Blogs Highlight THT Housing, Community Work
by New Jersey Health Initiatives is a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. NJHI is dedicated to supporting innovations and driving conversations to build healthier New Jersey communities.
Trenton Health Team is proud of NJHI support through the Upstream Action Acceleration grant, as well as the Communities Moving to Action grant. Our latest NJHI blogs highlight the link between housing and health outcomes, and the key role community organizations play in improving well-being.
“Housing Holds Key to Health” addresses the challenges of code enforcement and its role in promoting health.
“Most Trenton residents – nearly 63% – rent their homes. Renters are especially vulnerable to poor housing conditions because they often lack the means to correct issues such as mold, faulty wiring or lead-based paint that are known to create health hazards.
At the same time, code enforcement for housing conditions presents an ongoing challenge, exacerbated by budget cuts over the years reducing Trenton’s ranks of housing inspectors from 20 in 2010 to eight in 2020.
Trenton Health Team and our partners are working to improve code enforcement in several ways. A key step is to make sure Trenton housing codes are enforceable, reflect current best practices, and address resident needs.” Read full blog
“Community Work Groups Tackle Systems Change” reflects our efforts to engage residents, patients and community leaders in assessing community needs, designing strategies and implementing solutions.
“Responding to the need for expanded community services prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, THT has been hosting weekly virtual meetings for our Community Advisory Board (CAB) members and other social service providers. Several new members are now joining us to share information, address concerns, and coordinate resources.
Much of our CAB work is organized through work groups focused on specific topics, such as access to healthy food and maternal health. The CAB affinity groups encourage partnerships among colleagues such as community health workers or communications directors across organizations.” Read full blog
