Death rates and risky behavior in the Flathead

It’s been nearly four years since President Barack Obama signed the Affordable Care Act into law. One of the lesser-known mandates of Obamacare is that nonprofit hospitals must perform a community health needs assessment every three years and adopt an implementation strategy to address those needs.

Kalispell Regional Healthcare and North Valley Hospital joined the Flathead City-County Health Department to complete an assessment for Flathead County in 2013. Bigfork-based contractor Ned Cooney was hired to assist with the research. Their findings were presented in early February during a forum in Whitefish.

Mortality rates in Flathead County are slightly less than rates for Montana as a whole but slightly more than for the U.S. A list of major causes of death in the Flathead, starting with No. 1, is similar to Montana’s list but differs from the U.S.

Major causes of death in the Flathead are heart disease, cancer, unintentional injuries in accidents, chronic lower respiratory diseases, stroke, suicide, influenza and pneumonia, Alzheimer’s disease, diabetes, and chronic liver disease and cirrhosis.

Suicide, for example, is ranked No. 6 for the Flathead, No. 8 for Montana and No. 10 for the U.S. According to the assessment report, “Montana has been at or near the top of the nation for rate of suicide for more than 30 years,” and “Flathead County has consistently been at or near the top of the list for most completed suicides in the state of Montana.”

At the same time, Flathead County has a lower death rate associated with chronic liver disease and cirrhosis than Montana but a higher rate than the U.S. The Flathead also has a significantly higher death rate associated with influenza and pneumonia than both Montana and the U.S.

The assessment also looked at health and risk behavior. About 41 percent of the population in the Flathead is considered overweight, but about the same number are considered to be of healthy weight.

While the percentage of smokers in the Flathead is about the same as for Montana and the U.S., Montana has one of the highest rates of smokeless tobacco use in the nation.

The percentage of high school students in the Flathead who drink is slightly lower than for the U.S., but the percentage of high school students in the Flathead who binge drink (five or more drinks on one occasion for men) or who drink after driving is higher.

Flathead County is in the top-10 in Montana for teen pregnancy, but Montana has a significantly higher teen pregnancy rate than the U.S. At the same time, the Flathead has a lower infant mortality rate than Montana but a significantly higher mortality rate for children ages 1-14 than the state.

Socioeconomic factors are significant in determining who has access to health care — including insurance coverage and access to transportation. The assessment states that one in four Americans under 65 lack dental insurance, but in the Flathead there is a shortage of dental providers who will accept Medicaid payments.

Among the strategies proposed are increased prevention and awareness, more help in navigating health resources, improved availability and coordination for mental health services, improved access to dental care, and improved transportation services.

For more information, visit online at www.kalispellregional.org, www.nvhosp.org and http://flathead.mt.gov/health.