1. Introduction/Define County
Prince George’s County (PG) was established by the 1695 Maryland general assembly, originally formed by parts of Calvert and Charles counties, and is the second largest county in the state of Maryland. It is part of the suburban Washington region and has an estimated population of 909,535. As the second largest county, it houses 15% of Maryland’s total population. The county racial distribution is 26.5% Caucasian and 73.5% minorities. PG is primarily urban with a few rural jurisdictions. It ranks 14/24 overall in health outcomes and 16/24 in health factors within the state of Maryland. Under the umbrella of health outcomes the county ranks 15/24 in length of life; 17/24 in quality of life; and within health …show more content…
STIs are a preventable health factor that influences and is influenced by a variety of other factors. PG County has the second highest rate of STIs in the state. Healthy People 2020 (2017) identified sexual health as an area of focus and set a goal to ”promote healthy sexual behaviors, strengthen community capacity, and increase access to quality services to prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and their complications.” HP 2020 attributes future health problems to STIs that are costly and irreversible such as cancer, transmission of STIs (esp. HIV), reproductive health problems, and fetal and perinatal health problems. The cost of STIs to the healthcare system is approximated by the CDC to be $16 billion. The magnitude of this cost is 100% preventable with education, resources, and safe practices. The above-stated facts are reasons that STIs are an important health priority for providers to focus on, especially with …show more content…
On the other hand, teen pregnancy can be affected by STI rates as well as be a causative factor. PG County has the highest number of single-parent households coming close to 90,000. Research shows that adolescents who live with both parents delay sexual debut compared to adolescents living with either one or no parent (Chen et al, 2010). Multiple sexual encounters increase the risk of contracting STIs. There are more than 9400 children under the age of 18 that are uninsured within PG. Lack of access to health care increases the number of untreated STIs and contributes to the spread of disease through risky sexual behaviors. The last measurement of primary care providers yielding data that there are 1,908 patients to 1 primary care provider. This data point does not include nurse practitioners as primary care providers so the number may be lower with those practitioners included. Teen pregnancy is known to increase the risk of STIs. The rate of teen pregnancy is the second highest (6,560) in the state as well. Meade (2005) states that teen mothers continue to engage in unprotected sex and increase health
Prince George’s County (PG) was established by the 1695 Maryland general assembly, originally formed by parts of Calvert and Charles counties, and is the second largest county in the state of Maryland. It is part of the suburban Washington region and has an estimated population of 909,535. As the second largest county, it houses 15% of Maryland’s total population. The county racial distribution is 26.5% Caucasian and 73.5% minorities. PG is primarily urban with a few rural jurisdictions. It ranks 14/24 overall in health outcomes and 16/24 in health factors within the state of Maryland. Under the umbrella of health outcomes the county ranks 15/24 in length of life; 17/24 in quality of life; and within health …show more content…
STIs are a preventable health factor that influences and is influenced by a variety of other factors. PG County has the second highest rate of STIs in the state. Healthy People 2020 (2017) identified sexual health as an area of focus and set a goal to ”promote healthy sexual behaviors, strengthen community capacity, and increase access to quality services to prevent sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) and their complications.” HP 2020 attributes future health problems to STIs that are costly and irreversible such as cancer, transmission of STIs (esp. HIV), reproductive health problems, and fetal and perinatal health problems. The cost of STIs to the healthcare system is approximated by the CDC to be $16 billion. The magnitude of this cost is 100% preventable with education, resources, and safe practices. The above-stated facts are reasons that STIs are an important health priority for providers to focus on, especially with …show more content…
On the other hand, teen pregnancy can be affected by STI rates as well as be a causative factor. PG County has the highest number of single-parent households coming close to 90,000. Research shows that adolescents who live with both parents delay sexual debut compared to adolescents living with either one or no parent (Chen et al, 2010). Multiple sexual encounters increase the risk of contracting STIs. There are more than 9400 children under the age of 18 that are uninsured within PG. Lack of access to health care increases the number of untreated STIs and contributes to the spread of disease through risky sexual behaviors. The last measurement of primary care providers yielding data that there are 1,908 patients to 1 primary care provider. This data point does not include nurse practitioners as primary care providers so the number may be lower with those practitioners included. Teen pregnancy is known to increase the risk of STIs. The rate of teen pregnancy is the second highest (6,560) in the state as well. Meade (2005) states that teen mothers continue to engage in unprotected sex and increase health