Press release
According to the 2023 County Health Rankings, released by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute (UWPHI), Genesee and Orleans Counties rank 42nd and 55th respectively in overall Health Outcomes. The Rankings are available at www.countyhealthrankings.org.
“Each year we look at the County Health Rankings to get an overview of our health and factors that influence our health,” stated Paul Pettit, Public Health Director for the Genesee and Orleans County Health Departments (GO Health). “The county with the lowest score (best health) gets a rank of #1 for that state and the county with the highest score (worst health) is assigned a rank corresponding to the number of total counties ranked in each state. New York State has 62 counties.”
According to the Rankings, the five healthiest counties in New York State starting with most healthy are Putnam, followed by Saratoga, Nassau, Rockland and Tompkins. The five counties in the poorest health, starting with least healthy are Bronx, Cattaraugus, Sullivan, Chemung, and Montgomery.
The rankings are broken into two main categories, Health Outcomes, which include length of life and quality of life, and Health Factors which include health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment.
The 2023 County Health Rankings findings for Genesee and Orleans Counties are:
· Genesee County
o Ranked 42/62 in Health Outcomes compared to 38/62 counties in 2022
o Ranked 22/62 in Health Factors compared to 16/62 counties in 2022
· Orleans County
o Ranked 55/62 in Health Outcomes compared to 54/62 counties in 2022
o Ranked 57/62 in Health Factors compared to 55/62 counties in 2022
“As Chief Health Strategists, we collaborate with our partners and community members to provide quality training, education and referrals as well as develop coalitions to explore the best way to help our county residents thrive and improve health factors,” stated Pettit. As referenced below, both Genesee and Orleans Counties have health factors that could be improved specifically with local access to physicians, mental health providers and dentists along with excessive drinking, adult obesity, and adult smoking. Access to care significantly impacts and drives the rankings for both counties. Additionally, it is a substantial barrier for residents and ultimately, has an impact on not only an individual’s physical, social and mental health, but their overall quality of life.
This year, the focus area of the Rankings was the connection between civic health and the health of the community. The factors that were added included Voter Turnout (Genesee at 64.3%; Orleans at 56.9%) and Census Participation (Genesee at 64.3%; Orleans at 54.0%). Voting and participating in the U.S. census are both examples of civic participation, which can help influence residents’ quality of life and help improve the health of our community.
The Rankings have become an important tool for communities that want to improve health for all. Working collaboratively with community partners in Genesee, Orleans and Wyoming Counties (GOW), Genesee and Orleans counties have completed the GOW 2022-2024 Community Health Assessment and are working on the chosen priorities in the Community Health Improvement Plan over the next three years. We analyze the Rankings along with New York State data and community input from the Community Health Assessment survey and Community Conversations to determine these priorities. For the 2022-2024 Community Health Improvement Plan, prevent chronic disease, promote well-being, and prevent mental and substance use disorders were selected as the priority areas that will be the focus moving forward.
For more information on Health Department programs and services, visit GOHealthNY.org or call your respective health department at:
· Genesee County: 585-344-2580 ext. 5555
· Orleans County: 585-589-3278
Follow GO Health on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at GOHealthNY.