What are Chronic Diseases?

Chronic disease is the leading cause of death in the United States. Chronic diseases include heart disease, cancer, stroke, diabetes, and hypertension. These diseases are not contagious. They develop slowly over time, and there may  be NO SYMPTOMS. Risks for developing chronic diseases are significantly influenced by lifestyle behaviors. We can not control all our risks factors, but we can control some of them.

Methods of preventing chronic diseases include:

• being physically active most days of the week
• not using tobacco products
• not eating too many calories and saturated fat which leads to being overweight
• eating a healthy diet of fresh fruits and vegetables; low fat and high fiber foods.

Strategic Plan

Activities

Assess Community Health Status related to chronic diseases and injuries by accessing and analyzing epidemiological, survey and other data.

• Plan strategic actions to improve community health status, especially relative to chronic diseases and injuries.
• Implement interventions to improve health when appropriate especially pilot projects and model programs.
• Use strategic partnerships, multiplier approaches, and train-the-trainer tactics to increase impact of small staff.
• Evaluate strategic approaches, community initiatives, and a variety of programmatic efforts for effectiveness.
• Facilitate cooperation and collaboration among health and human service agencies and community and neighborhood organizations. The intention of such actions is to create greater alignment among partner organizations in working towards community objectives.
• Act as internal and external resources for chronic disease and injury related information. This includes dissemination of effective resource materials.
• Communicate to the public and to policy maker's chronic disease and injury-related data, information, community issues and resources for catalyzing strategic actions towards achieving community objectives.