Texas Health Institute

Oral health is a critical yet often overlooked part of the perinatal journey, and care teams have real opportunities to make a difference across the full continuum from preconception through postpartum.

Texas Health Institute, Texas Primary Care Consortium, Texas Oral Health Coalition, Inc, and Rural Texas Maternal Health Assembly recently hosted the first webinar in a two-part series on integrated perinatal care: Oral Health and the Perinatal Journey. The webinar explores how oral health intersects with maternal and behavioral health, and how teams across primary care, obstetrics, dental, and community-based services can deliver more connected, whole-person care.

Watch the recording: https://youtu.be/GnJSThune8c?si=oKtVDYNMkd4qnA1c

Join us this Thursday for the second webinar in the series, Whole-Person Care During and After Pregnancy. This session will focus on oral health during pregnancy, its impact on maternal and infant outcomes, and how maternal and early childhood oral health can support infant health. Register now: bit.ly/THI0626

Oral Health and the Perinatal Journey Oral health is a critical, yet often overlooked, component of the p...

Meet Blair Williams, DrPH, MPA, MBA, CPH, Senior Director of Collaborative and Strategic Research at THI!

Williams leads collaborative research and evaluation initiatives that integrate mixed methods, community engagement, and systems thinking to generate actionable insights and inform public health strategy. Her work emphasizes translating research into practice while serving as a thought partner to public health organizations seeking to build capacity, navigate uncertainty, and strengthen future-readiness. Grounded in a community-centered approach, her work elevates community voice and lived experiences, recognizing that the most meaningful and sustainable solutions are shaped and led by the communities they serve.

We are so grateful for you, Blair!

Maternal health outcomes depend on coordinated care across pregnancy and the postpartum period.

Join Texas Health Institute, Texas Primary Care Consortium, Texas Oral Health Coalition, Inc, and Rural Texas Maternal Health Assembly on June 18 for the second webinar in the two-part webinar series exploring practical strategies for delivering integrated perinatal care and improving coordination across the care continuum.

Whole-Person Care During and After Pregnancy will highlight how integrated care teams, including dentists, primary care clinicians, behavioral health professionals, and community health workers, can support maternal and infant health.

Register now: https://bit.ly/THI0626

72% of adults in Texas report having been to a doctor for a routine checkup in the past year. Regular check-ups help prevent serious health problems through screenings, support effective management of chronic conditions, and detect diseases early, when they are most treatable. They are also one of the most effective ways to reduce health care costs.

This is one of 80+ indicators available on Texas Health Insights, a statewide data platform that brings together county-level data on health, healthcare, and the conditions shaping outcomes across Texas. If you are working on rural health, primary care, oral health, workforce, maternal health, or related efforts, please reach out to us about how this data can support your work.

Explore your county: https://data.texashealthinstitute.org/

Across Texas, communities, health systems, policymakers, and local leaders are navigating a rapidly changing healthcare landscape while working to strengthen health in their regions and across the state. Access to timely, credible, and local data has never been more important!

Texas Health Insights is a new statewide data platform that brings together county-level data on health, healthcare, workforce, and community conditions across Texas. With more than 80 indicators across five domains, users can explore counties, compare regions, and download one-page county snapshots. While the platform makes trusted data more accessible, we recognize that data alone is not enough. If you are working on rural health, primary care, oral health, workforce, maternal health, or related efforts, please reach out to us about how this data can support your work.

Texas Health Insights was developed by Texas Health Institute with support from CareQuest Institute for Oral Health, Commonwealth Fund, Center for Community Health at Cook Children's, and Driscoll Health System.
Learn more: https://data.texashealthinstitute.org/

Clinicians, thought leaders, students, advocates, and changemakers from across Texas are convening this week in Austin for the 2026 Texas Oral Health Coalition, Inc Summit, with the theme “Reignite, Rebuild, Reimagine: Oral Health for All.” This is your last chance to register to join the conversation on expanding access to care, protecting public health through prevention, and bridging oral and overall health. https://bit.ly/txohc26

Healthcare affordability in Texas is not just about the price of a procedure or a premium. It is also shaped by whether Texans can access timely, coordinated care before health needs become more complex, fragmented, and expensive.

The inaugural hearing of the Texas House Select Committee on Healthcare Affordability marked an important step in Texas’ evolving healthcare conversation. In the latest edition of Texas Health Lens, we examine what the hearing revealed and what comes next.

https://texashealthinstitute.org/texas-health-lens-what-the-affordability-hearing-revealed-and-what-comes-next/

As summer begins, water safety is more important than ever.
Whether at the pool, lake, river, or beach, simple precautions can help prevent tragedy and keep families safe. Stay aware, supervise closely, and make water safety part of every summer plan.
Together, we can strengthen the conditions that help children and families enjoy the season safely.https://fss.hhs.texas.gov/sites/default/files/2025-06/water-safety-toolkit.pdf

Join us for a webinar to explore how oral health intersects with maternal and behavioral health throughout pregnancy, and how care teams across disciplines can work together to deliver more connected, whole-person care.
Oral Health and the Perinatal Journey is the first session in our two-part webinar series with the Texas Primary Care Consortium, Texas Oral Health Coalition, and Rural Texas Maternal Health Assembly.
Register now: bit.ly/THI0526