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Health Indicator Report of Fair/poor health

Self-rated health (SRH) has been collected for many years on National Center for Health Statistics surveys and since 1993 on the state-based BRFSS. SRH is an independent predictor of important health outcomes including mortality, morbidity, and functional status. It is considered to be a reliable indicator of a person's perceived health and is a good global assessment of a person's well being.

Fair or poor general health, Utah and U.S., 1993-2020

Notes

Age-adjusted to U.S. 2000 population. U.S. data are the average of all states and the District of Columbia; they do not include U.S. territories. Starting in 2009, the BRFSS included both landline and cell phone respondent interviews along with a new weighting methodology called iterative proportional fitting, or raking. More details about these changes can be found at: [https://ibis.health.utah.gov/pdf/opha/resource/brfss/RakingImpact2011.pdf]. Note: At the time of this update, the BRFSS U.S. dataset did not include an age variable but did include five age categories up to age 80+ (vs. the typical weighting scheme that includes 85+). Comparisons with both weighting schemes were compared using Utah data, and the difference was about 1/100 of a percentage point.

Data Sources

  • The Utah Department of Health and Human Services Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)
  • Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey Data, US Department of Health and Human Services Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

Data Interpretation Issues

Question Text: "Would you say that in general your health is excellent, very good, good, fair or poor?" Beginning in 2011, BRFSS data include both landline and cell phone respondent data along with a new weighting methodology called iterative proportional fitting, or raking. This methodology utilizes additional demographic information (such as education, race, and marital status) in the weighting procedure. Both of these methodology changes were implemented to account for an increased number of U.S. households without landline phones and an under-representation of certain demographic groups that were not well-represented in the sample. More details about these changes can be found at: [https://ibis.health.utah.gov/pdf/opha/resource/brfss/RakingImpact2011.pdf]. As with all surveys, some error results from nonresponse (e.g., refusal to participate in the survey or to answer specific questions), and measurement (e.g., social desirability or recall bias). Error was minimized by use of strict calling protocols, good questionnaire design, standardization of interviewer behavior, interviewer training, and frequent, on-site interviewer monitoring and supervision.

Definition

Percentage of adults aged 18 years and older who reported fair or poor general health.

Numerator

Number of survey respondents who reported fair or poor general health.

Denominator

Total number of survey respondents except those with missing, "Don't know/Not sure," and "Refused" responses.

Other Objectives

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, Chronic Disease Indicator: Self-assessed health status among adults aged 18+ years.[[br]] ([http://www.cdc.gov/cdi/]) The Institute of Medicine Committee on Using Performance Monitoring to Improve Community Health proposed that the proportion of adults reporting that their general health is good to excellent be included as one of 25 Community Health Profile Indicators.

How Are We Doing?

In 2020, approximately 11.0% (age-adjusted rate) of Utah adults aged 18 and older reported fair or poor general health status. In the same time period, 89.0% of Utah adults reported good, very good, or excellent general health status.

How Do We Compare With the U.S.?

Between the years 1993-2019, the proportion of adults who reported fair or poor health was significantly lower in Utah than for the U.S. as a whole (age-adjusted rates). These age-adjusted rates in 2019 were 14.7% in Utah compared to 18.0% in the U.S.

What Is Being Done?

The Utah Department of Health, through many programs, works to prevent avoidable illness, injury, disability, and premature death; assure access to affordable, quality health care; and to promote healthy lifestyles.

Available Services

Utah Health Information Phone Numbers: Check Your Health: 1-888-222-2542 [[br]] Utah Tobacco Quit Line: 1-888-567-TRUTH (8788)[[br]] Utah Cancer Control Resource Line: 1-800-717-1811 [[br]] Utah Medicaid Program Information 1-800-662-9651
Page Content Updated On 10/03/2022, Published on 01/04/2023
The information provided above is from the Utah Department of Health and Human Services IBIS-PH web site (http://ibis.health.state.gov). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Tue, 19 March 2024 2:53:47 from Utah Department of Health and Human Services, Indicator-Based Information System for Public Health Web site: http://ibis.health.state.gov ".

Content updated: Wed, 4 Jan 2023 15:53:47 MST