Mower County ranked 43rd in one category and 51st in another out of 85 Minnesota counties measured in a recently conducted health survey.

The report, released Tuesday by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, had Mower County 43rd in health outcomes and 51st in health factors.

Health outcomes include the rate of people dying before age 75, the percentage of people who report being in fair or poor health and the rate of low-birth weight infants. Health factors include health behavior, clinical care, social and economic factors and physical environment, according to the report.

The report indicated healthy behaviors and physical environment as strengths for Mower County in the health factors category.

Margene Gunderson, director of Mower County Community Health Services, said in a press release that the county has initiated specific projects to accomplish this.

“Much work has been done through education and policy development in Mower County to curb tobacco use and alcohol misuse,” she said in the release. “Special emphasis has been placed on improving diet and exercise through a number of community initiatives and events … Work has been done to improve the built environment through sidewalk, curb cut and recreational trail development across Mower County.”

The report is the first to use a standard formula to measure the health of the more than 3,000 counties across the United States. The rankings are designed to compare the health of counties within each state; they do not compare counties in Minnesota with counties in other states.

With Mower County right near the middle of the pack, Gunderson said the report provides good insight into how to move up the rankings.

“This report will be helpful as we work together with community partners to improve health in Mower County,” she said in the release. “Improving community health is not the responsibility of the health department. It is a shared responsibility among individuals, groups, businesses and organizations that live, work and operate here.”

For more on the report, go to countyhealthrankings.org.