|
 Bristol, Virginia
Land Area: 12 square miles
Population (2000): 17,367
Bristol, Virginia is the smaller of two cities named Bristol on the
Virginia/Tennessee border. The Virginia population of Bristol is 17,367
and the Tennessee population is 24,821 for a combined total of 42,188.
Bristol is a Tennessee Valley town, graced with hills and hollows and
watered by several small streams. U.S. Interstate 81 bisects the community
from North to South.
 Major elements of the Bristol, Virginia economy
include manufacturing, trade, service industries, and transfer income
(retirement pensions, disability income, and welfare benefits). In 1995,
the largest employers were Electrolux New Corporation (vacuum cleaners),
Fidelity Personnel Services, Diverso (building, maintenance services),
Wal-Mart, Morrison Molded Fiberglass, and Reynolds Metals (metal cans).
Barter Theater - Virginia's state theater - is in Abingdon, less than
20 minutes from Bristol. The Bristol Motor Speedway hosts important
NASCAR races each season. There are several outdoor recreational areas
in the area - Rocky Mount, Warrior's Path, Creeper Trail, Watauga Lake
- with facilities for swimming, boating, sailing, water skiing, hiking,
biking, camping, picnicking, horseback riding, fishing, and general
frolicking.
Death rates from several common causes are higher in Bristol than in Virginia - e.g., heart disease (+28%), cancer (+26%), stroke (+22%), chronic lower respiratory diseases (+27%), pneumonia and influenza (+85%), diabetes mellitus (+48%), suicide (+32%), chronic liver disease (+74%), and Alzheimer's disease (+52%). Death rates from some common causes are lower in Bristol than in Virginia : unintentional injuries (-2%), septicemia (-22%), and nephritis and nephrosis (-19%).
The total pregnancy rate among women aged 15-44 in Bristol is 17% lower than in Virginia . The teen pregnancy rate is 7% lower in Bristol . Women residing in Bristol are 7% less likely to receive prenatal care during the first trimester. Babies born to Bristol residents are 6% more likely to be low birth weight than babies born to Virginia residents as a whole, but are 46% less likely to die during the first year of life than their peers in Virginia .
 The population of Bristol is less prosperous
than the population of Virginia. The poverty rate in Bristol is 68%
higher than the Virginia rate. The per capita income for Bristolians
is only 72% of the per capita income for Virginians. The proportion
of Bristol residents over the age of 25 without a high school diploma
is 50% higher than in Virginia. Given the relative poverty and poor
health status of the population, it seems clear that people in Bristol
would benefit from increased access to primary care.
|
Population Health
|
Bristol |
Virginia |
| Disabled Population, Ages 5-20 (2000) |
10.2% |
8.1% |
| Disabled Population, Ages 21-64 (2000) |
23.1% |
17.5% |
| Disabled Population, Ages 65+ (2000) |
47.7% |
42.1% |
| |
|
|
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Diseases of the Heart |
279.8 |
218.0 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Malignant Neoplasms |
239.7 |
190.0 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Cerebrovascular Diseases |
70.9 |
58.3 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- COPD |
49.9 |
39.2 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Unintentional Injury |
32.0 |
32.8 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Pneumonia and Influenza |
42.0 |
22.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Diabetes Mellitus |
32.1 |
21.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Suicide |
14.6 |
11.1 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Septicemia |
12.0 |
15.4 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Nephritis and Nephrosis |
12.6 |
15.6 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.)
- Chronic Liver Disease/Cirrhosis |
13.4 |
7.7 |
| Age Adjusted Death Rate Per 100,000 Population (1998 - 2002 avg.) - Alzheimers Disease |
24.2 |
15.9 |
| |
|
|
| Total Pregnancy Terminations (Residents) Per 1,000 Females Aged
15-44 (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
60.5 |
82.6 |
| Teenage Pregnancies Per 1,000 Females Aged 10-19 (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
29.1 |
31.3 |
| Percent of Resident Live Births Beginning Prenatal Care in 1st
Trimester (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
77.6% |
84.8% |
| Low Weight Live Births as a Percent of Total Births (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
8.4% |
7.9% |
| Resident Infant Deaths Per 1,000 Lives Births (1998 - 2002 avg.) |
3.9 |
7.2 |
| |
|
|
| Economic Indicators |
|
|
| Population with Medicaid (2004) |
23.7% |
10.8% |
| Poverty Rate (2000) |
16.2% |
9.6% |
| Per Capita Income (2000) |
$17,311 |
$23,975 |
| Population Aged 16+ in Labor Force (2000) |
53.8% |
66.8% |
| Population Aged 25+ w/o High School Diploma (2000) |
27.6% |
18.5% |
| |
|
|
| Employment By Industry |
|
|
| Agriculture, Forestry, Mining, Fishing, Hunting |
1.3% |
1.3% |
| Construction |
4.6% |
7.3% |
| Manufacturing |
23.8% |
11.3% |
| Retail and Wholesale Trade |
19.4% |
14.1% |
| Transportation and Warehousing and Utilities |
3.8% |
4.6% |
| Information |
2.6% |
3.8% |
| Finance, Insurance, Real Estate, Rental and Leasing |
4.8% |
6.6% |
| Professional, Scientific, Management, Adminstrative, and Waste
Management Services |
6.1% |
11.6% |
| Education, Health, and Social Services |
17.6% |
18.3% |
| Arts, Entertainment, Recreation, Accommodation and Food Services |
6.9% |
7.2% |
| Public Administration |
6.2% |
8.3% |
| Other Services |
3.0% |
5.4% |
Links
Bristol - http://www.bristolva.org/
Bristol - http://www.mrpdc.org/econ_stats.htm
Wellmont Bristol Regional Medical Center - http://www.wellmont.org/Facilities/Bristol/WBRMC/wbrmc.html
Virginia Intermont College - http://www.vic.edu/index.shtml
King College - http://www.king.edu/
Milligan College - http://www.milligan.edu/
Mount Rogers Health District - http://www.vdh.state.va.us/LHD/mtrogers/index.asp
|