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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Karen Peters, DrPH, Illinois Prevention Research Center, University of Illinois at Chicago School of Public Health, 850 W. Jackson (M/C 275), Chicago, IL 60607, 312-413-4944, kpeters@uic.edu and Michael Glasser, PhD, Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Illinois College of Medicine at Rockford, 1601 Parkview Ave, Rockford, IL 61107.
While limited surveillance of behavioral risk factors among older adults has been conducted at the national/ state level, no uniform surveillance activities have been conducted at local/county levels, where program planning and intervention efforts that address specific risk factors can be most productive. The 1997 Illinois County Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (ICBRFSS) collected demographic/behavioral risk factor information on over 8,000 older adults age 65+ (over 20% of the total IL sample). Data can be used to compare/contrast a county to counties with similar/different characteristics (e.g. rural/urban) and to state/national BRFSS data. For example, a comparison of 2 contiguous counties in IL (1 urban, 1 rural) indicates that older adults in the rural county self report increased rates of obesity (35.5% vs. 28.5%), high cholesterol (45% vs. 36.9%) and trying to maintain weight (66.3% vs.58.1%). The information obtained from the ICBRFSS points out that state/local public health planners should take into consideration the differences in behavioral risk factors among older adults in their localities so that more effective health education/promotion programming can be developed.
Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to
Keywords: Behavioral Research, Rural Health
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.