Health workers now test young people in jail for chlamydia infection. Educators help men realize the importance of prenatal care.

And a new, $40,000 grant will help Stanislaus County officials learn which people are dying in car accidents and why.

These are just some of the solutions to health problems under way in the county and highlighted a report given to the Board of Supervisors on Tuesday.

For the past two years, the annual report on the health of people in the county pinpointed troubling trends: high rates of death by heart disease and accidents, too many undersized newborns and a high rate of chlamydia infections.

This year, the report highlights the same problems -- and tells residents what schools, doctors and county health workers are doing to solve them.

"All of us are working on these issues together," said Dr. John Walker, the county's public health officer.

Chlamydia: Although the rate of this sexually transmitted disease has declined slightly in the past few years, it's still the most commonly reported disease in the county and the state. It can result in genital, eye and lymph node problems.

Stanislaus health workers now test 15- to 24-year-olds in jail and juvenile hall for chlamydia and provide counseling on how to prevent infection.

Low birth weight: Because experts agree that prenatal care is the key to preventing this problem, county health workers have gone door to door to speak with mothers-to-be. They also speak to men in hopes the men can encourage their partners to see a doctor during pregnancy.

Injury prevention: Stanislaus County has a higher rate of unintentional deaths -- many from car accidents -- than the state as a whole.

The county has received a grant to gather statistics on car accidents.

Heart disease: For several years, Stanislaus and other Central Valley counties have had the highest heart disease rates in the state.

The county formed the Heart Education Awareness Resource Team, or HEART Coalition, which held a health fair earlier this year.

The health report also details a drop in tuberculosis cases and notes that the county has a relatively low incidence of syphilis and gonorrhea.

The report identified two more areas of concern -- hepatitis C and the health of African-American infants.

These aren't new concerns, Walker said. "But they are issues we want to bring to the attention of the community."

Reprinted by permission of Modesto Bee