Northeast, Central Queens Show Top Health Profiles

Northeast, Central Queens Show Top Health Profiles

By John Toscano

The communities of Bayside, Douglaston, Little Neck and Oakland Gardens in Northeast Queens, and Fresh Meadows, Hillcrest and Kew Gardens Hills in Central Queens are among the healthiest in the borough, according to a series of Community Health Profiles released recently by the city Department of Health and Mental Hygiene.

North Queens, including Auburndale, Bay Terrace, Clearview, College Point, Flushing and Whitestone follow closely behind the first two areas cited.

In all, the health profiles were issued to cover 42 neighborhoods throughout New York City which were defined by ZIP codes, allowing the Health Department to analyze and report data most effectively.

Each of the profiles contains information about the leading causes of illness, hospitalization, and death, as well as how New Yorkers balance healthy and unhealthy behaviors and how well the health care system provides preventive treatment, the cover statement reports.

It adds: "The Community Health Profiles are essentially a report card on each community’s health, and feature understandable charts and graphs that contain information about:

•Leading causes of death and hospitalization.

•The burden of mental illness, HIV/AIDS, smoking, obesity, diabetes and alcohol use.

•Maternal and infant health.

•Children’s health—asthma, injuries and lead poisoning.

•Cancer screening and other preventive services and access to care."

Each of the six categories is rated below average (bottom 10), average (middle 22) and above average (top 10).

Other New York City Northeast and Central Queens neighborhoods scored above average or in the top 10 in every category except access to medical care.

The North Queens community was rated equally as high as its two neighboring communities in four categories, but fell into the below average rating in prevention in doctor’s offices and access to medical care.

In contrast, Southeast Queens, including Howard Beach, Kew Gardens, Ozone Park, Richmond Hill and Woodhaven, appeared to have the lowest ratings. It was average in three categories, below average in two and above average in only one, chronic diseases.

Among other indicators of good health, Northeast Queens’ top health rating showed it had the lowest rate of premature deaths in the 42 neighborhoods profiled. Northeast Queens had 480 deaths per 100,000 people as compared to 736 citywide.

In contrast, Central Queens had 560 premature deaths per 100,000 and Southeast Queens had 658. Heart disease and cancer were the leading causes of death in all three Queens neighborhoods.
The explanatory release issued by the Health Department and signed by Associate Commissioner Sandra Mullin, director of communications, offered no reasons why one community’s health report was better than another’s.

Mullin stated: "We trust that these reports will help health professionals, community leaders, residents and the media focus on the health problems that require the most attention."

She said in the future, the department will conduct a series of community meetings "where we will present the data to New Yorkers and discuss how this information can help them become healthier."