Laurel's Health: Survey: Alcohol, drugs ranked most prevalent problems in county

For the second year in a row, a study by a Laurel County health group has found that substance abuse is perceived as a major health issue in the county.

The study, conducted by the Laurel County Health in Motion Coalition, conducted a survey in which more than half of those who responded identified alcohol and drug abuse as the greatest health problem in the county. On the question of what respondents consider to be the three riskiest behaviors, the top three spots all dealt with substance abuse, including street drug abuse, prescription drug abuse and alcohol abuse.

"Substance abuse is a major issue," said Brandi Gilley, nutrition services supervisor and accreditation coordinator for the Laurel County Health Department.

Gilley serves on the coalition which conducted the study. The study is called "The Community Health Assessment," and is conducted every three years.

Its goal is to identify factors that influence the health of the county, and to develop a plan to target those factors, Gilley said.

The coalition tries to determine four to five of the most pressing health concerns, and lay out how to act to make improvements in those areas.

"We want to pull our community partnerships together," Gilley said. "We want to come up with priorities to make Laurel County a healthier place to live."

After those priorities are decided on and an action plan is developed, the coalition writes a Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP), Gilley said.

Those areas have not been officially determined based on the 2015 study. The coalition is continuing to identify those, Gilley said. In their discussions, members have talked about substance abuse being a major problem, Gilley said.

For the 2012 assessment, substance abuse, problems with family support and mental health, chronic diseases such as heart disease and diabetes, and public safety were the issues identified as being most pressing.

The community survey is just part of the assessment. It also includes a community status assessment, for which the coalition looks at data already available through health agencies, law enforcement agencies, and others to get a view of the status of the county's health outcomes and factors.

It also includes a forces of change assessment, which identifies trends, factors or events that influence the health and quality of life in the county.

One area the study looks at is the County Health Rankings done by the group County Health Rankings and Roadmaps. For 2015, Laurel County ranked 66th out of the 120 counties in Kentucky in health outcomes, which includes length of life and quality of life. Both mortality rates from chronic health conditions and prevalence of those health conditions are used in determining those rankings, according to the study documents.

In health factors, Laurel County ranked 74th for 2015. Health factors are things that influence the health of the community, such as health behaviors, access to care, social and economic factors and environmental factors.

Gilley said that, ultimately, the health problems in the county are mostly physical.

In addition to substance abuse, there is a prevalence of conditions such as heart disease and diabetes.

"It's just not being physically active," she said. "Nutrition is lacking. There's still a lot of tobacco use."

She said she believes the community has sufficient access to facilities and programs that are good for health.

The problem is with people not having the knowledge they need, she said.

"I think it's just educating them on taking advantage of those things," she said. "And investing in their personal health."

The Laurel County Health in Motion Coalition was formed in 2011, initially under the name Laurel County Community Needs Assessment Coalition.

It is made up of representatives from multiple community agencies in Laurel and surrounding counties.

The coalition released its first assessment in 2012. The 2015 assessment is the second assessment done by the coalition. The CHIP the coalition will develop based on the results will be used by the coalition from July 1 of this year until June 30 2019, when a new CHIP will have been developed based on the planned 2018 study.

Follow Kelly on Twitter @KellyJoMcKinney