In Settegast, the neighborhood with the county’s shortest life expectancy, a group of organizations are working to improve infrastructure, finding ways to address air quality, access to fresh food and stable housing. Elizabeth Van Horn, an urban planner and public health analyst at Harris County Public Health who is the project manager for the effort, said she hoped the project would be able to make connections between history, infrastructure and the health of individuals.

The poor life expectancy in the Settegast neighborhood has drawn the attention of group of organizations, including Urban Land Institute Houston, Harris County Public Health, the Houston Land Bank and the Kinder Institute. Using a $27,000 grant from ULI Houston's parent organization, the nonprofits and government staff are drawing up an action plan for Settegast.

“Black mothers and infants, compared to any other group, are at highest risk for serious health complications and death in Harris County," said Harris County Precinct 1 Commissioner Rodney Ellis. "That’s why we’ve invested $7.7 million into a Maternal and Child Health Program to provide direct support to mothers and infants who are most at risk.”

The Sunnyside, South Park, Greater Old Spanish Trail and South Union areas now participate in Harris County Public Health’s Community Violence Interruption Program, which focuses on youth and young adults at higher risk of being impacted by gun violence. To break the cycles of violence, outreach specialists, trained in mediation and conflict resolution, work in the community with at-risk youth and in the hospital with survivors of violence.

“Ensuring all families have adequate resources and education through a pregnancy and into the early childhood years is vital for better health outcomes,” said Harris County Public Health Executive Director Barbie Robinson.

Harris County is at the center of this crisis. Black women are disproportionally impacted with 65 deaths per 100,000 live births compared to 29 deaths per 100,000 live births for all groups in Harris County.

With variants like these continuing to emerge, the Houston Health Department hosted the latest installment of its COVID-19 discussions on January 6. During the discussion, Dr. David Persse, Houston Health Department’s Public Health Authority and Dr. Ericka Brown, Division Director for Community Health and Wellness Division and Deputy Local Health Authority of Harris County Public Health, addressed the public and provided updated information and advice on how to prevent and treat the virus.

Take the next steps towards preventing cervical cancer and learn about the many treatment options available.

View the recording of this week’s COVID-19 Talk on Houston TV, featuring Local Health Authorities Dr. Ericka Brown of Harris County Public Health and Dr. David Persse of the Houston Health Department. The program provides an update on Harris County’s COVID-19 Community Level move from Green (Low) to Yellow (Medium), as well as other related topics, including the influenza virus.