(Guthrie Center, IA) — The quality of health care has gone up in Guthrie County — so much so that residents are even living longer.
At Tuesday’s Board of Supervisors meeting, Jotham Arbor the County’s Health Services Director presented his annual report and he says the life expectancy for Guthrie County has gone up over 11 years in the last 10 years
Arbor also reports that Guthrie County ranks in the top 25 percent of counties for health and out of around 3500 counties in the country that are the same size, Guthrie County ranks a respectable 359th. Arbor says there is a reason for this
Arbor says they are seeing great results from the public health services offered by the county as a direct result of taxpayer money
Arbor says there are other areas to address such as mental health — a licensed therapist in the county has had 525 sessions in the last year and Arbor says the need for sessions will only increase in the next year. He says there is a need for hiring social workers and mental health therapists
Arbor also says immunizations are up county wide and reminds everyone that flu shots are vital this year. And lastly, Arbor says the health department has produced more garbage this year. Over 9,000 tons of garbage will be thrown away which is about 700 tons more than last year.
