Celebrate and improve public health

April is the month public health professionals around the country celebrate Public Health Week and rededicate their efforts to improve the health of their communities. This year’s national theme is “Building a Healthy Foundation.”According to the American Public Health Association, despite the best efforts of public health professionals and our communities, Americans are not as healthy as they should be. Although we spend more money on health care than any other country, the health system is failing, and our nation is falling behind in many important measures of what it means to be healthy.Locally, one example of our success in building a healthy foundation is our Nurse-Family Partnership program, in which expectant and new parents receive educational home visits from public health nurses through their new baby’s first two years of life. The Health Department’s program is based on a proven national model with 30 years of results. Some of these findings:

• Babies are born healthier because women get prenatal medical care, improve their diet and reduce or eliminate their use of tobacco, alcohol and drugs.
• Children live healthier lives because parents learn how to provide good care.
• Families become more self-sufficient because parents plan for their future, continue their education and find work.
• Child abuse and neglect, as well as criminal arrests, are significantly reduced.

In El Paso County, we’ve seen dramatic results from our Nurse-Family Partnership program, such as

• Reduction of smoking by 25 percent
• Elimination of marijuana use during pregnancy
• Reduction in violence during pregnancy by 33 percent
• Increase by 92 percent for the age-appropriate immunization of infants by 24 months of age
• Completion of high school diploma or GED by 53 percent of mothers

However, a great deal of work remains to be done. Let me give you just two examples:

• A baby born in the United States is more likely to die before its first birthday than a child born in almost any other developed country, according to the APHA. Among developed nations, only Latvia has a higher death rate for newborns than the United States.
• In El Paso County since 2000, we have seen an 11 percent increase in infant mortality and a 12 percent increase in low birth-weight babies. And 44.9 percent of births are unintended: nearly 50 percent above the national goal.

The list goes on. Despite the dramatic progress achieved through a century of public health advancements, such as the elimination of polio in the United States through immunization and the reduction in deaths and injuries related to the use of seatbelts, our nation’s health falls far short of its potential.The good news is that there are simple things you can do to improve your own health and public health. For “The Top 10 Ways to Improve Your Health” and more information, please visit our Web site at www.elpasocountyhealth.org.