LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A new study conducted through two Louisville-area colleges will explore the health of the community.
Simmons College and the University of Louisville's newest study will identify the features neighborhoods should have in order to promote the health of everyone who lives there.
Local data shows people living in west Louisville have shorter lifespans than people in other neighborhoods.
Dr. Ted Smith, director of Center for Healthy Air at UofL Health, said this 18-month study will explore ways to lower these differences for everyone living in Louisville.
"We don't want a 12-year gap, how do we get to six?" he asked. "And it turns out its hard to get the answer to that question. How do we get to six years? How do we get to four years? How do we get to no years? So this project is to really do that work is to figure out what those things are."
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation provided a $500,000 grant to fund the study.
"For me, this is more than data and statistics and something quantifiable or me, this is something quite personal and subjective," Simmons College President Dr. Kevin Cosby said. "Because as a life-long resident of west Louisville, as a pastor of a poor zip code of Louisville for 44 years, I cannot tell you how many people have come to me who were sick just because they did not have access to the privileges that more opportnitied communities take for granted."
The schools said they hope at the end of the project each neighborhood will have a "playbook" clearly define what their neighborhood needs and a plan to address them.
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