causes of Death Reports, to find out what the leading causes of death in your State are, and how different groups within your State compare to those of the State as a whole. You will use that information to decide which determinants of health your program should focus on.

1. Go to http://webapp.cdc.gov/sasweb/ncipc/leadcaus10.html
2. For Report Options, select your State.
3. Scroll down to "Advanced Options" and select "Top 5" as the number of causes.
4. Look at the column on the right, labeled All Ages, to find the top 5 causes of death.
5. Repeat those steps, but select Race, Sex, and specific Age groups on the Report Options to see how/if the leading causes of death vary among differing demographic groups.
6. In a 2-page essay, please answer the following: a.What State did you select?
b. What are the 5 leading causes of death for your State? How do they compare with the 5 leading causes of death for the US?
c. Describe how/if the leading causes of death vary based on different demographic variables such as race, sex, and age. Be specific about which variables you looked at.
d. Based on the findings for your State, what 3 determinants of health would you choose as priorities for health promotion programs? Would you focus your efforts on any specific one?
e. Please explain how those 3 determinants of health affect people's behaviors in ways that promote well-being. How do they affect people's behaviors in ways that hinder well-being? Give examples and support your statements with references.