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The Kansas Health Institute ranked the Butler County Health Department 40th out of the 105 counties in the state during a review of the departments.
“I don’t think any of the county health departments knew this ranking was going to be done,” said Carol Borger, Butler County Health Department director. “The Kansas Health Institute reviewed a lot of information. It’s designed to help us think about how healthy we are right now, but also how we can continue to be healthy.
"We are number 40. That is good, but we could probably do better.”
The survey looks at interventions, policies, physical environments and more.
Borger said it helps them understand how they compare to other counties.
The health outcomes in the study included mortality, general health status and low birth weight.
Some of the health determinants it looked at included health care, health behaviors, socioeconomic factors and physical environment.
“We all know we have limitations,” Borger said. “This is not something the health department can go out and make a big change on its own, but we will continue to work with our communities.”
One area they will be working on this flu season is to get out the H1N1 vaccine to the community. There is still discussion on this as to for whom this will be a priority. There have now been four confirmed cases of H1N1 in Butler County.
She explained that the H1N1 is a strain of flu they have never seen before.
"There's no immunity against it," she said.
The study also broke down the outcomes and rankings. Butler County is ranked 52nd in health outcomes and 32nd for health determinants.
When breaking down the determinants, Butler County was ranked 32nd for overall, 27th for health care, 36th for health behaviors, 34th for socioeconomic factors and 57th for physical environment.
"I think the fact that we are 40 is a testament to the quality of work your department does and the quality of life in Butler County," said Commissioner Randy Waldorf.
The Kansas Health Institute ranked the Butler County Health Department 40th out of the 105 counties in the state during a review of the departments.
“I don’t think any of the county health departments knew this ranking was going to be done,” said Carol Borger, Butler County Health Department director. “The Kansas Health Institute reviewed a lot of information. It’s designed to help us think about how healthy we are right now, but also how we can continue to be healthy.
"We are number 40. That is good, but we could probably do better.”
The survey looks at interventions, policies, physical environments and more.
Borger said it helps them understand how they compare to other counties.
The health outcomes in the study included mortality, general health status and low birth weight.
Some of the health determinants it looked at included health care, health behaviors, socioeconomic factors and physical environment.
“We all know we have limitations,” Borger said. “This is not something the health department can go out and make a big change on its own, but we will continue to work with our communities.”
One area they will be working on this flu season is to get out the H1N1 vaccine to the community. There is still discussion on this as to for whom this will be a priority. There have now been four confirmed cases of H1N1 in Butler County.
She explained that the H1N1 is a strain of flu they have never seen before.
"There's no immunity against it," she said.
The study also broke down the outcomes and rankings. Butler County is ranked 52nd in health outcomes and 32nd for health determinants.
When breaking down the determinants, Butler County was ranked 32nd for overall, 27th for health care, 36th for health behaviors, 34th for socioeconomic factors and 57th for physical environment.
"I think the fact that we are 40 is a testament to the quality of work your department does and the quality of life in Butler County," said Commissioner Randy Waldorf.
