Saturday, May 24, 2008

Orlando and Orange County Health

Orlando and Orange County Health
Sunshine makes people feel healthier and improves your outlook on everything. After living in Florida for 10 years, I can tell you that it’s great to wake up to a warm climate and sunshine almost year round. It makes for a positive outlook on life. What’s your mood when it’s cold, drizzling and cloudy out? Orlando’s mild weather and great lifestyle makes staying health much easier.

Orlando Regional Healthcare is one of Florida's most comprehensive private, not-for-profit healthcare networks. Their facilities, advanced medical treatments and procedures, and highly qualified staff distinguish Orlando Regional as a healthcare leader for two million Central Florida residents and 6,000 international visitors annually.
Statistics for Orange County. As of 2004, there are:

77 assisted living facilities

13 major hospitals

5 adult day care centers

109 health care clinics

The 1,572-bed system includes:

* Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children & Women

* M. D. Anderson Cancer Center Orlando

* Orlando Regional Medical Center

* Orlando Regional Lucerne Hospital

* Orlando Regional Sand Lake Hospital

* Orlando Regional South Seminole Hospital

* Orlando Regional St. Cloud Hospital

* South Lake Hospital

* Orlando Regional Healthcare Foundation

* Health Research Institute

* Graduate Medical Education

* Orlando Regional Visiting Nurse Association

Above information from: http://www.orhs.org/ 

For specific information and address/phone number of health facilities, please go to http://facilitylocator.floridahealthstat.com

Orange County Health Department message: http://www.orchd.com/

All of us at the Orange County Health Department believe that we can make a difference as we strive to become the healthiest and safest community in Florida. Our mission is to provide leadership for superior community health promotion, protection and preparedness. We place special emphasis on health education, maternal and child health, epidemiology, environmental health, school health, dental care services, and a variety of other programs.

We hope you will become familiar with what this health department has to offer. In addition to providing information concerning our services, this site gives you the opportunity to learn about many health and safety issues. You will be able to read about the latest health tips, acquire education on parenting skills and breast feeding for healthier babies, and obtain information about environmental health issues and our many other programs. You will also find links to other health sites.

We hope you will enjoy our Website at http://www.orchd.com/. Even more, we hope you will find this resource helpful in keeping you and your family healthy. Our experienced, dedicated staff is always available to provide you with information regarding your health and safety needs.

For hospital and medical facility names and addresses in Orange County go to:

http://facilitylocator.floridahealthstat.com/ 

Orlando fl employment

Orlando and Orange County Employment
Orange County has employment opportunities in a wide range of industries.
As new businesses continue to move into the area and existing businesses grow, employment will continue to be on the rise. Orange County has an educated and motivated workforce traditionally functioning in a non-union work environment.

The greatest area for potential employment lies in the services industry, which represents approximately 40 percent of all employment. Within the services area, the tourism sector is particularly promising. Two of the three biggest employers comprise theme parks and hotels: the Walt Disney World Resort and Universal Orlando.

Health care and retail (stores) also are major employers within the services sector.
In addition, several corporate headquarters are located throughout the region. They include Siemens Westinghouse, American Automobile Association, Dixon Ticonderoga, Darden Restaurants, Hilton and Tupperware International.
Above from site at http://www.ahoraorlando.com/english/business.htm
Some statistics:
Labor force (2004) 528,933

Average wages

All Industries $34,623

Construction $38,525

Education & Health Services $35,666

Financial Activities $48,414

Information $48,205

Leisure & Hospitality $21,921

Manufacturing $47,730

Natural Resources & Mining $20,952

Other Services $24,722

Professional & Business Services $40,246

Public administration $41,642

Trade, Transportation and Utilities $33,130


Employment by industry as of 2004

Construction 5.1% 

Education & Health Services 15.0% 

Financial Activities 6.5%

Information 2.7% 

Leisure & Hospitality 22.2% 

Manufacturing 4.6% 

Natural Resources & Mining 0.8%

Other Services 2.9% 3.2%

Professional & Business Services 17.3% 

Public administration 4.4%

Trade, Transportation and Utilities 18.6%



eflorida.com/profiles/CountyReport.asp?CountyID=14&Display=al
http://www.labormarketinfo.com/library/oes.htm
Major Employers (2003)

