| Report Area | Total Population (Age 18+) |
Total Adults Not Taking Blood Pressure Medication (When Needed) | Percent Adults Not Taking Medication |
|---|---|---|---|
| Franklin County, PA | 111,446 | 21,244 | 19.1% |
| Pennsylvania | 9,857,384 | 1,828,367 | 18.5% |
| United States | 235,375,690 | 51,175,402 | 21.7% |
Adults Not Taking Medicine for High Blood Pressure, Percent by Race / Ethnicity
| Report Area | Non-Hispanic White | Non-Hispanic Black | Non-Hispanic Other Race | Hispanic or Latino |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pennsylvania | 18.14% | 19.58% | 19.89% | 18.61% |
| United States | 19.66% | 18.65% | 28.31% | 34.86% |
High Blood Pressure Management
Data Background
The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is
“... a collaborative project of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and U.S. states and territories. The BRFSS, administered and supported by CDC's Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Branch, is an ongoing data collection program designed to measure behavioral risk factors for the adult population (18 years of age or older) living in households. ”
Citation: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services. Overview: BRFSS 2010.
For more information on the BRFSS survey methods, or to obtain a copy of the survey questionnaires, please visit the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System home page.
Methodology
Indicator percentages are acquired from analysis of annual survey data from the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) for years 2006-2010. Percentages are generated based on valid responses to the following questions: "Have you EVER been told by a doctor, nurse or other health professional that you have high blood pressure? “ and “Are you currently taking medicine for your high blood pressure?”
This indicator represents the percentage of those persons who answered that ‘yes’ they have high blood pressure who also answered ‘no’, that they are not currently taking medication to control it. Data only pertain to the non-institutionalized population aged 18 and up and are weighted to reflect the total county population, including non-respondents, using the methods described in the BRFSS Comparability of Data documentation. Population numerators (estimated number of adults exercising each risk behavior) are not provided in the annual survey data and were generated for the data tables using the following formula:
The population figures used for these estimates are acquired from the American Community Survey (ACS) 2006-2010 five year estimates.
Additional detailed information about the BRFSS, including questionnaires, data collection procedures, and data processing methodologies are available on the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System home page.
Notes
Data Suppression
Suppression is used to avoid misinterpretation when rates are unstable. Data is suppressed when the total number of persons sampled (for each geographic area / population group combination) over the survey period is less than 20. Data are unreliable when the total number of persons sampled over the survey period is less than 50. Confidence intervals are available when exploring the data through the map viewer.
Race and Ethnicity
Race and ethnicity (Hispanic origin) are collected as two separate categories in the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) interview surveys based on methods established by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) in 1997. Before the raw survey data files are released, self-identified race and ethnicity variables are recoded by National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) analysts into the following categories: White, Non-Hispanic; Black, Non-Hispanic; Multiple Race, Non-Hispanic; Other Race, Non-Hispanic; and Hispanic or Latino. Due to sample size constraints, race and ethnicity statistics are only reported at the state and national levels.
Courtesy: Community Commons, <www.communitycommons.org>, November 2017