Health Equity Report

In Louisville, health equity means that everyone has a fair and just opportunity to be healthy and reach their full human potential. A person’s identities, whatever they may be, should not predict how long or how well one will live. 

The 2017 Health Equity Report is designed as a tool for policy makers and residents to better understand how they can create more equitable policies and practices, and it examines the history of Louisville and how our past has influenced our present. The report shows the demographics and diversity of the city’s residents, noting, for example that Louisville’s population is growing and becoming more diverse. It reviews 21 health outcomes such as infant mortality, homicide and heart disease, and examines 11 root causes for those outcomes, ranging from food systems to neighborhood development. These health outcomes are arranged in the order of the life course, from infancy through old age, to demonstrate how root causes have different impacts at every life stage and can have cumulative effects over time.

A few of the findings in Louisville Metro Health Equity Report 2017 include:

• We can improve quality of life and reduce deaths from the leading causes, such as cancer, heart disease, and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), if we focus on root causes of health.
• Different groups are affected by different health outcomes. For example, white males had the highest rate of death from suicide, at 29.14 per 100,000, while black males had the highest rate of death from homicide, at 49.12 per 100,000.
• Louisville’s population is growing and becoming more diverse. The Hispanic/Latino population has tripled since 2000, and the Asian population has more than doubled.

​Also new to this report are evidence-based best practices assembled from comprehensive research programs which have assessed and evaluated many policies and programs. Our goal is to recommend evidence-based actions which have proven to make a difference for health. In many cases, these interventions have also been found to be cost-effective for communities. Best practices are arranged along the socio-ecological model which recommends that interventions happen at ALL levels in order to reinforce interventions, create synergy, and make sustainable, long-term change. 

Take a brief survey and download the full report here: 2017 Health Equity Report (size 79MB).

You can download the 2017 Health Equity Report Preview (size 5MB) here.  

Story Maps of Root Causes

Here you will find the first of many story maps to come. These maps will explore the data behind root causes in Louisville in more detail than is found in the full report. Stay tuned for ongoing updates and publications. 

The first story map examines Louisville's food system. Click through the different tabs to learn about different ways this root cause is linked to other root causes and health outcomes. Click on the maps to see detailed statistics and information about food resources such as farmer's markets and grocery stores, as well as data on race and ethnicity, transportation, and life expectancy. Have fun exploring and feel free to contact us with questions.