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Mercer County Public Health Profile Report

Diabetes (Diagnosed) Prevalence: Estimated Percent (Age-adjusted), New Jersey, 2017-2020*

  • Mercer
    9.4
    95% Confidence Interval (7.6 - 11.7)
    StateNA
    U.S.NA
    NA=Data not available.
  • Mercer Compared to State

    gauge ranking
    Description of Gauge

    Description of the Gauge

    This graphic is based on the county data to the left. It compares the county value of this indicator to the state overall value.
    • Excellent = The county's value on this indicator is BETTER than the state value, and the difference IS statistically significant.
    • Watch = The county's value is BETTER than state value, but the difference IS NOT statistically significant.
    • Improvement Needed = The county's value on this indicator is WORSE than the state value, but the difference IS NOT statistically significant.
    • Reason for Concern = The county's value on this indicator is WORSE than the state value, and the difference IS statistically significant.

    The county value is considered statistically significantly different from the state value if the state value is outside the range of the county's 95% confidence interval. If the county's data or 95% confidence interval information is not available, a blank gauge image will be displayed with the message, "missing information."
    NOTE: The labels used on the gauge graphic are meant to describe the county's status in plain language. The placement of the gauge needle is based solely on the statistical difference between the county and state values. When selecting priority health issues to work on, a county should take into account additional factors such as how much improvement could be made, the U.S. value, the statistical stability of the county number, the severity of the health condition, and whether the difference is clinically significant.

Why Is This Important?

Diabetes and its frequent precursor, prediabetes, are conditions on a continuum marked by high levels of blood glucose (blood sugar) due to defects in insulin production, insulin action, or both. Insulin is a hormone needed to absorb and use glucose as fuel for the body's cells. Diabetes can lower life expectancy and increase the risk of heart disease. It is the leading cause of kidney failure, lower limb amputation, and adult-onset blindness. Diabetes and its complications can often be prevented or delayed. People who are diagnosed with diabetes or prediabetes need to learn about their condition and build the skills and confidence necessary to successfully take care of themselves, with the help of their health care team and community resources. About one-quarter of people with diabetes don't know they have it, and most people with prediabetes don't know they have it. Unfortunately, people who are undiagnosed can't take steps to manage their condition. Data in this Profile are only about diagnosed diabetes prevalence.

How Are We Doing?

In 2020, the age-adjusted prevalence of diagnosed diabetes in New Jersey was 8.5%. Hispanics (13.1), Asians (13.0%), and Blacks (11.5%) have a higher prevalence of diagnosed diabetes compared to Whites (6.3%).

What Is Being Done?

The Diabetes Prevention and Control Program (DPCP) approach to addressing diabetes in New Jersey is driven by population-based and evidence-based strategies to increase community-clinical linkages and clinical innovations to support the prevention and management of diabetes. The overall goal of the DPCP is to reduce the burden of diabetes on New Jersey residents by implementing community clinical linkages and health systems interventions that increase awareness of the disease, control disease related complications, and increase quality improvement processes in health systems, in the delivery of services to residents with diabetes. DPCP partners with organizations across the state to create Diabetes Resources Coordination Centers (DRCCs). These DRCCs liaise between community-based diabetes self-management education (DSME), diabetes prevention programs (DPP), and healthcare systems, to increase access to community-based programs, by helping providers establish referral policies and practices for diabetic patients. DPCP partners with NJ 2-1-1, the statewide non-emergency, information call center and website, to promote ADA-recognized, AADE-accredited and/or Stanford licensed diabetes self-management education, and lifestyle change workshops, and direct callers to increase utilization and access of these programs among New Jersey residents. NJ211 and the NJ Academy of Family Physicians also partners to leverage NJAFPs membership, through their statewide reach, to promote diabetes prevention and self-management resources to primary care providers. The Diabetes Prevention and Control Program collaborates with Department of Human Services (DHS) - Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CBVI) - Diabetic Eye Disease Detection (DEDD) Program to increase access to free eye examinations for uninsured or underinsured residents with diabetes. To increase state capacity to prevent type 2 diabetes in adults, NJDOH teamed up with the New Jersey Hospital Association (NJHA) to build capacity in the state by offering free Lifestyle Change Coach trainings to health systems and organizations interested in adopting the National Diabetes Prevention Program (NDPP). The Diabetes Prevention and Control Program (DPCP) currently partners with 22 Federally Qualified Health Centers (FQHCs) to adopt evidence-based strategies for the enhancement of electronic health records and/or team-based care appropriate for treating patients with diabetes in healthcare systems. Finally, DPCP collaborates with Regional Planning Collaboratives to leverage new clinical decision support systems for management of patients with diabetes to determine if there is a significant and sustainable impact on diabetes control and prevention in their patient populations. Through their enhanced health information exchanges, the RPCs confidentially report National Quality Forum measures 18 and 59, medication adherence measures, and other quality measures among providers (and to NJDOH) to support quality improvement activities.

Evidence-based Practices

Successful strategies implemented for FQHC partners include interventions such as incorporating clinical guidelines that are a part of a decision support system; changing roles and adding new positions to enhance care coordination teams; and improving usability and applicability of alerts, order sets, registries, and other clinical data available through electronic health records (EHRs) and health information exchanges (HIEs)

Healthy People Objective D-15:

Increase the proportion of persons with diabetes whose condition has been diagnosed
U.S. Target: 80.1 percent

Note

All prevalence estimates are age-adjusted to the U.S. 2000 standard population (except for rates by age group).  *2019 data is not included in the average estimated prevalence. No data is available for 2019

Data Sources

Behavioral Risk Factor Survey, Center for Health Statistics, New Jersey Department of Health, [http://www.state.nj.us/health/chs/njbrfs/]  

Measure Description for Diabetes (Diagnosed) Prevalence

Definition: Diabetes prevalence is the estimated percentage of New Jersey adults 18 years and older with diagnosed diabetes.
Numerator: Number of adult (18 and older) New Jersey respondents who responded, "yes" (within the survey year) to the BRFSS question: "Has a doctor, nurse, or other health professional ever told you that you have diabetes?".
Denominator: Number of New Jersey adults (18 and older) who responded to the BRFSS within the survey year.

Indicator Profile Report

Diagnosed Diabetes Prevalence in Adults Ages 18 and Over, (exits this report)

Date Content Last Updated

02/01/2023
The information provided above is from the Department of Health's NJSHAD web site (https://nj.gov/health/shad). The information published on this website may be reproduced without permission. Please use the following citation: " Retrieved Thu, 28 March 2024 17:43:03 from Department of Health, New Jersey State Health Assessment Data Web site: https://nj.gov/health/shad ".

Content updated: no date