In the recently released North Carolina county health rankings, Orange County finished a commendable second, behind Wake County in overall health scores.
The results of the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps study, sponsored by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, were released last week.
“Orange County has been ranked second since the rankings began four years ago” said Laura Edwards, Director for the Center for Healthy North Carolina.
The high ranking can be attributed to Orange County’s outstanding health factors and access to clinical care.
“This study is a good indicator that Orange County will be a healthy county for some time” Edwards said.
Likewise, the greater developments in the area, coupled with socioeconomic factors like education have tremendous effects on health.
“Bigger resource counties tend to rank higher, whereas smaller resource counties rank lower,” Edwards said.
Despite first place rankings in clinical care and socioeconomic factors, a relatively low score in physical environment deflated the county’s overall score.
“Even though Orange County has done really well, there is always room for improvement in physical activity, nutrition, and tobacco use,” Edwards said.
These factors are encompassed in the broad physical environment category, which determines a county’s access to recreational facilities and healthy eating options.
“A lot of preventable deaths are caused by things such as obesity and tobacco use,” said Stacy Shelp, spokeswoman for the Orange County Health Department.
The Orange County Health Department has taken measures to combat these issues through health initiatives and local legislation.
“Our board of health has a strategic plan, which includes making healthy foods available through farmer’s markets and expanding community gardens in areas such as Hillsborough,” Shelp said.
And Shelp said the Health Department has already seen positive effects in anti-smoking legislation within Orange County.
“The Smoke Free Restaurant and Bar Act was enacted in 2010, and in the first year it was in effect emergency room visits for heart attack declined,” Edwards said.
With the recent addition of the ban on smoking in public areas, Orange County officials hope to see another positive trend in public health.
“I don’t think we’ve seen the full potential of the smoking law, but we will see effects down the line,” Edwards said.
And Orange County residents said they are excited for potential improvements to the county’s overall health.
“I think there’s a possibility there could be better things coming out of the food trucks,” said Carrboro resident Richard Paschal. “They’re mobile and if they are improved, then more people would get used to eating better.”
For now, Shelp said Orange County health officials want to build upon the well-established programs to help the county achieve higher rankings.
“We are continuing on improving clinical care, but we want to make sure citizens are walking out the door into communities that support a healthy lifestyle,” Shelp said.
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