Health Equity Matters

• New Associate Director for Science (ADS)

  We are pleased to welcome Ana Penman-Aguilar, PhD, MPH, as the new Associate Director for Science of CDC’s Office of Minority Health and Health Equity (OMHHE).
  
  Dr. Penman-Aguilar joined OMMHE in July to provide leadership and expert consultation across a broad range of science, research, evaluation, and practice issues that advance the elimination of health disparities and achievement of health equity.  She also will serve as the lead for OMHHE’s Science Team, which is responsible for advancing science and practice across CDC surrounding the elimination of health disparities and the achievement of health equity.
  
  Dr. Penman-Aguilar brings 15 years of experience working in public health research domestically and abroad. Examples of her accomplishments include chairing the 2011 National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP) Health Equity Symposium, collaborating with the Indian Health Service and Tribes to validate an algorithm for public health surveillance of Native American and Alaska Native pregnant women during the 2009 H1N1 pandemic, and authoring scientific manuscripts exploring issues related to health equity and the health of vulnerable populations in the US and sub-Saharan Africa. Dr. Penman-Aguilar has an MPH in International Health from Tulane University School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine and a PhD in Epidemiology from the University of Alabama at Birmingham.
  
  
  

• Summer Internship Program

  OMHHE congratulates everyone involved in the Culminating Week of the 2012 CDC National Undergraduate Summer Public Health Program (NUSPHP).
  
  Keynote speakers, CDC staff and mentors, and grantees, as well as enthusiastic students, made the event held the last week of July a success.
  
  CDC’s NUSPHP is intended to improve the representation of minority populations in public health and increase the quality of public health services nationally by providing interns with hands-on project-oriented assignments designed to expose them to 'real-world' public health activities and functions. Through the leadership, recruitment and mentoring of our grantees – Morehouse College, the University of Michigan, Columbia University, and Kennedy Krieger Institute, 204 students were placed in state and local health departments, community-based organizations, universities, and at the CDC for an 8 week summer experience.
  
  In addition, the Dr. James A. Ferguson Emerging Infectious Diseases Fellowship Program is a key component of the summer public health program providing research experience for graduate students interested in public health.
  
  CDC Director Tom Frieden, MD, MPH met with eight Ferguson fellows to answer their questions and discuss his journey in public health.
  
  
  

• State of Health Equity

  In September 2012, OMHHE will convene its first agency-wide assembly to examine CDC’s progress in the implementation of policies, programs, surveillance, and research that contribute to achieving health equity. Titled The State of Health Equity at CDC Forum, this inaugural event will explore:
  
  • indicators, measures, and tools for monitoring trends in health equity
  • implementation guidance for health equity in CDC programs
  • organizational structures that facilitate the integration of health equity into programs and research
  • policies that support reducing health disparities and achieving health equity.
  Senior CDC leaders, Directors of Minority Health from our sister federal agencies, and CDC programs and staff from across the agency will gather on the Chamblee Campus to advance the work of health equity at CDC. Stay tuned for more information coming soon about this important event.
  
  
  

• Migrant Health

  OMHHE supports enhanced awareness of migrant initiatives and involvement in regional Migrant Stream Health Forum Conferences held in the following regions: Eastern, Midwest, and West Coast.
  
  Upcoming conferences are:
  • 25th Annual East Coast Migrant Stream Forum
    October 18-20, 2012
    Virginia Beach, Virginia
    
  • 22nd Annual Midwest Migrant Stream Forum
    November 8-10, 2012
    San Antonio, Texas
    
  • 22nd Annual Western Migrant Stream Forum
    February 2013
    Place to be determined
    

Dr. Ramal Moonesinghe, OMHHE’s Senior Mathematical Statistician, coauthored a paper on social and behavioral determinants of health among sub-groups of the African diaspora – “Differences in the Influence of Education and Family Income on Six Health Indicators Among Sub-groups of the African Diaspora Living in the United States, 2000-2010”, along with Drs. Eleanor Fleming, Benedict Truman, Matthew Hogben, and Hazel D. Dean from the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention (NCHHSTP).

The paper was presented by Dr. Fleming on July 5th, at the International Conference on Health in the African Diaspora (ICHAD).

Our blog Conversations in Equity shares and exchanges perspectives and progress in the science and practice of health equity.

See the latest post and add your comments today!

