Texas Department of State Health Services

Mission

Region 6/5 South is one of eleven Public Health Regions of the Department of State Health Services, the state governmental agency responsible for bringing integrated health services to the citizens of Texas. State, Regional and Local public health partners work together to assure the provision of essential public health services to an estimated five million Texans in the 16-county area of southeast Texas. Working together, regional staff assesses and assures the health of the diverse communities in the Southeast.

The DSHS PHR6/5S Preparedness and Response team is responsible for preparing our 7 counties for public health threats, as outlined in The CDC 15 Public Health Preparedness Capabilities, as well as coordinating information sharing and collaboration with local health departments across our region.

The team provides Emergency Support Function 8 regional coordination and response support during public health emergencies.   Threats to the public’s health may come from a variety of sources, including pandemics, natural and man-made disasters, infectious disease outbreaks, biological terrorism and radiological events. We ensure critical response efforts are coordinated and standardized via networking and centralizing resources, as well as planning with local jurisdictions and the state’s public and private-sector health care systems across the state.