Uses of the IPLAN Data System
The IPLAN Data System was designed initially to provide local health
departments (LHDs) in Illinois with quick and easy access to data
needed for community assessment and program planning. It
may be used to support a variety of other activities
as well, including--
- Program development. The IPLAN Data System helps
to identify public health problems and, therefore, provides
a basis from which to design and structure public health
programs in the community. For example, if a community
experiences an increase in infant mortality, IPLAN data
may help to determine how best to target a public health
program.
- Grant writing and funding acquisition. The
system facilitates responding to funding opportunities by making
data readily available. By eliminating the need to
consult a multitude of different sources, the IPLAN Data System
streamlines data gathering requirements for grant
applications.
- Consultation and technical assistance. The IPLAN
Data System strengthens the user's ability to respond
quickly to requests for information and technical
assistance on a variety of health issues.
System-generated summary reports provide a snapshot of a
community's health status to interested parties, while
the easy-to-use screens enable the user to review
available details for particular health indicators. The
IPLAN Data System can support the LHDs role as a
clearinghouse for public health information in the
community.
- Source for public health information. The IPLAN Data
System contains pertinent information for use by the public,
health professionals, researchers, and media interested in the
health of their community.
Overview of the IPLAN Data System
The IPLAN Data System provides easy access to selected public
health indicators. Design features include --
- County and community data. The user may view
most data at county or community levels. Not all
indicators have data available at the community level.
- Grouping of counties, communities or years. If
indicators for one county or community do not have a
sufficient number of events for study, the IPLAN Data
System allows the selection and combining of counties,
communities or years for calculation.
- Classification by race or ethnicity. When
available, the IPLAN Data System presents information by
race or ethnicity.
- Data calculations. The IPLAN Data System
performs calculations of percentages or rates when
appropriate.
- U.S. and Healthy People 2010 Objectives. Along with
information for selected areas of study and Illinois,
the IPLAN Data System displays comparative U.S. data and
Healthy People 2010 objectives, when available. "N/A"
appears if this information is not available.
Because detailed population estimates at sub-county level are not
available for years after 1990, age-adjusted and age-specific rates are
not available for many indicators. Crude events and number of events for
ages 0-64 years are available.
Indicator Category
Descriptions
This section describes the seven categories of available
indicators. The categories comprise nearly 100 individual indicators.
For detailed indicator descriptions, click
Indicator Descriptions.
Most indicators are available at the county level; fewer are
available at the community level. Statistics for some of the
indicators can be grouped.
1.0 Demographic and Socioeconomic
Characteristics
Understanding a population's age distribution, race and ethnic
composition, and income characteristics is essential to
identifying health needs and planning health programs. The
demographic and socioeconomic indicators represent important
population characteristics that can have related health
attributes.
2.0 General Health and Access to
Care Indicators
This section provides an overview of health status using
general measures of mortality, years of life lost and life
expectancy. The indicators in this section could be used, for
example, to analyze the problem of premature death in conjunction
with a detailed analysis of specific causes. General measures of
health care access included in this category also attempt to
quantify the availability and use of basic health services and
the presence of financial barriers to health care access.
3.0 Maternal and Child Health Indicators
The purpose of the maternal and child health indicators category is to
provide an overview of the key components of maternal, infant
and child health and the risk factors that contribute to ill
health and poor outcomes. In addition to the infant mortality
rate, these indicators include important measures of increased
risk of death and disability, such as incidence of low birth
weight, receipt of prenatal care, and genetic, metabolic and
other disorders that contribute significantly to infant deaths
and morbidity.
4.0 Chronic Disease Indicators
This section provides an overview of mortality, incidence and
hospitalization rates for selected chronic diseases that reflect
the influence of lifestyle-related risks. The chronic disease
indicators also illustrate the prevalence of several risk factors
that play an important role in the prevention and management of
cardiovascular diseases, cancers, stroke, diabetes and mental
health problems.
5.0 Infectious Disease Indicators
The purpose of the infectious disease indicators is to present
an overview of available information on the incidence of
reportable infectious diseases in Illinois and to report the
immunization status of Illinois children. Reportable infectious
diseases have various causative agents, distribution patterns,
modes of transmission, treatments and methods of control.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the
number of infectious disease cases is tremendously under-reported.
Nonetheless, surveillance systems are important in
detecting both the causative agents and the diseases; these
systems are essential components of modern prevention and control
strategies.
6.0 Environmental, Occupational
and Injury Control Indicators
This category spans a diverse set of indicators related to
health factors in the areas of environmental health, occupational
safety and health, and injury control.
- Environmental health. The most difficult
challenges for environmental health today come from
uncertainties about the toxic and ecological effects of
the use of natural and synthetic chemicals, fossil fuels
and physical agents in modern society. Environmental
indicators are presented in this category as general
measures of exposure to potential toxins affecting
water, air and soil.
- Occupational safety and health. Approximately
5.5 million people are employed in Illinois,
spending major portions of their days in work
environments. Occupational diseases and injuries are
presented in this category as general indicators of the
need to implement or improve prevention strategies in the
workplace.
- Injury control. Injuries are a leading cause of
years of potential life lost in Illinois. Injury control
indicators displayed in this category are intended to
bring into sharper focus the major causes of intentional
and unintentional injury.
7.0 Sentinel Events
Sentinel indicators are presented for health conditions
considered preventable or controllable with regular primary
care. The occurrence of sentinel events can be interpreted to
indicate inadequate access to primary care. In this category, the
indicators are presented
in two reports:
7.01 Sentinel Events
Infants (0-1), Hospitalization for dehydration
Children (0-17), Hospitalization for rheumatic fever
Children (0-14), Hospitalization for asthma
Adults (>=18), Tuberculosis
Adults (>=18), Hospitalization for uncontrolled hypertension
7.02 Sentinel Events - Cancer
In situ Breast cancer
Late cervical cancer
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