Northumberland County ranks 47th in the state in terms of health, according to a study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin's Population Health Institute.
The County Health Rankings Study was conducted on more than 3,000 counties or county equivalents nationwide and was accomplished by analyzing data gathered by several federal agencies in several categories, which include health outcomes, health behaviors, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment.
Out of 67 counties, Northumberland also ranked 37th in mortality rates, 52nd in morbidity rates, 55th in health factors, 57th in health behaviors, 32nd in clinical care, 56th in social and economic factors and 20th in physical environments.
Schuylkill County ranked 57th, Snyder County ranked 6th, Columbia County ranked 24th and Montour County ranked 28th. The healthiest county in the state is Northumberland County's neighbor, Union County.
Evangelical Community Hospital, Lewisburg, issued a media release Tuesday about Union County's ranking.
"As primary health care provider in Union County for more than 85 years, Evangelical Community Hospital has served the residents of the county and larger Susquehanna Valley region by providing affordable, advanced and patient-centered health care," the released stated. "The hospital also made a commitment to helping people make their personal health a priority through the many health screenings, health lectures and classes offers at is campus in Lewisburg, as well as throughout the region."
In 2009, according to the release, the hospital participated in a collective of health care and educational organizations for the purpose of conducting a community health needs assessment.
The goal was to identify health needs in the region, and the hospital took the results of the assessment seriously and identified three areas of intense focus to aid in improving the health of the community.
The areas included programming for reducing obesity, tobacco use and assisting residents in navigating and understanding the complex health care system.
For combating obesity, the hospital and its Community Health Education department focused its programing on wellness, nutrition, weight management classes, promotion of fitness and walking programs. With tobacco use being the single most preventable cause of disease, and Snyder, Union, Northumberland and Lycoming counties having the third highest prevalence of tobacco use in the state, Evangelical concentrated its efforts of offering cessation opportunities.
Additionally, the hospital became even more committed to working with patients to understand health care bills and insurance, and in helping patients find their way through the hospital for appointments and procedures.
"These efforts by Evangelical Community Hospital make a positive impact on the Susquehanna Valley and help to ensure that Union County remains Pennsylvania's healthiest county," the statements said.