Walt Disney World

Business Line: Entertainment

Number of Employees......53,500 Orange County Public Schools

Business Line: Education

Number of Employees....22,807

Adventist Health Systems

Business Line: Healthcare

Number of Employees...17,059 Universal Orlando

Business Line: Entertainment

Number of Employees..14,500

Orlando Regional Healthcare System

Business Line: Healthcare

Number of Employees...12,000 Orange County Government

Business Line: Government

Number of Employees.... 6,577



Additional resources for demographic information include:

Bureau of Economic and Business Research at the University of Florida (BEBR)

http://www.bebr.ufl.edu/

U.S Census Bureau

http://www.census.gov

Florida Agency for Workforce Innovation – Labor Market Information

http://www.labormarketinfo.com

Orlando job site
http://www.workzoo.com/local-jobs/FL/Orange/
State jobs http://dms.myflorida.com

Orange county Government employment

http://www.orangecountyfl.net/cms/default.htm

Additional resources for job and demographic information
*If you have to work for a living, you might as well be in a great environment.

In conclusion, the job market is growing fast and there are jobs waiting for good employees. So if you like good weather and lots of recreational opportunities, why not work in paradise.

Take a look at http://www.employmentwizard.com/?pid=172

Orlando Arts and Culture

Orlando and Orange County Arts and Culture
Orlando's arts community is, strong and growing." The budget of all arts organizations is $25 million annually. The quality of what the community receives for this investment is extraordinarily high.
Two organizations need to be mentioned:
Central Florida Performing Arts Alliance

The Central Florida Performing Arts Alliance is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit member organization that advances theatre, dance and music through informing, advocating and nurturing relationships on behalf of the performing arts community. The Performing Arts Alliance serves roughly 500 individual artists and 85 producing companies in Central Florida.



United Arts of Central Florida

United Arts of Central Florida is a dynamic collaboration that includes regional corporations, small business, local governments, arts organizations, museums, artists, school districts and individuals. They work to enhance the quality and diversity of cultural experiences available throughout Lake, Orange, Osceola and Seminole counties. Since its inception in 1989, United Arts has invested over $74 million in local cultural organizations and cultural education.



Above information from Performing arts council site at: http://www.orlandoperforms.com/displaycommon.cfm?an=1&subarticlenbr=25

The following stats include Orlando and communities within 25 miles-Kissimmee-Winter Park-Maitland

Museums and Culture

There are 32 museums



Dance and theatre

There are 34 facilities



Performing arts-schools-instruction (music to ballet)

There are 35 facilities



Art Galleries/ Visual Arts 

There are over 150 galleries



Antique stores

There are over 210 Antique stores



Orlando Symphony Orchestra

3710 Neptune Dr, Orlando, FL 407-228-8414



To see lists and addresses go to www.yahoo.com/ or www,google.com

Some local highlights include the following:

The artistic director of the Orlando Ballet, Fernando Bujones, is internationally renowned in ballet circles.

Orlando is home to one of the top orchestras in the state. 

Orlando is home to the top opera in the state. 

The Morse Museum is internationally known for its Tiffany Glass collection. 

The City of Orlando’s Public Arts division curates three galleries, all of which are free to the general public. Two of the galleries are located in Orlando’s City Hall; the third is housed within the historic Harry P. Leu Gardens Garden Home. 

The Florida Film Festival in Orlando has been ranked among the top 10 festivals in the world by The Ultimate Film Festival Survival Guide, 2nd Edition. 

The Zora Neale Hurston Festival is an internationally known celebration of the cultural contributions that Africa-descended people have made to the United States and to world culture. 

The Orlando Museum of Art boasts a renowned permanent collection and has played host to many world-famous traveling exhibits, including American glass artist Dale Chihuly, China’s Ming Dynasty Collection, and American folk painter Grandma Moses. In the past, they have hosted the Ming Exhibit, among others. 

Orlando annually hosts the Orlando Broadway Series, Orlando-UCF Shakespeare Festival and the Festival of Orchestras.

The Orlando Fringe Festival is a well-known, off-beat cultural event.



