Part Six of the State of Southwest Baltimore Series will focus on the final social driver of health – community. Community is defined as the social and physical environments where people live, including the quality of relationships and networks, neighborhood safety, and access to community resources. Isolation, lack of social support, and residence in unsafe or resource-poor neighborhoods can increase stress and lead to adverse health outcomes.
Approximately 18.5% of Baltimore City’s population lives in poverty, with about 1,600 men, women, and children experiencing homeless each day. In 2023, Baltimore City also saw 1,043 drug and alcohol-related deaths, 88% of which were Fentanyl related, and over 210 gun-related homicides.
Catholic Charities sponsors Safe Streets, a public health initiative aimed at reducing shootings and homicides in targeted areas of Baltimore City. Safe Streets mediated 768 conflicts that had potential to result in a shooting, and in the first half of 2024, the city saw a 36% decline in the number of homicides compared to the prior year. Additionally, tangential to the Safe Streets program, Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital employs hospital responders who work with victims of violence in the Emergency Department and connect them to necessary resources.
Having a stable and physical environment, whether that be a rental apartment or house, is essential in driving a sense of community and belonging. In 2023, Catholic Charities assisted 291 individuals and families obtain permanent housing, helped prevent 187 individuals and families from eviction, and provided case management services to more than 1,800 individuals.
Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital recently partnered with Blue Water Baltimore and Maryland’s Department of Natural Resources to create a bio-retention garden and rain garden, as well as planting several native trees. These gardens improve stormwater management practices, reduce destructive run-off, preserve the environment, and improve water quality in our communities. Ascension Saint Agnes Hospital also provided over $50 million in community benefits in FY 2023.
My Brother’s Keeper continues to address substance abuse by providing support services for at-risk youth and linkages to substance abuse counseling.
St. Joseph’s Monastery provides a space for the community to gather and worship together, thus improving the quality of relationships and networks within the community. These organizations, and many others, continue to work towards fostering a safer and more supportive community environment for Southwest Baltimore. Studies regularly show the correlation between faith and hope. A life that includes faith – regardless of one’s religion – offers hope for their future, resiliency to hardship and relationships that confront loneliness.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services defines social drivers of health, also known as the social determinants of health, as the “conditions in the environments where people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks.”
The State of Southwest Baltimore Series aims to examine the presence of the six social drivers of health in Southwest Baltimore and how local community organizations are helping create healthier communities.
