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Towards Health Equity

Provided by the Office of Minority Health Resource Center
January 23, 2012
 
NPA - National Partnership for Action

  In This Newsletter ...


Attending AMCHP?
If you plan to attend the AMCHP annual Conference in D.C. February 9 - 12:
  • Stop by our booth in space #56.
  • Head to the poster sessions to meet Preconception Peer Educators Jeannese Castro and Candace Oubre and learn about the program.
  • J. Nadine Gracia Appointed Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health, Office of Minority Health Director

    J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE,  Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health J. Nadine Gracia, MD, MSCE, was appointed the Deputy Assistant Secretary for Minority Health and the Director of the Office of Minority Health at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services last week. The Office of Minority Health is dedicated to improving the health of racial and ethnic minority populations through the development of health policies and programs that will help eliminate health disparities. Read the full story.

    States Take Next Steps toward Health Insurance Marketplaces

    MapImplementation of state health insurance marketplaces or exchanges – one of the most significant aspects of the Affordable Care Act that will bring insurance coverage to more than 30 million uninsured Americans – is less than ten months away. Throughout the year, as the state marketplaces take shape, the Office of Minority Health will share important information and resources for consumers and health care professionals.
  • HealthCare.gov Blog: Countdown to Affordable Health Insurance, by HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius
  • HHS Press Release: States move forward to implement health care law, build health insurance marketplaces.
  • New Report from HHS: Guidance on the State Partnership Exchange [PDF | 222KB].
  • Information on states that have received conditional approvals from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS)
  • More information for consumers and employers from Healthcare.gov
  • Webinar, January 24 at 3 p.m. EST: Health Reform: Implications for Part-Time Work, National Academy for State Health Policy. Register for the webinar Exit Disclaimer.
  • Unique Library/School Partnership Cultivates Next Generation of Health Advocates

    Project Share StudentsProject SHARE Exit Disclaimer  (Student Health Advocates Redefining Empowerment), a partnership between the University of Maryland Health Sciences and Human Services Library and Vivien T. Thomas Medical Arts Academy in Baltimore, trains high school students in the skills they need to serve as health advocates. Learn about what these teens are doing for their community and their future.

    CBOs: 5 Tips for Thriving, Not Just Surviving, in the New Year

    Make the financial and operational health of your organization your number one resolution this year. To kick off this new series, we're sharing these tips to help you set your organization up for success in 2013 and beyond.

    Native LGBT and Two-Spirit Organizations Stand Against Violence

    Nearly half of all Native American women have experienced rape, physical violence or stalking by an intimate partner. The rates of domestic violence are even higher for Native women who identify as lesbian, bisexual, transgender or Two-Spirit. Harlan Pruden, co-founder of New York's NorthEast Two-Spirit Society, talked about what his organization and others are doing to end the cycle and speak up for Native women across the country. Read the full story.

    Promotores Lead the Charge in Affordable Care Act Education

    Project Share Students When the Visión y Compromiso promoters wanted to help their communities navigate the intricacies of the Affordable Care Act, they didn't wait for a national or state initiative. They conducted focus groups and talked to different leaders in the field, and from their efforts, Visíon y Compromiso was able to develop a train-the-trainers curriculum specifically designed for the community. Read the full story.

    Birth Defects Prevention Month Resources

    One in 33 babies born each year is affected by birth defects, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Birth defects are the leading cause of death in the first year of life.
  • Birth Defects Overview from the National Institute of Child Health & Human Development (NICHD)
  • Feature: Why preconception care is not a luxury
  • "A Health Baby Begins With You" campaign resources
  • "Safe to Sleep" campaign resources from the NICHD
  • March of Dimes website Exit Disclaimer
  • More resources on the Office of Minority Health website
  • Cervical Health Awareness Month Resources

    Doctors say minority women are not accessing cervical cancer screening services as much as they should, putting them at higher risk of developing the disease. Although incidence of cervical cancer continues to drop in the United States, rates for minority women remain higher than in the rest of the population.
  • Cancer data and statistics from the Office of Minority Heath website
  • Cervical Cancer: The Preventable Gynecologic Cancer from the CDC
  • HPV Vaccine: Q&A [PDF | 1.2MB] from the CDC
  • Feature: Head on against Cervical Cancer
  • Do you know how to spot symptoms? Take our cervical health quiz.
  • Glaucoma Awareness Month Resources

    According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Glaucoma is three times more prevalent in African Americans than in whites. The burden of other diseases such as diabetic retinopathy and cataracts disproportionately affects racial and ethnic minority communities as well. Access and utilization of care remain prominent issues as African Americans and Hispanics are significantly less likely to visit an eye care professional than whites.
  • Eye Health 101: Are You at Risk?
  • Don't Lose Sight of Glaucoma from the National Eye Institute
  • Research Corner and more glaucoma resources from the Office of Minority Health
  • What are the causes of glaucoma? Take the glaucoma quiz and test your knowledge.
  • Innovate for a Healthier Future

