Guam

Guam is an island in the North Pacific Ocean, and is the largest and southernmost island in the Mariana Islands archipelago. It is an organized, unincorporated territory of the United States, and its residents are U.S. citizens. Guam has a land mass of 212 square miles, with an estimated population of 178,430 (CIA, 2009). The capital, Hagåtña (formerly Agana), is located on Guam's western coast. According to the 2000 Census, 44.6% of the population is native Pacific Islander, 32.5% is Asian, 6.8% white, 1% African-American/Black and 1.2% other. While over 99% of the population speaks English, most residents speak another language as well, with Chamorro and the Phillippine languages being the most common.

Guam's hospital, the Guam Memorial Hospital, is located in Tamuning. The island is served by two Federally Qualified Health Centers, the Southern and Northern Region Community Health Centers, which provide primary healthcare, acute outpatient care, and preventive services and are under Guam's Bureau of Primary Care Services. The WHO Western Pacific Regional Office reports that in 2000 Guam was served by 166 physicians and 31 dental surgeons.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the median family income for Guamanians in 2007 was $28,860 (The Occupational Employment Survey), with approximately 20% of families below poverty level. Data from the 2000 Census finds that 23.7% of residents had not completed high school. Approximately 65.6% of the population 16 years and older is part of the labor force, with 58.7% employed and 7% unemployed.

For additional resources and information, please see the Pacific Territories, Commonwealth, and Freely Associated States.

Data Sources:

CIA World Fact Book: Guam

Country Health Information Profile: Guam

Population and Housing Profile: 2000 for Guam

U.S. Affiliated Pacific Basin Jurisdictions: Legal, Geographic and Demographic Information

Organizations

Government of Guam
International organization
Official site of the government of the island of Guam.

Guam Department of Public Health & Social Services
International organization
Includes the Division of Public Health, Division of Environmental Health, Division of Public Welfare, and Division of Senior Citizens.

Tools

California STD/HIV Prevention Training Center
Web site
Provides training courses that are designed to meet the needs of medical, health, and community professionals serving persons and communities impacted by STD and HIV. Service area includes the federal Health and Human Services Region IX: California, Arizona, Nevada, Hawaii, and the following Pacific Islands: American Samoa, the Federated States of Micronesia, Guam, the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, and the Republic of Palau.
Sponsoring organization: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Census State Data Centers: Outlying Areas
Web site
Lists official sources of state-level demographic, economic, and social statistics produced by the U.S. Census Bureau for American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, Northern Mariana Islands, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

CIA World Fact Book: Guam
Web site
Provides current information on Guam, covering geography, population characteristics, government and the economy.
Sponsoring organization: Central Intelligence Agency

Guam State Health Facts
Database
Provides state-level data on demographics, health, and health policy, including health coverage, access, financing, and state legislation. Individual state profiles and 50-state comparisons.
Sponsoring organization: Kaiser Family Foundation

Office of Insular Affairs: Guam
Web site
Provides an overview of Guam's history, government, economy, demographics, and more.
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Department of the Interior: Office of Insular Affairs

Population and Housing Profile: 2000 for Guam
Web site
Provides detailed demographic, economic and housing data for Guam based on the 2000 Census.
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau

Social, Economic, and Housing Characteristics: 2000 for Guam
Web site
Provides detailed data on age, ethnicity, employment, poverty, and housing characteristics for Guam, based on the 2000 Census.
Sponsoring organization: U.S. Census Bureau

Title V: A Snapshot of Maternal and Child Health: Guam
Web site
Presents data on maternal and child health for Guam.
Sponsoring organization: Maternal and Child Health Bureau

Funding

Inactive Funding

Inactive Funding Opportunities - Lists additional funding programs for this state that are not currently accepting applications. Programs that are inactive may be offered again in the future.

Documents, Reports and Other Publications

Maternal and Child Health Services Title V Block Grant State Narrative for Guam
Sponsoring organization: Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Guam's Title V maternal and child health annual report for 2005. Includes an overview of Guam, its health system, and maternal and child health status.
Date: 2006

Minorities Take Health into Their Own Hands
Author(s): Fia Curley
Sponsoring organization: HHS Office of Minority Health
Describes efforts in Guam and Chuuk to address the problem of AIDS and HIV.
Date: 2006

Title V Maternal and Child Health Needs Assessment: Guam
Sponsoring organization: Maternal and Child Health Bureau
Provides access to Guam's maternal and child health needs assessment for the period of 2005-2010. Includes a detailed overview of maternal and child health status in Guam.
Date: 2005

Western Pacific Country Health Information Profile: Guam
Sponsoring organization: World Health Organization Western Pacific Regional Office
Provides an overview of health issues in Guam. Covers the political and economic situation, health trends, the health system, and health indicators.
Date: 2006

Success Stories

U.S. Pacific Islands: Helping Hearts
The purpose of this program is to provide the U.S. Pacific Islands region with automatic external defibrillators (AEDs), and educate to residents so they can train others in their use and save more lives.