Mission

The Odessa Chambliss Center for Health Equity is committed to facilitating opportunities that enable all people to attain their full health potential and to ensure that no one is disadvantaged from achieving this potential because of their race, ethnicity, gender or social position. 

The Chambliss Center is currently engaged in the following initiatives:

  • Ovarian and Gynecological Cancer Awareness and Education
  • Midtown Daytona Beach Women's Health Initiative
  • Chronic Disease Prevention and Education
  • Policy and Research Engagement
  • Health Care 
  • Community Service and Internships

About Our Community

graphThe Odessa Chambliss Center for Health Equity primarily serves the 32114 zip code. This zip code represents the midtown Daytona Beach area which has multiple health and socio-economic disparities as compared to the city and state as a whole. For example, according to statistics from Northeast Florida Counts web site, the number of minorities is 57.78% whereas the state minority representation is 18.07. The median household income is $24,812 as compared to the state of $41,930. This is also reflected in the unemployment rate of 17.48% as opposed to the state rate of 9.20%. Transportation plays a key role in access to work, healthcare as well as the ability to shop for food and services at a reasonable rate. in this area public transportation is limited and 18.76% of the population are without a vehicle, the state is 6.40% of people with a personal , means of transportation.

Like a canary in a coal mine, infant mortality serves as a warning about the health of a community in that it is an important measure of the well-being of infants, children, and pregnant women. It is associated with a variety of factors, such as maternal health, quality, and access to medical care, socioeconomic conditions, and public health practices. Therefore the infant mortality rate for 32114 is especially alarming because it is estimated to be 3-6 times greater than the state average. In fact, low birth weight which is often the ultimate cause of infant death is 14% as compared to the state rate of 8.7%.