Harris SAVES
Completed project
Overview
Harris SAVES (SARS-CoV-2 Prevalence Survey) was a research project developed to better understand the prevalence and transmission of COVID-19 in Harris County, Texas. The project was led by UTHealth School of Public Health in partnership with Baylor College of Medicine and Harris County Public Health. Originally conceived of as a two year study, the project operated from January - April 2021.
Objectives
The study’s objectives were to:
- Understand the prevalence of COVID-19 infection through testing and data assessment
- Identify and track COVID-19 hotspots in Harris County
- Identify barriers to testing and develop potential solutions to address them
- Increase testing response in selected communities
This research project provided FREE TESTING FOR EVERYONE (including children) in Harris County regardless of symptoms, gender, race, income or immigration status. Testing was conducted by two mobile testing teams, operated by Acadian Ambulance Service (Houston), at publicly accessible locations within or adjacent to the targeted communities. Results were private and usually available within three days. Participants received gift cards in appreciation for their participation.
Investigators
Eric Boerwinkle, PhD, Principal Investigator
Cesar Arias, PhD, Co-Investigator
Paula Cuccaro, PhD, Co-Investigator
Luis Leon Novelo, PhD, Co-Investigator
Stephen Linder, PhD, Co-Investigator
Christine Markham, PhD, Co-Investigator
Dritana Marko Serbo, MD, Co-Investigator
Sheryl McCurdy, PhD, Co-Investigator
Alanna Morrison, PhD, Co-Investigator
Marcia Otto, PhD, Co-Investigator
Ryan Ramphul, PhD, Co-Investigator
Lara Savas, PhD, Co-Investigator
Shreela Sharma, PhD, Co-Investigator
Partners
UTHEALTH SCHOOL OF PUBLIC HEALTH
UTHealth School of Public Health is a graduate education and research institution dedicated to advancing population health. It is a member school of the University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston (UTHealth), the most comprehensive academic health center in the University of Texas System. UTHealth School of Public Health has campuses in Austin, Brownsville, Dallas, El Paso, Houston, and San Antonio, all of which are strategically located to best serve Texas’ diverse and geographically unique communities.
BAYLOR COLLEGE OF MEDICINE
Baylor College of Medicine works to apply science and discovery to further education, healthcare and community services for all. The Baylor College of Medicine Human Genome Sequencing Center explores individual DNA and its connection with human diseases to better study complicated diseases.
HARRIS COUNTY
The Harris SAVES project is funded by Harris County. Harris County Public Health works alongside Harris County officials to improve the health and well-being of Harris County residents by fighting public health threats. HCPH has previously responded to public health issues such as rabies, mosquito-borne illnesses, air and water pollution, disease outbreaks, water and food-borne illnesses, natural disasters and other diseases.
