Charleston Gazette
March 14, 2007
By Davin White
Staff writer

Nearly one in four Kanawha County residents say they are in fair or poor health, and more than one in three said they had problems finding adequate medical care, according to data collected last year.

A coalition of hospital executives, health-care staff, educators and others announced those findings at the University of Charleston Tuesday morning.

Only four in 10 telephone survey respondents said they had participated in vigorous activity within the last month. A similar count, 38 percent said they smoke. More than six in 10 said they are mostly sedentary at work.

Polltakers surveyed 225 residents over the phone.

The Kanawha Coalition for Community Health Improvement plans to use data compiled in the surveys with statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and PRevention and the state Department of Health and Human Resources. The current assessment has been in the works since 2003.

More than 100 involved community members were voting at a Tuesday night banquet to tackle three key health concerns over the next three years, according to coalition executive director Judy Crabtree.

Those issues range from substance abuse prevention to drinking and driving, all-terrain vehicle safety and physical activity.

Crabtree and others acknowledged that female and elderly survey respondents were overrepresented, while African-Americans were underrepresented.

Still, Dr. Kerry Gateley, executive director of the Kanawha-Charleston Health Department, said the number of respondents who said they were generally in poor or fair health (23 percent) is in line with previous research.

“That’s pretty significant,” Gateley said. “From a public health standpoint, that’s a problem.”

Of the key findings, one in four who smoked said they tried to quit within the past year. More than half of all respondents favored increased taxes on cigarettes and smokeless tobacco.

More than six in 10 questioned (61 percent) support elimination of secondhand tobacco smoke.

A majority of the adult ATV riders questioned (55 percent), said they never wore helmets. One in four riders under 18 never wore helmets, according to the survey.

To contact staff writer Davin White, use e-mail or call 348-1254.

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