News

DC Health released its 2019 Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA) last week which showed that the District is meeting some, but not all, of its public health goals.

The purpose of the CHNA, according to the department, is to comprehensively analyze the overall health status and quality of life for District residents. The assessment "serves as a resource that catalogs the District's existing assets, healthcare services and facilities, public health infrastructure, community partnerships mobilized to address priority needs, promising practices and policies, population health data, and funding opportunities.

Read the executive summary here, the description of the District's population as a whole here, and health outcomes data here.

Some of the top line data that will be of interest to District physicians include:

• DC Health considers its Substance Use target as "met", with a 13.6% increase in the proportion of persons with co-occurring SUD and mental disorders receiving treatment for both disorders (target = 12.4%)
• Areas with health indicators getting "worse" include mental health and mental disorders, injury and violence prevention, clinical preventative services (focused on patient control of diabetes), and LGBTQ health
• Maternal mortality statistics show little or no change towards meeting 2020 goals
• The District's overall population has increased by 14% since 2010 and has the third youngest population in the U.S. (median age = 34)
• The difference in lief expectancy between a Ward 3 resident and a Ward 8 resident is 16.5 years (86 v. 70.5 years)