We are also home to professional sports and the annual Capital One Bowl and Champs Sports Bowl games.



In conclusion, a good tax base and income from visitors and new residents means an expanding arts program. Arts and culture is a very strong part of the Orlando experience.

Kissimmee Florida general Information

Kissimmee
Kissimmee (pronounced Kih-sih-me) is a city in Osceola County, in the south Orlando metro area. It’s right in the middle of central Florida, adjacent to a couple of big lakes called Tohokepaliga (really). It enjoys a great location for exploring Disney (right next door), the Orlando area (10 miles north), or the chain of lakes region of central Florida (everywhere). Melbourne’s excelent beaches are now less than an hour away, with the nearly complete modernizing of US 192. From a commercial perspective, Kissimmee is at Florida’s crossroads – literally, since the big “X” where the I-4 corridor crosses the Florida Turnpike is just up the road.

For driving distances throughout Florida from Kissimmee go to : http://www.ersys.com/usa/12/1236950/distance.htm

Real Estate opportunities in the area are as diverse as you’d expect in a big city, or, close by, as rural as all the books about Florida’s “Best Backroads” and small towns. You can buy classic little historic places in the adjacent old town of St. Cloud, or you can find pricier river and lakefront properties both southeast and southwest of Kissimmee. Just east of St. Cloud there is also the major new planned community of Harmony. 

So Kissimmee is much more than just the gateway city to Disney World and other world famous attractions that it once was. It still is the inexpensive version of that. But you should look past the congested and unattractive parts of US 192 that define too many people’s first impressions (City Fathers are doing something about this, and the city and county are belatedly working on creating the infrastructure to support the area’s rapid growth). Instead, see it in context. And if you are relocating to Florida, check it out.

A few facts 

The estimated population, in 2003, was 54,598 and the median age is 33. 

Kissimmee is adjacent to Lake Tohopekaliga and the Kissimmee chain of lakes. These destinations have always been some of the best destinations for trophy bass fishing in the country.

The area to the south and through the lake district all the way to Lake Okeechobee is one of the prettiest in Florida.

In general, recreation options are extensive, and include everything you can do in Florida 

The city of Kissimmee is located in the fourth fastest growing county in the United States. 

The growth has been in the areas of business, industry, tourism, and residential relocation. 

Due to the rapid growth there is a constant need for quality employees and new business. 

Kissimmee’s historic downtown historic districts feature unique shops, art galleries, antique shops, restaurant and sightseeing. 

The area goes from a modern feel to a Western feel. (The Kissimmee silver spurs rodeo is a major event and draws competitors from around the country). 



Major types of employment in the area.

Arts, Entertainment, Recreation,

Accommodation, & Food Services 

Trade (Retail/Wholesale) 

Education, Health,& Social Services 

Construction 

Professional, Management, Administrative, & Waste Management Services 

Transportation, Warehousing, & Utilities 

Finance, Insurance, Real Estate, & Rental/Leasing



Transportation
Kissimmee sits astride the surface transportation commercial crossroads of peninsular Florida, and it’s also just minutes from the south airport entrance to Orlando International. 

All the same highways, railways etc, that are on the Orlando transportation link apply here with a few additions.

US 192
A major tourist strip in the area around the Walt Disney World Resort, including "mile markers" (with a variable distance between each) to help tourists locate businesses.

Osceola parkway
In the late 1990s, the Osceola Parkway was built as a bypass of 192 around Kissimmee

192 Intersections with other U.S. and Interstate Highways 

US 27 west of the Walt Disney World Resort

I-4 at the Walt Disney World Resort

US 17/US 92 (John Young Parkway) in Kissimmee begin US 17/US 92 concurrency

US 17/US 92/US 441 (Main Street) in Kissimmee end US 17/US 92 concurrency; begin US 441 concurrency

US 441 at Holopaw end US 441 concurrency

I-95 west of Melbourne. As noted, 192 has been 4-laned from about Holopaw to 95, continuing on a commercial but fast urban parkway all the way to the beaches. 4-laning west of Holopaw is under construction. 

