Views on public health surveillance policies and Gulf Coast community needs

This dataset contains information about community attitudes and opinions around syndromic surveillance capabilities for vulnerable communities in the Gulf region, as part of the project titled "A Right to Be Counted." The purpose is to understand how public health surveillance policies can be better aligned to meet the needs of vulnerable communities to improve public health data systems by capturing more comprehensive information on social determinants of health (SDoH) and addressing health disparities affected by environmental and climate factors. The data was developed using Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) to engage with South Texas Colonias (Hidalgo County) and Houston’s greater ship channel neighborhoods (Harris County), involving community members directly in the data collection process to ensure that the dataset reflects genuine community needs and concerns. These data were collected using door-to-door surveys conducted by trained community health workers, aiming to develop policies that support enhanced data collection. Data was collected over several months, with strict adherence to ethical guidelines and informed consent procedures. This dataset will provide invaluable insights for understanding the needs and views of these communities pertaining to public health surveillance and its governing policies.