Regional Conference to Address Health Disparities among Latino Youth and Families


September 28, 2016

George Washington University’s Avance Center, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, and Regional Primary Care Coalition – Partner for the October 5 Event

Media Contact: Kathy Fackelmann, 202-994-8354, [email protected], and Laura Ambrosio, 202-962-3278, [email protected]

WASHINGTON, DC (September 28, 2016)—The Avance Center for the Advancement of Immigrant/Refugee Health at the George Washington University (GW) Milken Institute School of Public Health (Milken Institute SPH), in partnership with the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) and the Regional Primary Care Coalition, will host a conference on October 5 to discuss the disproportionate burden of health problems that affect Latinos living in the metropolitan Washington area and efforts underway to address these health disparities. This year’s event will focus on migration trends throughout the region and how migration and other social determinants impact Latino youth and family health. Please join GW’s Avance Center and their partners for this opportunity to learn more about research, best practices, and policy solutions to improve Latino health in the region and support youth and families.

Newly appointed Director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities at the National Institutes of Health, Eliseo Pérez-Stable, MD, will provide welcoming remarks.  Armando Trull, Senior Reporter, WAMU 88.5, will deliver a keynote address about the D.C. region’s growing Latino immigrant community and the surge of unaccompanied youth streaming across the U.S. border. D.C, Maryland, and Virginia government officials, including Fairfax County Supervisor and COG Board Member Penny Gross, will discuss policy solutions for health disparities and other serious concerns in Latino communities.

The October 5 event will also feature talks by Mark Edberg, PhD, MA and Sean Cleary, PhD, MPH, Director and Co-Director of the Avance Center, Randy Capps, PhD, MPAff, Director of Research for U.S. Programs at the Migration Policy Institute and Ana Gonzalez-Barrera, MPH, Senior Researcher with Pew Research Center. Chuck Bean, COG Executive Director and Sharon Zalewski, Executive Director of Center for Health Care Access at the Regional Primary Care Coalition, will provide remarks regarding policy and primary care.

The event will include breakout sessions focusing on behavioral health services for Latinos and immigrants who face trauma and family separation; Latino access to quality and higher education and its impact on health outcomes; affordable and safe housing and Latino community health; emerging research on a project called Water Up! that aims to reduce the risk of obesity/diabetes in Latino populations; and results from the Adelante Positive Youth Development intervention to address co-occurring substance abuse, sexual risk and violence among Latino youth.

The conference also features a screening of the documentary “Living Undocumented” with filmmaker Tatyana Kleyn, PhD, MA, and Oliver Contreras’ photojournalism exhibit “Unaccompanied,” a series of portraits of unaccompanied youth immigrants.

EVENT:  Regional Conference on Advancing Health Equity for Latino Youth & Families

WHEN:   October 5, 2016; 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

WHERE:              
Milken Institute School of Public Health
First Floor Convening Center
950 New Hampshire Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20052

MEDIA: Press who wish to attend must register as well as contact Kathy Fackelmann at [email protected] or Laura Ambrosio at [email protected]

 

About Milken Institute School of Public Health at the George Washington University: Established in July 1997 as the School of Public Health and Health Services, Milken Institute School of Public Health is the only school of public health in the nation’s capital. Today, more than 1,900 students from 54 U.S. states and territories and more than 50 countries pursue undergraduate, graduate and doctoral-level degrees in public health. The school also offers an online Master of Public Health, MPH@GW, and an online Executive Master of Health Administration, MHA@GW, which allow students to pursue their degree from anywhere in the world.

About COG: The Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments (COG) is an independent, nonprofit association that brings area leaders together to address major regional issues in the District of Columbia, suburban Maryland, and Northern Virginia. COG’s membership is comprised of 300 elected officials from 22 local governments, the Maryland and Virginia state legislatures, and U.S. Congress. www.mwcog.org

About RPCC:  The Regional Primary Care Coalition is a partnership among local funders and primary health care coalitions and associations representing more than 40 safety-net primary health care providers across the Washington metropolitan region.  RPCC’s mission is to strengthen the health care safety-net, promote innovation in health policy and practice and advance health equity throughout the District of Columbia, Northern Virginia and suburban Maryland. To learn more visit RPCC.