In today’s hyper-connected world of instant communication, context is sometimes the missing part of the story. While it is true that residents of the Mid-Hudson Valley suffer thousands upon thousands of personal injuries a year, it is also true that compared to the rest of New York State (outside of New York City), our region actually has lower injury rates.
As a personal injury firm rooted in communities like Kingston, Newburgh and Poughkeepsie, N.Y., we keep a close eye on trends affecting our neighbors. In this blog post, we’re going to go over a number of key injury and occupational health indicators on the New York State Community Health Reports Dashboard for the Mid-Hudson Valley, which includes Dutchess, Orange and Ulster Counties, and review how they are somewhat lower than the rest of New York State for the period ranging from 2020 to 2022.
Of course, just because we’re a little safer, it doesn’t mean that we have zero risk. If you’ve suffered an injury due to the negligence of another party, do not delay: give Mainetti & Mainetti, P.C. a call at 845-600-0000 to schedule a free personal injury consultation.
1. Slip and Fall Hospitalizations
According to the New York State Data, between 2020 and 2022, Mid-Hudson Valley residents suffered 31,670 slip and falls that required hospitalization, while in New York State (outside of NYC), there were 166,250 slip and fall injuries.
That adds up to the Mid-Hudson Valley having 34.8 slip and falls per 10,000 residents, whereas the larger state average was 37.2.
2. Motor Vehicle Deaths
For motor vehicle mortalities, Mid-Hudson Valley residents average about 6.7 injuries per 100,000 residents (492 total), whereas north of NYC New York State residents average 8 injuries per 100,000 residents (2,838 total).
3. Injury Mortalities
For “non-motor vehicle injury mortalities,” which refers to fatalities that occur outside of the context of motor vehicle traffic or crashes, Mid-Hudson Valley residents suffered 38.2 fatalities per 100,000 residents (2,890 total). New York residents north of NYC, comparatively, had 43.1 fatalities per 100,000 residents (15,686 total).
4. Poisoning Hospitalization
For poisoning hospitalizations, Mid-Hudson Valley residents suffered 7.4 injuries per 10,000 (5,458 total); for New York State residents outside of NYC, the rate was 9.2 injuries per 10,000 (31,556 total).
5. Traumatic Brain Injury Hospitalizations
When it came to Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) hospitalizations, Mid-Hudson Valley residents suffered 6.6 per 10,000 (5,501 total), while New York State residents outside of NYC had 7.3 hospitalizations per 10,000 (29,220 total).
6. Unintentional Injuries
For “unintentional injuries,” i.e., not deliberate or done with purpose, Mid-Hudson Valley residents suffered 66.3 hospitalizations per 10,000 (56,776 total), and New Yorkers outside of NYC suffered 70.6 hospitalizations per 10,000 (293,422 total).
7. Drunk Driving Motor Vehicle Injuries
For drunk driving-related injuries and deaths per 100,000, Mid-Hudson Valley residents had 29.1, whereas New Yorkers north of NYC had 30.8.
8. Asbestosis Hospitalization Rate
According to 2020-2022 statistics, there were 4.9 hospitalizations for asbestosis per 100,000 Mid-Hudson Valley residents (286 total), whereas there were 5.1 hospitalizations for New Yorkers north of NYC.
9. Fatal Work-Related Injuries
For fatal work-related injuries per 100,000 employed residents, the Mid-Hudson Valley had 3.2 (105 total); New York State outside of NYC had 3.4.
10. Malignant Mesothelioma Incidence
For malignant mesothelioma, Mid-Hudson Valley residents and New Yorkers north of NYC had 1.2 per 100,000 residents aged 15 or over. In the Mid-Hudson Valley, there were 68 cases total between 2020 and 2022.
11. Pneumoconiosis Hospitalization
346 total Mid-Hudson residents were hospitalized for pneumoconiosis between 2020 and 2022, for an average of 5.9 per 100,000 residents; in the rest of New York (outside of NYC), there were 6 hospitalizations per 100,000.
12. Workplace-Related Hospitalizations
For all-workplace-related hospitalizations per 100,000 employed residents, the Mid-Hudson Valley had a rate of 99 (346 total), in the rest of the state outside of NYC, there were 113.8.
13. Elevated Blood Lead Levels
This list only has 12 entries; the 13th bucks the trend. Disturbingly, the Mid-Hudson Valley had a rate of 18.2 cases of elevated blood levels per 100,000 employed residents aged 16 year or older (597 total cases); the rest of the state had 12 per 100,000.
This discrepancy may owe to older housing in the region that was built before 1978, which is more likely to contain lead based paint.