County to celebrate Public Health Week

Posted April 02, 2015 11:00 pm

Submitted by McHenry County Department of Health

The McHenry County Department of Health will join the American Public Health Association and communities around the country in celebrating April 6-12 as National Public Health Week to recognize public health's contributions and highlight issues that are important to improving our nation's health.

This year's theme is "Healthiest Nation 2030." The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention states seven in 10 deaths in the U.S. are related to preventable diseases such as obesity, diabetes, high blood pressure, heart disease and cancer. Only 3 percent of health care dollars go toward prevention while 75 percent of health care dollars are spent on treating such diseases.

"We need to recognize that improving our nation's health can be done with small changes to our daily routine," said Mike Hill, MCDH's public health administrator. "We can all make a difference in helping people live healthier and longer lives."

• Monday, April 6, Raising the Grade: Demonstrates how the U.S. is unhealthy, such as its low life expectancy and other measures of good health, as compared to other nations across all ages and income levels

• Tuesday, April 7, Starting from Zip: Examines local, state and regional health disparities and how the Affordable Care Act is helping eliminate them

• Wednesday, April 8, Building Momentum: Highlights the roles of an eclectic group of leaders in creating the healthiest nation, such as recent actions by CVS, America's major food and beverage companies, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, American Planning Association and first lady Michelle Obama.

• Thursday, April 9, Building Broader Connections: Creating and expanding partnerships with nontraditional public health partners, including city planners, education officials, public, private and for-profit organizations

• Friday April 10, Building on 20 Years of Success: Celebrating the 20th anniversary of APHA's coordination of NPHW and significant accomplishments.

For more information about National Public Health Week, visit www.nphw.org.

Article Comments

Article Comments

Guidelines: Keep it civil and on topic; no profanity, vulgarity, slurs or personal attacks. People who harass others or joke about tragedies will be blocked. If a comment violates these standards or our terms of service, click the "flag" link in the lower-right corner of the comment box. To find our more, read our FAQ.