³ÉÈËÊÓƵ

Our Portraits of Health

The data used to construct the following maps were gathered from resources such as the South Dakota Department of Health and other sources. The source for each map is listed at the bottom of each map's page. Maps that are currently available include:

Mortality

Maps in this section are often reported using age-adjusted data. According to John Weeks, age adjustment involves standardizing death rates for two populations to allow for more accurate comparisons than might be possible using the simpler crude death rate. Crude death rates basically tell a person how many people have died from various causes. The age adjustment process seeks to ensure that population traits do not mask true mortality trends or suggest a trend where one may not exist.

Available maps illustrating mortality data include:

• Overall Age-Adjusted Death Rates by County (2004-2008)
• Age-Adjusted Death Rates by Accidents (2004-2008)
• Age-Adjusted Death Rates by Cancer (2004-2008)
• Age-Adjusted Death Rates by Chronic Liver Disease (2004-2008)
• Age-Adjusted Death Rates by Diabetes (2004-2008)
• Age-Adjusted Death Rates by Heart Disease (2004-2008)
• Deaths by Suicide (2004-2008)

Care Designations

• Dental Care Shortage Designations (2007)
• Mental Care Shortage Designations (2007)
• Primary Care Shortage Designations (2007)

Pregnancy and Birth Outcomes

• Percentage of Infants Having Low Birth Weights (1994 and 2004)
• Percentage of Women Having First-Trimester Prenatal Care (1994 and 2004)

Other Health Measures

• Motor Vehicle Accidents Involving Alcohol (2000 and 2008)
• Total Motor Vehicle Crashes (2000 and 2008)
• HIV in South Dakota Counties (1985-2009)

For additional information about the data we collected, how to interpret the maps, or if you would like us to try to make a map for you, please call 605-688-4132 or email ³ÉÈËÊÓƵ Data.