Health Data

Looking for Up-to-Date data now?

Here are 3 great resources to get you started:

Healthy ADK is a project of the North Country’s Population Health Improvement Program, maintained by Adirondack Health Institute in collaboration with local agencies. Data sets include health, economy, education, environment, government, public safety, social environment & transportation.

The NYS DOH Prevention Agenda Dashboard provides state and county level data based on the state’s Prevention Agenda including indicators for disparities, healthy & safe environment, chronic diseases, communicable diseases, women, infants & children and mental, emotional & behavioral health.

County Health Rankings is a resource allowing for health outcomes and factors reports for counties across the United States. It helps viewers understand how health is influenced by where we live, work, play and work.

For assistance using these sites or to request data, please contact Essex County Health Department at (518) 873-3500.

2019 Community Health Assessment & Planning

Community Health Assessment and Planning is one of the core services of local health departments. It involves the regular and systematic process of examining the health status of a population to:

1) determine the general and disease-specific health of the community;

2) assess underlying causes of poor health in the community;

3) plan for the use of resources to address identified health priority needs; and

4) evaluate the effectiveness of initiatives and programs.

This Department follows the Take Action Cycle – described well by the County Health Rankings.

This Department, in collaboration with local hospitals and as part of a regional Community Health Assessment & Planning Committee, is has been actively engaged in data collection and analysis during the 2019 year.

Data collection includes hundreds of indicators from numerous local, state and national data sources and looks at qualitative and quantitative data.

Summary of Findings

We have narrowed down our findings to three areas of health concerns for our residents. You can view a presentation of these preliminary findings here:

CHA Preliminary Findings Summary for BOS.PHAC.2 Download

Survey Findings

Following are reports from three different community engagement efforts.

STAKEHOLDER SURVEY FINDINGS (129 targeted stakeholder participants)

Promote Well-Being and Prevent Mental and Substance Abuse Disorders was the NYSDOH Prevention Agenda priority area selected by community stakeholders. This directly matches 4 of the top 5 health concerns identified: Substance Abuse, Mental Health Concerns, Child/Adolescent Emotional Health & Adverse Childhood Experiences.

As would be expected, 4 of the top 5 contributing factors to the stakeholder identified priority area are nearly all related to the priority itself; those are Lack of Mental Health Services, Addiction to Illicit Drugs, Poverty, and Changing Family Structures.

Economic Stability was selected most frequently as a social determinant of health faring poorly in Essex County.

Stakeholder-Survey-Analysis-Essex-1 Download

COMMUNITY SURVEY FINDINGS (354 community member participants)

Survey respondents identified an inclusive definition of health – physical, mental & social well-being.

Respondents identified the top 5 health challenges [from a list of 19 offered as options] as: substance abuse, access to healthcare, chronic diseases, overweight/obesity and issues related to aging.

Features identified as necessary for a strong, healthy and vibrant community were also identified as challenges within the community: access to healthcare, employment/livable wages and affordable housing.

CHA Community Survey Analysis and Responses Final_Essex Download

Research question asked: If you could change 1 thing about your community to make it better what would it be?

Most frequently identified: Community Connections, Physical Activity, Transportation, Economics & Resiliency.

Distributed Focus Group Analysis Report_Essex Download