Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Initiative

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) is actively trying to create a Culture of Health in the United States. To achieve this, they are analyzing several communities, including Harris County, for metrics on various topics such as health, access to care, civic engagement, and others to help empower communities with data to understand what actions are necessary to improve and protect the public’s health and well-being. RWJF has implemented a program called “Sentinel Communities” whose aim is to monitor how local communities are shaping a culture of health at a national level. Thirty diverse communities around the county were selected, including Harris County, to be included. RWJF then compiles reports on each of these communities. 

HCPH is using this data to inform our public health practices and ensure we are taking a data-driven approach to decision-making. This data is particularly helpful because it looks at non-traditional drivers of health, such as civic engagement and the built environment. Most of a community’s critical health decisions happen outside of the clinical office – in other words, health happens where you live, learn, work, worship, and play. Because of this, it is crucial to have data on the social determinants of health.

HCPH is sharing this data in the hopes that other health stakeholders and the community at large can use this to understand what factors are shaping health in the community. The hope is that this data can start broader discussions on health to help ensure that Harris County has a positive Culture of Health that encourages people to lead healthy and active lives.

Click here for Harris County Data.

*Please note, this information was collected by a 3rd party and is being presented as-is, additional information can be found at the original data source.