Rhode Island

Please be sure to read the data notes & limitations page. This explains many aspects of these comments, including how only changes over time can be discussed as statistically significant, and why the comparisons with national rates discuss data for selected subgroups.

Overview of Findings

Because baseline data were not available for most objectives, data indicating changes for Rhode Island were limited to overall mortality. The findings were mixed: overall mortality decreased among young adults, but increased among older adolescents.

Final Rhode Island rates compared favorably to national rates for most objectives, including overall mortality, motor vehicle crash mortality, riding with a driver who had been drinking, physical fighting, weapon carrying, suicide attempts requiring medical attention, sexual experience, current sexual activity and tobacco use. Rhode Island’s rate for condom use matched the national rate and the state’s safety belt use rate was lower than the national rate.

Highlights of Findings by Objective

Jump To: Mortality; Unintentional Injury; Violence; Substance Use and Mental Health; Reproductive Health; Chronic Disease Prevention

Mortality

The rate of overall mortality among older adolescents was essentially flat from baseline, although this rate increased among Whites; Overall mortality decreased among young adults, with data suggesting a large decrease among White males. Rates for most subgroups were based on fewer than 20 deaths and thus were unsuitable for analysis.

Comparison with national data. Nationally, rates decreased among older adolescents, in contrast to a flat rate in Rhode Island. The national increase in young adult mortality also contrasts with a decrease for young adults in Rhode Island. In 2007, Rhode Island’s overall mortality rates for these age groups were much lower than national rates.

Unintentional Injury

(motor vehicle crashes, safety belt use, & riding with a driver who has been drinking alcohol)

Please note the data for safety belt use are presented as “not wearing safety belt,” the inverse of the objective. This text describes safety belt use.

In 2007, only the overall rate for motor vehicle crash mortality older adolescents and young adults combined were based on sufficient numbers to warrant comment. Because other rates were unsuitable for analysis, no comparisons could be made regarding change from baseline or regarding gender or racial/ethnic differences.

Comparison with national data. In 2007, the overall motor vehicle crash mortality rate was lower in Rhode Island than nationally.

In 2009, rates of safety belt use in Rhode Island were higher among females than males. Asians and adolescents of multiple races had virtually matching rates, which were just slightly higher than the rate for Whites; Hispanics and Blacks had roughly matching rates, which were the lowest rates among racial/ethnic groups.

Comparison with national data. In 2009, adolescents in Rhode Island had a slightly lower rate of seat belt use than adolescents nationally. As in Rhode Island, females had higher rates than males. Nationally Hispanics had a higher rate than Blacks, the reverse of the pattern in Rhode Island. As in Rhode Island, Asians and Whites had high rates of safety belt use nationally, relative to other groups, and Blacks had relatively low rates. However, Hispanics had the second highest rate nationally, compared to a low rate of safety belt use compared to other groups in Rhode Island.

Females in Rhode Island were slightly more likely than males to ride with driver who had been drinking. Hispanics had the highest rate of this behavior, followed by Asians and adolescent of multiple races, who had similar rates. Whites and Blacks had roughly matching rates and were least likely to report this behavior.

Comparison with national data. In 2009, the rate of Rhode Island adolescents riding with a driver who has been drinking was lower than the national rate. Nationally, males and females had roughly matching rates, similar to the small difference noted in Rhode Island. As in Rhode Island, Hispanics had the highest rate of this behavior nationally. Adolescents of multiple races had the next highest rates, followed by Whites, then Blacks. Asians had the lowest rate nationally, in contrast to Rhode Island, where this group had relatively a high rate.

Violence

(homicide, physical fighting, weapon carrying)
Homicide rates were based on fewer than 20 deaths and thus were unsuitable for analyses.

Males had a higher rate of physical fighting than females in Rhode Island in 2009. Hispanics had the highest rate of this behavior, followed by adolescent of multiple races, Blacks, and then Whites, who had slightly a higher rate than Asians.

Comparison with national data. The rate of physical fighting in Rhode Island in 2009 was lower than the national rate. As in Rhode Island, males had a higher rate than females nationally. Blacks had the highest rate of this behavior nationally, followed by adolescent of multiple races and Hispanics, the opposite of the pattern noted in Rhode Island. As in Rhode Island Asians had the lowest rate of this behavior.

The overall rate of weapon carrying among adolescents in Rhode Island in 2009 was more than three times higher among males than among females. Adolescent of multiple races had the highest rates, followed closely by Hispanics; Blacks had the next highest rates followed closely by Whites and Asians.