I first met Lark Galloway-Gilliam in 2004 when I joined the division formerly known as the Division of Adult and Community Health in the CDC's National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. A community organizer at heart, she was unwavering in her insistence that the voices of community members be heard, respected, and incorporated into decisions that would ultimately affect their opportunities for health. Over the years, I have seen the impact of her leadership, perseverance, and singular focus in transforming policies and environments to promote minority health and health equity. Her reach extends much beyond her own community, and we salute her as a Health Equity Champion for communities across the nation working to overcome health disparities and achieve health equity.
--Leandris C. Liburd

Ms. Galloway-Gilliam is the Executive Director of Community Health Councils (CHC), a Los Angeles-based health promotion, advocacy and policy organization dedicated to building healthy communities and the elimination of racial and ethnic health disparities. Ms. Galloway-Gilliam is an advocate for health and human rights, public accountability and quality healthcare for uninsured and underinsured communities.

CHC is deeply embedded within the larger community of South Los Angeles, the most socio-economically diverse region in Los Angeles County. This primarily African American and Latino population is challenged by high rates of chronic disease, premature deaths and socio-economic inequalities in large part due to decades of public and private divestment and racial segregation.

In remarks to Health Equity Matters in response to her nomination, Ms. Galloway-Gilliam described what drove her to develop the CHC: “Community Health Councils was first organized in response to the outcry for improved access to quality healthcare services following the 1992 civil unrest. While the organization’s initial focus was on the plight of the uninsured, persistent health disparities, coupled with the systematic loss of healthcare resources, necessitated a more comprehensive response. CHC received one of forty Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) 2010 grants in 1999.”

"There are hundreds if not thousands of champions who have been battling this issue for decades and our work stands on their shoulders. We gain satisfaction when community members stand up and hold policymakers accountable and change happens," said Ms. Galloway-Gilliam.

Ms. Galloway-Gilliam received her undergraduate education at University of California, Los Angeles and a Masters degree in Public Administration at University of Southern California. Her articles have appeared in numerous publications including the American Journal of Public Health and the Journal of General Internal Medicine. She has co-authored over a dozen professional reports on transforming the urban food desert, bridging the health divide for under-served communities, and improving California’s Medi-Cal system. OMHHE honors Ms. Galloway-Gilliam for her dedication, passion and service to Los Angeles and beyond.

Exploring the Historical Challenges of Social Determinants on Population Health and Health Inequalities

The David J. Sencer CDC Museum, in collaboration with OMHHE, is developing an exhibit exploring historic issues around health disparities in the United States. Scheduled to open in the fall of 2013 in Atlanta –Health is a Human Right – will examine the evolution of minority health and health equity in the 20th/early 21st centuries. Louise E. Shaw, Museum Curator, is working with OMHHE and a team of internal and external advisors to identify representative stories that reflect this broad history. She is “extremely excited about the opportunity to develop an exhibit that links public health history with social justice issues.”

Organized thematically around issues related to the social determinants of health, the exhibit will highlight public health challenges and achievements in reducing health disparities by CDC, other public health agencies, and community-based organizations. The exhibit will explore the history of health disparities in public health and social reform in an effort to reveal possibilities for change, encourage dialogue, and inspire collective action that can redirect public health practice to reduce health disparities and reframe health equity as an achievable goal. Health is a Human Right will coincide with the Office of Minority Health and Health Equity’s 25th anniversary celebration in September, 2013.

Health is a Human Right will use historic and contemporary events, stories and milestones to place into context how “race and place” have impacted health outcomes in the United States over the past 120 years. The exhibit will address issues of environmental justice, social equity, access to healthcare, and race/racism in the United States, as well as how these issues have intersected with the health of America’s diverse population groups. It will document historic examples of health disparities within communities of color, as well as highlight how these same communities have empowered themselves to make systemic changes to improve their health outcomes. The role of government and public health systems in achieving our health equity goals will also be addressed, and important milestones such as the release of the 1985 Report of the Secretary’s Task Force on Black and Minority Health, commonly known as the Heckler Report, will be included. CDC initiatives such as “WISEWOMAN”--culturally specific programs that screen women for breast and cervical cancer, and provide strategies to prevent heart disease, diabetes, and obesity among women of color—will also be highlighted.

The David J. Sencer CDC Museum attracts 70,000 visitors a year, including CDC employees and their families, public health professionals from across the United States and the world, visiting dignitaries, middle- and high-school groups, college and university groups, and members of the general public who are drawn to the work of this famous agency. Our temporary and permanent exhibits aim to educate people about the role of public health, both in the U.S. and globally, and the impact of public health on all of our lives.

