Appropriately assessing the health status of a community before beginning a medical or public health intervention is essential to ensure the equitable distribution of finite resources. Identification of demographic indicators that predict health could provide tools to broadly assess needs within a target community and allocate programs accordingly. Medical students at The Ohio State University conducted comprehensive health needs assessments of several marginalized communities in Honduras. Using self-reported epidemiology and demographic information, a Health Scale was constructed and scored for each respondent. Mean scale scores, when compared with demographic information, demonstrated that attainment of at least a fifth grade education correlated with better family health and better community health. Likewise, parental reporting of children having received health education in school was correlated with lower incidence of pediatric diarrhea. Mothers who reported their children did not suffer from diarrhea in the last year also had significantly more education than their peers. Additionally, data trends suggest that not having progressed beyond the fourth grade may be correlated with lower age at first pregnancy and increased parity for women. In comparing demographically similar populations in Honduras, findings suggest that education is predictive of certain health indicators and provides valuable information for targeting programs aimed at improving health. Likewise, designating resources for reducing disparities in education may be a successful means of reducing health inequality in Honduras. Care should be taken with the implementation of outreach efforts to account for low literacy and formal education within communities at highest risk for health inequality. Continue reading →