A Huron County Epidemiologist says public health assessments play a key role in planning for the community.
Dr. Erica Clark said those assessments look at several factors and allows the county to compare that information to other communities.
“So we might look at something like how many people are spending time in the hospital because of injuries," said Clark. "We might look at how many people tell us that overall their health is good or excellent, or we might look at how many low birth-weight babies are being born in the county.”
The assessments help Huron County plan programs and services for the community.
“So we want to know, are things getting better, are things getting worse, are they about the same," said Clarke. "And then we also look at how do we compare to other rural areas and how do we compare to all of Ontario."
One trend that's beginning to show up in parts of the country and parts of Ontario is an increase in sexually transmitted infections.
Dr. Clark said that issue hasn't arrived in Huron County yet, but knowing it's present in other communities gives health unit staff the county time to prepare for it and reduce its impact.