2018 Humboldt County Community Health Assessment

If a health outcome is seen to a greater or lesser extent between groups of people, there is a disparity. 

Each year in Humboldt County hundreds of individuals die unnecessarily from preventable diseases and conditions. Tackling this issue requires a broad public health perspective, addressing all of the determinants of health: access to care, racism (and other “isms”), personal behavior, social and physical environments, policies and education.

Humboldt County as a whole suffers a health disparity when compared to the State of California. We experience a higher burden of death rates overall at 804.4 per 100,000 people, compared to 612.2 statewide. The Humboldt rates for nearly all of the leading causes of death are 2 to 3 times that of the state.

Other poor, rural communities like ours experience health outcomes that are very similar. What is it about these communities that results in this higher risk of death? Important contributors are likely a complex mixture of factors include environmental, economic and social. According to a recent report by the CDC (click here to read more) : Some 46 million Americans — 15 percent of the U.S. population — currently live in rural areas. Across the United States, there is a disparity in death rates between rural and urban communities, with rural communities experiencing higher death rates from the five leading causes of mortality.
Occurring during childhood, ACEs are traumatic experiences that have a profound impact on a child’s developing brain and body with lasting impacts on a person’s health and livelihood throughout their lifetime. ACEs lead to increased risk for negative health behaviors, and lead to increased risk for serious health conditions. High numbers of ACEs have long been associated with increased risk for serious health conditions, such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.
[Click here to read the full report.]