    There's no mistaking it – health promotion and disease prevention have gone digital. Every day, we learn about new technology innovations that are helping to raise awareness, provide access to information to manage conditions and diseases and improve quality of care. Want to lend your creativity and pioneering spirit? Read more about HHS's app challenges and learn how you can innovate for a healthier future. But don't delay – deadlines are fast approaching!
  • healthfinder.gov Mobile App Challenge: The HHS Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion is challenging teams of developers and health professionals/health consumers to co-design a mobile app that can be used to access customized decision support for preventive services and wellness information from healthfinder.gov.
    Submission deadline is Feb. 1, 2013, at 5 pm EST.
  • Reducing Cancer among Women of Color App Challenge: The HHS Office of Minority Health and the Office of the National Coordinator for Health IT invite developers to create an app for mobile devices that can help improve the prevention and treatment of breast, cervical, uterine and ovarian cancer. Up to $100,000 will be awarded for apps that provide high-quality health information to women and community health workers, interface securely with patient health records and strengthen communication across provider care teams.
    Submission deadline is Feb. 5, 2013, at 11 pm EST.
    Visit challenge.gov to learn about other app challenges and new ideas.

  • Recent Reports

  • CDC Releases New Estimates on HIV Incidence
    New infection rates are down among black women, but overall black and Latino men and women continue to bear the burden of high infection rates. Visit the CDC's website to download the report, which provides estimates for the years 2007-2010.
  • Health Disparities in Asian American Communities [PDF | 172KB] Exit Disclaimer
    The Institute for Asian American Studies at University of Massachusetts-Boston released a report, "Information on Small Populations with Significant Health Disparities: A Report on Data Collected on the Health of Asian Americans in Massachusetts." Download the report [PDF | 172KB] Exit Disclaimer or learn more about the Institute Exit Disclaimer.
  • Text4baby Study Shows Participants Prepared for Motherhood Exit Disclaimer
    A randomized evaluation of text4baby Exit Disclaimer – the largest mobile health initiative in the U.S. – found that pregnant women who received text messages on health topics were nearly three times more likely to believe that they were well-prepared to be new mothers.
  • Free CME Opportunity: Help Reduce Early Induction

    To alert providers to the impact and effects of late preterm birth and non-medically indicated inductions prior to 39 weeks in the womb, the NICHD National Child and Maternal Health Education program developed this CME program in partnership with Medscape. View the CME Exit Disclaimer  or learn more on the NICHD website.

    Webinar: Who's Leading the Leading Health Indicators? Access to Health Services

    Join the Healthy People 2020 initiative on Thursday, January 24, at 3 pm EST, to learn about the success of one statewide partnership in securing coverage for over 500,000 previously uninsured children through advocacy and community outreach. This 45-minute webinar Exit Disclaimer will be led by HHS Assistant Secretary for Health, Dr. Howard Koh, and will include a roundtable discussion on the impact of this critical Leading Health Indicator topic.

    What's New in the Knowledge Center

    The Knowledge Center at the Office of Minority Health Resource Center is the largest repository of health disparities information in the world, with a collection of 10,000 documents, reports, books, journals, media and more than 30,000 articles related to the health status of racial and ethnic minority populations. The library collection also includes sources of consumer health material in more than 35 languages.
  • Feature: Unique Library/School Partnership Cultivates Next Generation of Health Advocates
  • View the latest Knowledge Center acquisitions list.
  • Search the online catalog.
  • Research Corner

    This month, Research Corner provides scholarly resources on glaucoma.
  • The Changing Face of Primary Open-Angle Glaucoma in the United States: Demographic and Geographic Changes From 2011 to 2050 Exit Disclaimer. Vajaranant Thasarat S., et al. American Journal of Ophthalmology. 2012; Volume 154/Issue2; 303-314.e3.
  • Disparities in Adult Vision Health in the United States Exit Disclaimer. Zambelli-Weiner, April; et al. American Journal of Ophthalmology. 2012; Volume 154/Issue 6; S23–S30.e1.
  • Racial Disparities in the Use of Ancillary Testing to Evaluate Individuals With Open-Angle Glaucoma Exit Disclaimer. Stein, MD, Joshua D. Arch Ophthalmol. 2012; Volume 130(12):1579-1588.
  • Regional Variations and Trends in the Prevalence of Diagnosed Glaucoma in the Medicare Population Exit Disclaimer. Cassard, ScD, Sandra D.; et al. Ophthalmology. 2012; Volume 119/ Issue 7; 1342–1351.
  • Surveillance of Disparities in Vision and Eye Health in the United States: An Expert Panel's Opinions Exit Disclaimer. Lee, Paul P.; et al. American Journal of Ophthalmology. 2012; Volume 154/Issue 6; S3–S7.
  •  
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    Last Modified: 01/24/2013 09:21:00 AM
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