The analysis of the leading causes of death across the country identifies the most problematic health issues on the national scale. Also, it may assist in determining the leading health indicators. This essay will analyze the leading causes of death based on such demographic variables as age, race, and gender in Georgia, USA, and identify three determinants of health selected as priorities for health promotion programs.
The five leading causes of death for Georgia include heart disease, malignant neoplasms, cerebrovascular, unintentional injury, and chronic lower respiratory disease, respectively (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). Comparing to the US statistics, the top three causes of death in Georgia coincide with those in the USA in general. By contrast, the chronic lower respiratory disease causes a higher percentage of deaths in the United States than unintentional injury.
Considering different demographic variables, it is clear that the leading causes of death vary significantly across populations. Addressing the age variable, it can be seen that unintentional injury represents the leading death cause for the age groups from 1 to 44, with malignant neoplasm having a higher death rate for the age groups between 45 and 64 (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). Also, age groups of 1-4, 15-24, and 25-34 include homicide as the second leading cause of death (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). In addition, a significant proportion of deaths are caused by suicide in 10-54 age groups.
Regarding the race variable, the statistics do not demonstrate a great variation. The leading causes of death for White, Black, American Indian/Alaskan Native, and Asian/Pacific Islander groups are heart disease and malignant neoplasms, with unintentional injury and cerebrovascular as the third or the fourth cause (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). Addressing the sex variable, the top two causes of death include heart disease and malignant neoplasms for both men and women (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2019). However, cerebrovascular diseases are prevalent as a cause of death in females rather than males.
Based on these data, the determinants of health presenting priority for health promotion programs include the availability of health services, availability of resources to meet daily needs, and social security. Special efforts should focus on the availability of health services, as the presented statistics reflect existing health disparities. Availability of health services promotes well-being allowing people to participate in preventive care and receive timely medical treatment (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2018). By contrast, the lack of access to health services results in people neglecting preventive care and delaying their treatment (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2014). Availability of resources and social security are essential social determinants of health, allowing people to live in a healthy environment, consume organic food, and be less stress-affected (U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2016). Conversely, the lack of resources and social security leads to living in disadvantaged areas with higher rates of pollution, consuming foods of lower nutritional quality, and high-stress levels.
To conclude, the leading causes of death in Georgia, USA are heart disease, malignant neoplasms, cerebrovascular diseases, unintentional injury, and chronic lower respiratory disease. There can be noted some variations in leading death causes depending on age, race, and gender. The determinants of health of high priority for health promotion programs include the availability of resources to cover everyday needs, availability of health services, and social security.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2019). Leading causes of death 1999 to 2016 (ICD-10). Atlanta, USA.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (2014). Public health learning modules-module 1: Using healthy people 2020 to improve population health. Part three: Healthy people and the National Center for Health Statistics [Video file]. Washington, USA.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2016). Healthy people 2020: Leading health indicators. Washington, USA.
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. (2018). Healthy people 2020: Leading health indicators. Washington, USA.