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Hispanic health status in Orange County, Florida
James Studnicki1, Donald J Berndt, Stephen L Luther
1Center for Health Outcomes Research, Health Sciences Center and College of Public Health, University of South Florida, 13201 Bruce B. Downs Boulevard, Tampa, FL 33612, USA. jstudnic@hsc.usf.edu
Journal of Public Health Management and Practice : JPHMP
|June 17, 2005
Summary
Orange County Hispanics face significant health disparities, including higher death rates for many diseases compared to state peers. Trends show worsening health outcomes for this population, highlighting urgent public health needs.
Area of Science:
- Public Health
- Health Disparities
- Epidemiology
Background:
- The health status of Hispanic populations is crucial for understanding and addressing health inequities.
- Orange County, Florida, has a growing Hispanic demographic requiring specific health assessments.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the health status of the Hispanic population in Orange County, Florida.
- To identify specific health challenges and trends within this demographic group.
Main Methods:
- Utilized secondary data analysis over a 5-year period (1997-2001).
- Employed a comparative framework using 66 ethnically identified health indicators.
- Compared Orange County Hispanics to state Hispanic populations and Orange County non-Hispanics.
Main Results:
- Orange County Hispanics are younger, have lower incomes, and are predominantly of Puerto Rican origin compared to Florida peers.
- Significantly higher age-adjusted death rates were observed for Orange County Hispanics across numerous conditions, including cancers, diabetes, stroke, and infant mortality.
- While outperforming Orange County non-Hispanics in some major causes of death (heart disease, cancer, stroke), Hispanic trends are unfavorable compared to stable or improving non-Hispanic trends.
Conclusions:
- Comparative analysis of secondary data provides a health profile but is limited by data granularity and accuracy.
- Challenges in ethnic identification and racial categorization impact the reliability of health status assessments for Hispanic populations.
- The findings underscore the need for improved data collection and targeted public health interventions for Orange County Hispanics.