• Southeast Regional Environmental Justice Conference
  August 16-17, 2012
  Atlanta, Georgia
  
• National Health Equity Conference
  September 5, 2012
  Washington, DC
  
• Undergraduate Education for Public Health Summit
  October 27, 2012
  San Francisco, California
  
• 2012 Summit on the Science of Eliminating Health Disparities
  October 31 - November 3, 2012
  Gaylord National Resort & Convention Center
  National Harbor, Maryland
  
• HHS Funding Opportunity for Individual PreDoctoral Research Training Fellowship
  With the purpose of improving the diversity of the health-related research workforce by supporting the training of pre doctoral students from groups that have been shown to be underrepresented. Expiration Date: May 8, 2014
  
• New Connections: Increasing Diversity of RWJF Programming-Junior Investigator Program
  This program aims to expand the diversity of perspectives that inform Robert Wood Johnson Foundation programming, while simultaneously helping to meet staff needs for data analysis. Deadline: August 29, 2012, 3:00pm EDT
  
• New Connections: Increasing Diversity of RWJF Programming-Midcareer Consultant Program
  This program invites Midcareer Consultants—scholars from historically disadvantaged and underrepresented communities who have between 10–15 years of research and/or evaluation experience—to address program priorities for RWJF’s teams and portfolios. Deadline: August 29, 2012, 3:00pm EDT
  

The Office of Minority Health and Health Equity welcomes Mr. Lamont Scales, MA, NCC, Coordinator for MSM Activities within the Office of Health Equity, Office of the Director, Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention, National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention.

In a recent op-ed article titled “Anti-gay stigma sparks rise in black male HIV rates,” Dr. Kevin Fenton, Director of CDC’s National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD and TB Prevention writes “Black gay and bisexual men of all ages account for 73 percent of new infections among black men, and the latest statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveal that the burden of HIV is growing among some of the youngest members of our community. CDC just reported that HIV infections are up sharply among black gay and bisexual men under the age of 30 — the only race and risk group in the United States to experience a significant increase between 2006 and 2009.” http://www.cdc.gov/std/health-disparities/

Mr. Scales’ role in the Division of HIV/AIDS Prevention is to coordinate and monitor the Division’s activities related to reducing health inequities among gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (referred to as MSM). Mr. Scales has extensive experience and training in HIV prevention among MSM, including program management, project coordination, communication, facilitation, and professional counseling. He served as Prevention Programs Manager for AID Atlanta, Inc., from 2009-2012. In that capacity, his duties included monitoring and evaluating the overall performance of all staff and projects in their prevention services portfolio, assisting the Director with developing departmental policies and procedures, serving as an expert adviser within the agency and in the community at large, and contributing to the development of grant proposals. Prior to 2009, he served as Program Coordinator-Men's STD Clinic and Substance Abuse/Housing Case Manager at AID Atlanta, Inc. In addition, he has held numerous positions as a Mental Health Therapist in the Atlanta and Philadelphia areas, and he is also a National Certified Counselor. His area of focus prior to joining CDC was the LGBT community and those living with HIV/AIDS. He is a CDC/ASPH Institute for HIV Prevention Leadership Fellow and a co-author on a number of peer reviewed publications and presentations pertaining to MSM, including Prevalence of serodiscordance, seropositivity, and exclusionary factors in US male couples presenting for Couples Voluntary Counseling and Testing (CVCT): preliminary results (2011, IAS).

Now at CDC, Mr. Scales plans to “bring together and communicate DHAP’s activities that reduce HIV and AIDS related health inequities among MSM, while identifying solutions within DHAP’s research, surveillance, and programmatic activities.” Mr. Scales states “Most recently, I helped plan and traveled with Dr. Fenton and the DHAP leadership to several of the Stakeholder Engagement Meetings with MSM of Color. The findings from these series of meetings will be forthcoming. I am currently collaborating with my fellow DHAP colleagues to host a live webinar for National Gay Men’s HIV/AIDS Awareness Day 2012. I am also a part of the planning committee for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Black MSM Consultation.”

Mr. Scales comes prepared to meet the challenges of his position. “It is my hope to identify strategies for addressing the health equity needs of gay, bisexual, and other MSM. I look forwarding to partnering with fellow CDC colleagues to reduce health inequities among this and all groups. Please feel free to reach me at wjg5@cdc.gov.”

Racial/ethnic composition of poverty-wage workforce and overall workforce, 2011 African Americans are overrepresented in the poverty-wage workforce. While they made up 11.0 percent of the total workforce in 2011, they accounted for 14.1 percent of the poverty-wage workforce. Likewise, Hispanics made up 15.3 percent of the workforce in 2011 but constituted 23.6 percent of poverty-wage workers.
Data from the Economic Policy Institute’s (EPI) forthcoming book, The State of Working America, 12th Edition (Mishel, Bivens, Gould, and Shierholz 2012).

New MMWR Supplement

OMHHE is working with MMWR staff on a supplement describing evidence-based and promising practices, clinic- and community-based interventions, and strategies for reducing and eliminating health disparities. The supplement will feature selected projects presented at the CDC/ATSDR Health Disparities/Health Equity Program Initiatives’ Summit held in April, 2012. Stay tuned for the details.