We are pleased to share the results of our 2024 Suffolk County Community Health Needs Assessment (CHNA). This valuable resource is designed to support our health system’s efforts to improve patient care, advance clinical practice and inform research and teaching.
All Stony Brook Medicine clinical teams, researchers, educators and staff are invited to explore the CHNA data. It offers a wealth of information that can inform your work, from enhancing patient care strategies to shaping research priorities and teaching curricula. By leveraging these insights, we can ensure our initiatives are aligned with the needs of our community and make a lasting impact on public health.
Select the links below to review the CHNA report and to watch a recording with a presentation about the report.
As members of Stony Brook Medicine, you can further the impact of this study by finding ways of using the results to guide our approach to clinical care; weave it into our educational materials; and integrate it into our research agenda.
To request a data set from this survey or to discuss strategies for leveraging this data, please reach out to the Planning Office at (631) 444-4500.
About the CHNA
SBM has continued its longstanding partnership with national survey firm Professional Research Consultants to conduct this CHNA, which reflects survey results from 1,103 telephone surveys of Suffolk County residents and 175 online key informant surveys completed by healthcare providers, community leaders and public health professionals across Suffolk County.
The 2024 report builds on previous surveys completed in 2014 and 2018, and provides data trending across multiple health indicators. The survey consisted of roughly 120 questions, which mirror questions used in national surveys and includes questions that were customized for Suffolk County.
The survey provides insight into many aspects of Suffolk residents’ healthcare experience including their health status, and the impact that social determinants of health and many diseases and conditions have on their well-being. This data builds our understanding of how the health of our community varies by geography and by demographic factors such as age, gender, household income, military service, LGBTQ+ identity, race and ethnicity, and how their health has changed over time. The CHNA also provides comparisons to New York State and national benchmarks.
As we have in the past, we will use this data to support clinical program development, teaching and research, and will share it with regional organizations who, like SBM, want to make a positive impact on the community’s health.
Key Takeaways of the CHNA
While Suffolk County findings often compare favorably to NYS and national data, a number of areas of opportunity were revealed.
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Mental Health
- 70% of key informants identified mental health as a major or moderate problem.
- 19.8% of residents believe that their overall mental health is “fair” or “poor.” Chronic depression and frequent stress are generally trending up when compared to previous surveys. However, these are below national rates.
- Prevalence in Suffolk County tends to be higher among women, younger adults, those with lower incomes and LGBTQ+ residents.
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Substance Use
- In our survey, 7.1% of adults report ever having sought help for an alcohol- or drug-related problem (up from 4.3% in 2014).
- The rate of unintentional drug-induced deaths rose but has declined in Suffolk County since 2018. It remains above NYS and national levels.
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Social Determinants of Health
- 28.5% of respondents report low food access, significantly higher than NYS and national levels.
- The percentage of residents lacking health insurance is 6%, an increase since 2014. Uninsured prevalence is notably high (18%) among Black or African American respondents.
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Diabetes
- While the overall prevalence is 11.2%, it is 21.6% among those age 65+.
- Another 16.3% of adults have been diagnosed with “pre-diabetes” or
“borderline” diabetes (vs. 6.2% nationally).
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Cancer
- Cancer is a leading cause of death in Suffolk County.
- Notably higher prevalence among those age 65+ (28.9%) and among White residents (12.7%).
- However, the mortality rate has declined in relation to prior surveys.
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Nutrition, Physical Activity and Weight
- Almost 70% of adults are overweight or obese and 31.3% of children (ages 5-17) are overweight.
- 23% of Suffolk County adults find it “very” or “somewhat” difficult to buy affordable, fresh produce (U.S. = 30%).
- However, more adults (30.8%) are meeting physical activity recommendations. Physical activity among children decreased in relation to prior surveys.
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Access to Health Care Services
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More than 31% of respondents have had trouble getting a doctor appointment in the last year, and numerous barriers to access are reported.
- 8.6% had trouble obtaining medical care for a child in the past year. Routine medical visits among children, while better than found nationally, have decreased since 2014 (although similar to 2018).
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Heart Disease
- Heart disease is the #1 cause of death in Suffolk County.
- The prevalence of risk factors such as high blood pressure and high cholesterol are rising.
- If we consider five major cardiovascular risk factors (high blood pressure, high cholesterol, smoking, overweight/obesity, physical inactivity), 86.3% of residents carry at least one risk factor.
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Injury and Violence
- Intimate partner violence is increasing, with 15.5% of respondents reporting that they have been hurt by an intimate partner.
- This is significantly higher among women, adults 40-64, and those with lower incomes.
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Asthma
- The prevalence of asthma is trending up among both adults (14.6%) and children (13.4%).
This represents just a fraction of the data collected through this valuable assessment.
Any use of CHNA data should be cited as follows:
Professional Research Consultants, Inc. (PRC) www.PRCExcellence.com. 2024 PRC Community Health Needs Assessment, Suffolk County. Stony Brook University Hospital, Stony Brook Southampton Hospital and Stony Brook Eastern Long Island Hospital. 2024.
To request a data set from this survey or to discuss strategies for leveraging this data, please reach out to the Planning Office at (631) 444-4500.