Initiatives Focus on Hispanic Health, Diabetes Awareness in Blacks
The following summarizes initiatives that seek to address health issues among blacks, Hispanics and Muslims.
- Chicago: Publishing company CMO announced last week that it will launch a Spanish-language monthly magazine in the Chicago area that focuses on Hispanic health. The magazine, UnBuenDoctor, is aimed at Hispanic women and their families specifically. The first issue, available on March 27, includes articles on diabetes, organ transplants, kidney and pediatric care, and holistic medicine. The magazine will be distributed at supermarkets and other businesses, as well as at physician offices and clinics. The magazine's Web site includes further health information and resources (Hispanic PR Wire release, 3/19).
- Howard County, Md.: The county on Saturday held the fourth annual Muslim Foundation Community Health Fair, the Washington Post reports. More than 100 residents participated in the fair, where local Muslim health professionals provided no-cost health services, diagnostic testing, educational material, counseling and other services to residents (Otto, Washington Post, 3/22).
- Miami-Dade County, Fla.: The Miami-Dade County Health Department Little Haiti Health Center, which offers services to residents regardless of income or immigration status, will officially open March 30, the Miami Herald reports. The clinic, which has been unofficially operating since last month, provides diagnostic tests and other preventive care services. Because it is not a primary care clinic, clinic workers will refer patients seeking primary care to the Center for Haitian Studies (Valdemoro, Miami Herald, 3/19).
-
National Hispanic Medical Association: The association at its annual conference in San Antonio on Friday will unveil an interactive Web portal that aims to be a resource for health professionals and the public on diabetes and obesity in the Hispanic community. The portal -- HispanicHealth.info, which is available in English and Spanish -- includes the latest research findings and treatments, offers cultural guidance to professionals and allows providers to share information about health issues. The site is funded by the HHS Office of Minority Health, the association, the National Hispanic Health Professions Leadership Network and the association's Council of Medical Societies (NHMA release, 3/20).
-
UnitedHealthcare: Health insurer UnitedHealthcare and the HHS Office of Minority Health have partnered to create online cultural competency education modules for health care professionals. The no-cost modules, called "A Physician's Practical Guide to Culturally Competent Care," will serve as a tool to help health care professionals deliver more effective treatment to patients of different races and ethnicities. The modules are available at ThinkCulturalHealth.org (Hispanic PR Wire release, 3/15). Separately, UnitedHealthcare's Generations of Wellness is giving 40 Dallas churches $250 each to offer no-cost preventive health services and educational materials as part of an effort to educate faith-based black organizations on diabetes, according to Pegasus News. The initiative is part of the American Diabetes Association Super Diabetes Sunday, where churches this Sunday will spend time discussing diabetes (Pegasus News, 3/14).