Promoting the health of an individual relies on the accessibility of various services and skilled professionals. Promoting the health of an entire community is an entirely different challenge.

There are many organizations and individuals helping Rhode Islanders live healthy lives, but the day-to-day necessities involved with helping people don’t always allow for a bigger picture to develop outside of the most immediate needs. This is where a Health Equity Zone (HEZ) can step in to prioritize the most crucial areas and bridge the gap between the needs of residents within a community and the services that are available to help them — and where gaps in coverage exist.

“Health is not just what happens in the doctors office. It’s what’s happening in your home, your school, your job,” said Kristin Read, a Warren native who earlier this month assumed the role of Director of the Warren Health Equity Zone. “It’s what’s happening at the community level. Does everybody have the opportunities they need to be fed, be housed, be working, do all of those things? We want to make sure that every neighborhood has the same chances to really thrive.”

As the newest HEZ on the East Bay and the 15th such zone established through the Department of Health in Rhode Island, Warren’s Health Equity Zone is supported through its backbone agency, the East Bay Community Action Program (EBCAP), which provides a wide range of health, education, and social services to communities throughout the East Bay.

Read’s job is to establish a steering committee of community stakeholders to assess the health priorities in Warren, and identify and develop strategies to address the root causes of health inequities by improving social, environmental and/or financial conditions in the community where there are gaps in coverage or inequities in how those services are provided.

“The intention is to do it within an equity lens,” she said. “And to shift from focusing on individual health needs to improving the health of an entire community and reducing the obstacles to every individual to be living their best and healthiest life, regardless of age, race, gender, or economic status.”

But in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, certain elements of public health will always take priority even as other top needs are assessed.

“COVID response has to be a priority,” said Rita Capotosto, VP of Family Development for EBCAP. “We can’t wait to complete a comprehensive assessment to start helping people.”

And although developing that data-driven assessment is the immediate goal of the Warren HEZ, those involved understand that certain health concerns — access to healthy, affordable food, affordable housing, behavioral health and addiction substance use issues — will likely be a priority as they are in communities across the state.

“I don’t think Warren is immune from that,” Read said.

With an initial shoestring budget of just $150,000, the Warren HEZ will not be providing direct services as their main duty — though they have already begun to help with COVID response by ordering free masks from the state to provide to people. Their primary goal is to help identify service gaps and act as a structural support for community-based organizations by providing them with accurate data, as well as identifying funding sources to help improve access to resources, and facilitating collaboration among a diverse group of partners to promote their work within the community.

“We can’t be everywhere, but we want to identify where we can do our best work and how we can leverage the will of the group and see the needs of the community through,” Read said.
Being a Warren native has also given Read a unique insight into the community she now serves.

“This opportunity to be part of something really exciting and really dynamic was such a great fit for me,” she said. “I know that this town is so creative and is so resourceful and I’m excited to see what we will all do when we come around these shared priorities.”

Click here for more information on how HEZs function.