Report-at-a-Glance

How to Read the Graphs

The following eight-page chart summarizes some of the measures that are described at greater length in the body of this report. Special graphics address two questions:

Is the trend good or bad?

• A graph shows the direction of the trend for each measure in the chart. Below the graph is an arrow showing the desired direction (up or down) of the trend.
• Each graph line is color-coded to indicate whether the trend is:

For example, this graph shows that mammography use is rising and that this is the desired direction.

How does the Nation's progress compare to the Healthy People 2010 target?

• Progress toward the relevant Healthy People 2010 target is displayed by two bars—the first indicating where we started, and the second, where we are now.
• The first (baseline) bar is white. The second bar is either green or red, depending on the direction of the trend.
• A black horizontal line shows the Healthy People 2010 target.

For example, this bar chart shows that mammography use has increased from 29 percent in 1987 to 67 percent in 1998, a level close to the Healthy People 2010 target of 70 percent.