We Westchesterites may be wealthier than most of our countrymen (on average, we earn $66,560 a year compared to the $44,389 per year those in the rest of the country earn), but are we similarly blessed when it comes to our health? Apparently we are. According to the Westchester County Department of Heath, we are thinner, live longer, and have more doctors at our disposal than our fellow countrymen. Below, some numbers that measure our—and our fellow Americans’—health.
Average age of death in Westchester: 76.4; National average: 72.3
Death rate in Westchester; 7.8 per 1,000 people
Top causes of death in the county:
1. Heart diseases –2,961
2. Cancer (Digestive organs and peritoneum is number one – example: stomach cancer)—1,817
Number of physicians per residents in the county registered to practice: 1 per 155 (or 6,079 physicians); In Bergen County, NJ: 1 per 250 (or 3,600 physicians) In Manhattan: 1 per 104 (or 15,283 physicians)
Number of hospitals operating in Westchester today: 16
Top three hospitals in Westchester for medical-related hospitalizations*:
1. White Plains Hospital Center, White Plains
2. St. John’s Riverside Hospital, Yonkers
3. Lawrence Hospital Center, Bronxville
Average length of a hospital stay: 6 days; In the US: 4.8 days
Most common reason for hospitalization (excluding pregnancy-related): Diseases of the circulatory system; Second most common: mental disorders
Infant mortality rate: 4.4 per 1,000 live births; Nationally: 6.8 per 1,000 live births
Number of abortions (in 2004): 2,831 (‘tweens and teens accounted for 574)
Most prevalent STD: Chlamydia (rate was highest among those aged 20-24)
Number of Westchesterites living with HIV: 949; with AIDS: 2,257
Percent of NYS high school students who have ever smoked a cigarette: 48.5 (in 2004); 61.7 (in 2000)
Percentage of Westchesterites who are overweight: 38.2. Percent overweight nationally: 66.3
Percent of Westchesterites who are obese: 15.4. Percent obese nationally: 32
Percent of Westchesterites trying to lose weight: 45.4; Percent in the US: 32
Number of animal bites reported to the Westchester County Department of Health: 1,027; Number rabid: 52; Town where the most rabid animals were found: Greenburgh (11)
Number of registered psychologists in the county: 1,076. In Rockland County: 201; Wyoming County (in Western NY): 0
These numbers represent the most up-to-date information available through the Westchester County Department of Health Annual Report 2005/2006 and the Community Health Assessment, the New York State Department of Health, the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, New Jersey Department of Health and Senior Services, and the U.S. Census Bureau.
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