The new Center will bring researchers and community organizers together to improve health outcomes among Caribbean and Latin American communities
WASHINGTON (July 7, 2022)--The George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health today launched a novel research center dedicated to addressing health disparities and improving public health in the Caribbean and Latin America. The new center, called the Gill-Lebovic Center for Community Health in the Caribbean and Latin America, will leverage the research, expertise, and experience of faculty at the Milken Institute School of Public Health and across GW to develop collaborations in the region to promote health and wellness.
“I am thrilled to announce the launch of this innovative center which will form new partnerships to improve health across the region’s most vulnerable groups, including women and children, migrants and people living in poor communities,” Lynn R. Goldman, the Michael and Lori Milken Dean of the GW Milken Institute School of Public Health, said. “The Center will not only address current health problems in the region but will be a sustainable source of expertise and care for these communities moving forward.”
The goals of the new Center include:
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Increasing the number of collaborations with community-based organizations and institutions of higher education committed to improving health outcomes among Caribbean and Latin American communities.
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Providing training opportunities for students and faculty at GW and for students, scientists, and organizations serving Caribbean and Latin American communities.
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Engaging with local partners and organizations to promote ownership and sustainability.
Carlos Rodriguez-Diaz, an Associate Professor of Prevention and Community Health at GW will serve as the Center’s Director. Rodriguez-Diaz, is a native of Puerto Rico, who has conducted several ground-breaking public health studies in the United States and the Caribbean.
“It is important for our work to be deeply rooted in what the communities care about so each project will be unique, '' Rodriguez-Diaz said. “Some areas that the Center will focus on include the prevention of chronic and communicable diseases, access to primary care, sexual and reproductive health and food insecurity.”
One of the Center’s first projects will focus on ways to facilitate access to care, including at-home services, case management, and biomedical approaches to disease prevention in Haiti, Barbados, and Trinidad and Tobago. Another initial project will continue work in Puerto Rico that nurtures community-based participatory research which will allow for communities to identify their health needs and develop interventions to address these needs with the support of local and GW scientists in specific areas such as HIV care and post disaster work. The Center will engage with expert faculty across the SPH and all of GW, as well as external advisors, in mapping a long range agenda for its work.
The unique center was established with a gift from GW political science professor James Lebovic and his wife Holly Gill.
Read more about the Center’s work and the gift in GW Today.
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