Eastern Kentucky ranks last in national survey of well-being
By Bill Estep, Lexington Herald-Leader | |
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services |
The district covering Eastern and
The survey assessed people's emotional and physical health; behavior that affects health, such as smoking or exercising; job satisfaction and access to basic needs, including food and housing; and their outlook on life.
It's not the first time the region has finished at the bottom of the index compiled by the Gallup polling organization and
"We're seeing people we've never seen before, who never had to ask for help," Pace said.
The state as a whole ranked 49th in the well-being index, ahead of only neighboring
There are a lot of factors that drive down
"Our health status is dismal in
Problems that make for a poor showing in the well-being survey are even more pronounced in the state's eastern coalfield.
In
In
The problems build on each other; people in poor health can't find or keep jobs, feeding depression and related problems.
There has been an increase in depression and substance-abuse addiction in the region with the downturn in the coal industry, said Howell and
"It is very hard to transcend poverty" in the face of physical and behavioral health problems, Howell said.
Against that backdrop, however, an effort is taking root to improve the regional economy, which if successful could improve residents' outlook and other measures of real and perceived well-being.
Gov.
The goal is to involve Eastern Kentuckians in coming up with ideas and plans to diversify and expand the region's economy, then act on those plans.
Rogers, a Republican, and Beshear, a Democrat, recently named an executive committee to oversee the next phase of the initiative, which includes holding a series of public meetings this summer to generate more ideas and greater involvement.
The sense of helplessness among many people in the region complicates the effort to imagine and pursue a better future, said
The context the initiative faces is as challenging as he's seen in 25 years of work with the research institute around the nation, Fluharty said.
In addition to other issues, the region has a history of control by elites and of parochial politics -- the opposite of the regional collaboration and development that helps places succeed these days, Fluharty said.
"I think this is the toughest, most difficult region we've worked in, ever," he said.
But Fluharty said there are reasons to be optimistic. There are great assets in the region, and the bipartisan backing of Rogers and Beshear is a key plus, he said. Moreover, many people in
An estimated 1,700 people attended the initial SOAR summit in December, and many more have signed on since. Fluharty said he has never seen so many people get involved so quickly in an effort to turn around a region.
"People realize if we've got any chance at all we've got to seize the reins, we've got to diversify the economy," said
There also are efforts underway through local health departments, community groups and others to improve health in
Like SOAR, one ambitious example is just getting underway.
Beshear announced a plan in February, called kyhealthnow, to involve every state-government cabinet and public and private groups in efforts to measurably improve Kentuckians' health over the next five years.
The goal is to cut smoking and obesity rates; reduce the number of people with no health insurance and the number of children with untreated dental problems; and drive down deaths from cancer, cardiovascular disease and drug overdoses.
The strategies include trying to increase the number of dentists in
Mayfield, the
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