For more local information go to: http://www.floridakiss.com/
In conclusion
Kissimmee has both rural and brand new neighborhoods, and some Old Florida small town neighborhoods. You can have a home close to commercial streets in the city, in the country on a lake, or live in a rural neighborhood. Prices are very affordable.
And if you’re looking for commercial opportunity, there’s plenty of that here too. The selection here is diverse, and yet you have everything a big city (Orlando) has to offer, and ready access to all the transportation links.

Orlando Florida general information

When the name Orlando is mentioned we always think about Disney and theme parks. And these were the economic engines that drove Orlando’s growth for a quarter century.

But today’s Orlando is much, much more than that.

It is a diverse community, with great neighborhoods and excelent educational and health systems that manage to serve this rapidly changing community and still compete with the best in the country. Orlando-Orange County and adjacent sections of other Central Florida counties are home to a number of colleges and universities which over time are helping transform this area into a center of higher education. Seminole, Volusia, Lake

Built around literally hundreds of lakes, Orlando is also an extraordinarily beautiful city. As Orlando has grown, it has enclosed old Orange County cities like Winter Park,which then become fabulous neighborhoods within the greater metro area, adding to the character of this unique city. Towns of interest in surrounding parts of Seminole, Volusia, Lake, and Osceola counties have also become part of this process

It is already an economic giant in business and job creation,and is on its way to becoming one of the world’s major metropolitan areas. The Florida Turnpike and the I-4 Corridor cross here, making Orlando the connecting hub of Central Florida and linking it to both Coasts. Its state-of-the-art, award-winning international airport is connected by dozens of carriers to every spot in North America and around the globe.

You might think that such rapid growth would create an unacceptable price in terms of poor infrastructure but you would be wrong. Central Florida counties have stayed ahead of the curve, and the roads and highways are generally excelent throughout the metro region. Some have compared this area to a growing mini-Los Angeles, but Orlando’s freeway system is better.

What else is there to say? Well, add in a great quality of life and recreational choices ranging from professional sports, outdoor activities, vibrant nightlife, excelent dining out choices, fine art and cultural events, world famous family attractions, a beautiful natural environment and nearby beaches on either the Atlantic or the Gulf. Orlando has much of what you would expect to find, and the offerings seem to increase every day. And if you’d like to explore another metropolitan area as well, Tampa-St.Petersburg are just over an hour’s drive West.

Another word about the diverse recreational options outdoors: to the North is the Ocala National Forest and Lake Woodruff National Wildlife Refuge, with hiking, paddleboating, and birding. All of the Lake Country that was part of the 19th century Steamboat Era lies just to the North, and the great Citrus Ridge area lies just to the South. To the East are the great Atlantic beaches at Daytona, New Smyrna, and Cocoa Beach, not to mention Cape Canaveral National Seashore. Also East, in the Mosquito Lagoon, the Indian and Banana Rivers, and of course any number of fresh-water lakes one finds myriad opportunities for boating, fishing, and exploring.

And last but not least, the cost of living in Orlando is below the national average, and compared to other areas of the United States it’s way below. In fact, Central Florida remains one of the last great bargains in the Sunshine State(see cost of living page).

General Information, Orange County:

Located in the middle portion of Florida, 85 miles northeast of Tampa, 231 miles north west of Miami and 243 miles south of Tallahassee.

Average summer Temperature 90°F, but hotter in July and August, although it tends to cool off at night

Average winter temperature is 71, with warm comfortable days and cool nights

Average yearly temperature 72

Average Annual Precipitation 53 in

Average Rain Days 116

Population projection 2005 -1 million, Orange County County

Average home cost-June 2005-$242,000

Cost of Living-99.98

Median age-33



Major Employment By Industry in order of numbers

Construction 5.1% 

Education & Health Services 15.0% 

Financial Activities 6.5%

Information 2.7% 

Leisure & Hospitality 22.2% 

Manufacturing 4.6% 

Natural Resources & Mining 0.8%

Other Services 2.9% 3.2%

Professional & Business Services 17.3% 

Public administration 4.4%

Trade, Transportation and Utilities 18.6%



A great quality of life amidst a rapidly growing area a vibrant and rapidly diversifying economy, good schools and medical services, safe neighborhoods and a unique lake-filled, protected natural environment are some of the things that Orlando-Orange County all about.