Comparison with national data. In 2009, the overall rate of weapon carrying among adolescents in Rhode Island was lower than the national rate. As in Rhode Island, males had much higher rates than females. Whites had the highest rate nationally, in contrast to Rhode Island, where this group had a relatively low rate. Adolescents of multiple races had the next highest rate, followed by Hispanics, and Blacks. Asians had the lowest rate nationally, as in Rhode Island.

Substance Abuse and Mental Health

(binge drinking, marijuana use, suicide, suicide attempts requiring medical attention)

Males and females in Rhode Island had roughly matching rates of binge drinking in 2009. Rates were highest among Whites, followed closely by Hispanics; adolescent of multiple races had slightly higher rates than Blacks. Asians had the lowest rates.

Comparison with national data. Similar to Rhode Island, males and females had similar rates of binge drinking nationally. The national racial/ethnic pattern was mostly similar to the pattern in Rhode Island; however, Blacks had a lower rate than Asians nationally, the reverse of the pattern in Rhode Island.

In 2009, the rate of marijuana use in Rhode Island was higher among males than females. Whites had the highest rate of marijuana use, followed by Blacks, Hispanics and adolescents of multiple races. Asians had the lowest rate.

Comparison with national data. The gender and racial/ethnic patterns noted at the state level were mostly similar to those at the national level. As in Rhode Island, Whites had the highest rate and Asians had the lowest rate nationally. In contrast to Rhode Island, adolescents of multiple races had higher rates than Blacks and Hispanics nationally.

Suicide rates were based on fewer than 20 deaths and thus were unsuitable for analyses.

Rates of adolescent suicide attempts requiring medical attention in Rhode Island were roughly equal among males and females. Hispanics had the highest rate, followed by Asians, Blacks and adolescents of multiple races. Whites had the lowest rate.

Comparison with national data. The 2009 Rhode Island rate of suicide attempts requiring medical attention was lower than the national rate. Females had a slightly higher rate than males nationally, in contrast to roughly matching rates in Rhode Island. The national racial/ethnic pattern also differed from the pattern in Rhode Island. Nationally, Adolescent of multiple races had the highest rate, followed by Blacks, Hispanics, and Whites; Asians had the lowest rate. This contrasts with Rhode Island where Hispanics and Asians had relatively higher rates.

Reproductive Health

(sexual inexperience, no current sexual activity, condom use)

Please note, for the first two objectives, the text and tables present findings about adolescents who are sexually experienced and currently sexually active, the inverse of the actual objective. For the third objective, the table presents findings for lack of condom use, the inverse of the objective. (See Data Notes & Limitations).

In 2009, Rhode Island rates of adolescents having engaged in sexual intercourse were slightly higher overall among males than among females; this gender difference was much larger among Blacks and Hispanics. Blacks had the highest rates, followed closely by Hispanics, adolescents of multiple races and then Whites; Asians had the lowest rate.
Comparison with national data. The rate of adolescents in Rhode Island having engaged in sexual intercourse was slightly lower than the national rate in 2009. Males and females had roughly matching rates nationally, similar to the small difference noted in Rhode Island. The national racial/ethnic pattern roughly matched the pattern noted for Rhode Island.

The male rate of sexually active adolescents in Rhode Island reporting current sexual activity matched the rate for females in 2009. Blacks and Hispanics had matching rates of this behavior, the highest rates among racial/ethnic groups. Adolescents of multiple races had the next highest rate, followed by Whites, then Asians.

Comparison with national data. The overall rate of current sexual activity among adolescents in Rhode Island was slightly lower than the national rate in 2009. Females had slightly higher rates than males nationally, in contrast to virtually matching rates in Rhode Island. The national racial/ethnic pattern mostly matched the pattern for Rhode Island; however, the national rate for Blacks was much higher than the rate for Hispanics, in contrast to matching rates in Rhode Island.

In 2009, males in Rhode Island reported higher rates of condom usethan females. Whites had a higher rate than Hispanics. (Data for other subgroups were not available.)

Comparison with national data. The rate of condom use in Rhode Island in 2009 matched the national rate. The national gender and racial/ethnic patterns matched the patterns noted for Rhode Island.

Chronic Disease Prevention

(tobacco use)

Tobacco use in Rhode Island was higher among males than females in 2009. Whites had by far the highest rate, followed by adolescents of multiple races. Hispanics had the next highest rates followed by Blacks and Asians, with fairly small differences among these three groups. The rate among Whites was more than twice the rate of the three groups reporting the lowest rates.

Comparison with national data. In 2009, the Rhode Island rate of adolescent tobacco use was lower than the national rate. As in Rhode Island, males had a higher rate of tobacco use than females in 2009 nationally. The national racial/ethnic pattern matched the pattern noted for Rhode Island, with somewhat larger differences among groups, compared to Rhode Island.

Additional data may be available at: http://www.health.ri.gov/data/