SULLIVAN COUNTY, NY — For the past three years, Sullivan County has ranked 61 out of 62 counties in New York State in terms of public health. This dire number is in the works to change, as multiple organizations come together to improve our health.

One such effort is the Healthy Sullivan County Initiative. Among those involved in this project are Sullivan County legislators, the Sullivan County Manager Josh Potosek, the Sullivan County departments of Public Health Services and Planning, the Gerry Foundation, Sullivan Renaissance, Sullivan County Visitors Association, Cornell Cooperative Extension and Catskill Regional Medical Center, and there are many others. They are leading a call to action to fix the health crisis.

Sullivan County Legislature Chair Luis Alvarez is fronting the movement. He said the first step is to identify how they determine the health ranking, which is done by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (the rankings can be found at www.countyhealthrankings.org). The lowest-ranking county, below Sullivan, is Bronx, and the highest-ranking is Saratoga.

The health ranking includes many factors, broken into the categories of Length of Life, Quality of Life, Health Behaviors, Clinical Care, Social & Economic Factors and Physical Environment. Some of the categories in which Sullivan County ranks especially low are premature death, adult smoking, adult obesity, alcohol-impaired driving deaths, sexually transmitted infections, limited access to exercise opportunities, limited access to health care, a low high school graduation rate and high number of injury deaths. In terms of air and water quality, the county ranks well; in fact, drinking water violations are reported at 0%, compared to a New York State average of 26%.

In a letter, the Public Health Director of Sullivan County Public Health Services, Nancy McGraw, said, “There are health disparities in terms of unequal access to health-care services, healthy affordable food, and education programs. This is difficult to do in a large rural county of almost 1,000 square miles. Lower health status is often related to poverty, employment, disability, transportation and racial inequities that lead to health disparities.”

Healthy Sullivan County will address these issues. The mission statement says, “Through collaboration across multiple sectors, the mission of Healthy Sullivan is to address the social and economic conditions that impact the overall quality of life in Sullivan County, and to create an environment where residents can attain their highest level of health.”

The goal is to improve health outcomes by the year 2020. The initiative aims to do this through development objectives in focus areas. They are:

• Economic Development: business retention and expansion, employment

• Quality of Life Indicators: health, education, community, safety

• Tourism: promotion, activities, entertainment

• Agriculture: farmland preservation, agri-business retention and expansion, local food promotion

• Diversity and Inclusion: racial/ethnic and socio-economic diversity and equality

Legislator Alvarez touched on some specific areas. He wants to improve education and increase the number of students who graduate. He also wants to help people quit smoking, by providing patches. He said many people have come forward to offer their help and advice. “People are coming out with bright ideas, and it helps us discover more,” he said.

As the county and organizations embark on this mission, Alvarez makes note that it is a work in progress. “This has never been done before,” he said. “We are taking it one day at a time.”

[The River Reporter will continue to report on the health crisis in this series, “Our County, Our Health.” Look for more installments on a bi-weekly basis as we talk to the Department of Public Health, Catskill Regional Medical Center, Cornell Cooperative Extension, Sullivan County Farmers’ Markets, the Monticello School District and others. If you have any feedback or comments, email Isabel@riverreporter.com or call 845/252-7414 ext. 30. Read the second installment here.]