FORT WALTON BEACH — The Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County today acknowledged the 2016 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps tool released by the University of Wisconsin and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
This study highlights community factors that influence health, and uses established data available at www.floridacharts.com.
"Premature death in Okaloosa County, (or) dying before the age of 75, is primarily the result of people dying from cancer, heart disease and during infancy," Dr. Karen Chapman, DOH-Okaloosa director, said. "The No. 1 and No. 2 contributor in most cases to these leading causes of premature death is tobacco and obesity. Tobacco abstinence and cessation, and promoting healthy lifestyle choices remain the top priorities for improving the health of the people of Okaloosa County."
DOH-Okaloosa is working to improve residents’ health, a media release stated.
For instance:
●The Community Health Improvement Plan is designed to address specific opportunities for improved health. The department has partnered with many stakeholders to implement the CHIP and collaborates regularly to track progress. Over the last five years, the Healthy Okaloosa Collaborative has worked to address community-chosen priority areas — tobacco use, healthy lifestyles and access to care.
●The Tobacco Team, in collaboration with the Okaloosa County School District, worked to update the school district's Tobacco Discipline Policy to address all forms of tobacco and nicotine use. In addition, Okaloosa Schools are smoke-free zones, and most recently, the School District adopted a no electronic cigarette policy on all school property.
●"West Florida AHEC has a long history of successful partnership with the Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County, including working closely with them as part of the Healthy Okaloosa Collaborative," stated Paige Collier, director of West Florida Area Health Education Center Inc. "We look forward to continuing to support the collaborative' s efforts to reduce the use of tobacco in Okaloosa County by providing cessation services for community members as well as education and training on the CDC Best Practice Guidelines to health care systems, providers and health professions students in Okaloosa County."
●The Healthy Lifestyles Team has implemented the Healthy Okaloosa 5210 initiative, which is being implemented in 21 early-childhood education centers, nine K-12 public schools, four after-school programs, 10 worksites, and is actively recruiting summer care programs. It looks to partner with businesses and organizations throughout the county to increase healthy lifestyle behaviors through policy and environmental changes around improving nutrition and physical activity, supporting and encouraging breastfeeding friendly environments, limiting recreational screen time and sugary beverage consumption, and eliminating use of and exposure to tobacco and nicotine products.
●"Women and Children's Services at Fort Walton Beach Medical Center is proud to be partnering with the Florida Department of Health in Okaloosa County to initiate the pathway to becoming a designated Baby Friendly Hospital.
“This collaboration will bring more resources to our community both in the hospital setting, as well as after patients return home," stated Brittany Bryan, Director of Women and Children's Services at Fort Walton Beach Medical Center. "The benefits of exclusively breastfeeding infants and promoting mother/baby bonding are immense. Simply stated, breastfeeding saves lives.”
●In 2016, DOH-Okaloosa started the Community Health Assessment for 2016-2020, which will provide DOH-Okaloosa, partners and stakeholders a "big-picture view" of current and emerging community health concerns. Data collected during the assessment will help guide deciding CHIP’s community-chosen priority areas for the next five years.
●Last week, the Florida Department of Health became the nation’s first integrated department of health to achieve national accreditation through the Public Health Accreditation Board, which signifies that the Florida Department of Health has been rigorously examined and meets or exceeds national standards that promote continuous quality improvement for public health.
This article originally appeared on Crestview News Bulletin: Cancer, heart disease top causes of premature death in Okaloosa