Sumter County has been ranked as the 15th healthiest county in Florida, according to the 2017 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps tool released by the University of Wisconsin and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. This study highlights the many community factors that influence health and uses established data, much of which is available from the department at www.floridacharts.com.
“I would like to thank the educational community, the business community and the policy makers (local and BOCC) that largely create the environment for these outcomes to happen,” said Dr. Sanford Zelnick of the Sumter County Health Department.
These rankings are a snapshot of the health of counties across the country and they emphasize that health is not a singular effort but a combined work in progress across all community partners. The department works in collaboration with local governments, non-profit organizations, health care facilities, business groups, schools, faith-based organizations and many other stakeholders to improve the health of all people in Sumter County. These rankings use data related to physical environments, social and economic factors, health behaviors and clinical care.
The department has united with its many invaluable stakeholders to implement programs such as Swim Safe Sumter and the Sumter Molar Coaster to help address the specific health concerns of the growing population.
