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Health Data & Statistics

Clackamas County Community Health Division’s Epidemiology section collects, analyzes and interprets public health data to assess the health of the residents of Clackamas County. The statistics in this section are a description of the health of Clackamas County residents. We use a broad definition of health — physical, mental, and social well-being and the environments where people live, work and play.

Our statistics and reports use information and analysis from our databases and/or from state or national sources. We conduct regular community health assessment to compare the health status of groups in the county to other groups, or to the county, state or nation overall.

How We Look at Data

For meaningful comparisons, we develop rates for the numbers of health events in our community, including:

  • Crude rates are the number of events (e.g., births or deaths) divided by the population in which the events occur over a specific period of time such as births to women of child bearing age or deaths due to a certain cause.
  •  Age-adjusted death rates account for differences in the age distribution of two or more groups so we can make comparisons independent of the age composition of populations. Age-adjusted death rates are usually reported per 100,000 population so they’re easy to interpret.
  •  Incidence allows us to quantify the risk of disease in a population. It’s calculated by dividing the number of new cases of a disease by the population in which the disease occurs during a period of time. Incidence is usually calculated per 100,000 population.

Birth Statistics

This section provides information about the health status of mothers and infants in Clackamas County. The data come from birth certificates for residents of Clackamas County no matter where the birth occurred. These reports and maps show the most recent trends for maternal-child health.

Cancer Statistics

This section provides information related to the burden of cancer for Clackamas County residents. The main source for the data is the Oregon State Cancer Registry, which began collecting information on all cancers diagnosed in Oregon as of January 1, 1996. These reports and maps show the most recent trends for the types of cancer of greatest concern in Clackamas County.

Death Statistics

This section provides information from death certificates on the leading causes of death for Clackamas County residents, no matter where the death occurred. The deaths are coded according to the World Health Organization’s International Classification of Disease, 10th Revision (ICD-10).

Age adjusted-death rates may be used to compare mortality between sub-groups of the county population, between two or more time periods for the county overall, or to compare mortality in Clackamas County to other counties in the state or nation. Rates are adjusted to the year 2000 U.S. Standard Population.

Age-specific mortality rates provide information about the causes of death that are of most concern for specific age groups, but these rates should not be used to compare two or more groups to one another.

Years of potential life lost (YPLL) is an analysis that provides information about how mortality impacts our communities when infants or young people die prematurely. It is calculated by estimating the average time a person may have lived if premature death had not happened.

Communicable Disease Statistics

This section provides statistics about reportable communicable diseases in Clackamas County. This information is useful for surveillance and detecting disease outbreaks, as well as for public health preparedness. These tables and reports show the latest trends in communicable disease incidence in the county.

For a list of reportable diseases or to report a case of communicable disease, visit the Communicable Disease Office page.

Community Health Reports

Community health assessment information originates from databases maintained within the Community Health Division, and from registries, survey data and reports from state or national sources. These reports may provide overviews of recent trends about the health of our community or specific fact sheets on public health topics that are significant to health and quality of life for Clackamas County residents.

Environmental Health

All Clackamas County residents may be impacted by aspects of the environment, such as the quality of drinking water or air, safe food supplies, or accessibility of places for regular physical activity. The information in this section is related to these environmental factors and how they affect communities in the county.

Contacts

Steve Dahl, Communicable Disease/Environmental Health Manager
steved@co.clackamas.or.us

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