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Crystal Chidomere

Crystal Chidomere, an intern for Salud America, is a recent graduate and former student athlete at UTSA. She enjoys health and fitness and inspiring youth on the importance of a physically active lifestyle as well as striving for community change.

Articles by Crystal Chidomere

Poll: 6 in 10 Latinos Struggle to Communicate with Healthcare Providers



More than 60% of U.S. Latinos struggle to communicate with a healthcare provider due to a language or cultural barriers, according to a new poll. In response, these Latinos rely on family or other healthcare providers for help, according to the poll from the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research. 1 in 4 of these Latinos even look into translating services to help with health issues. The new poll supports past findings that 83% of Latinos report obtaining some of their health-related information from media sources (TV, Internet, etc.) and that 70% list family, friends, churches, or community groups as their main sources of health information. "The language and cultural barriers in health care for Latinos are something advocates have been pointing out for years," ...

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New College for Latino Students Without High-School Diplomas



Latinos are making big educational strides. But they still face a lot of hurdles in graduating high school, getting into college, and earning a degree. A Chicago program came up with a unique way to help. Instituto del Progresso Latino started Instituto College, a private two-year college in Chicago that will prepare Latino students with limited English and no high school diploma for middle-income positions, Inside Higher Ed reports. Instituto College aims to give hope to Latino immigrants. In August 2018, the college will welcome its first class of pilot nursing students. They will bridge with an already existing program, "Careers in Salud," which provides certified nursing assistant or registered nurse education. How Did Instituto College Come About? A new bill in ...

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Doctoral Students to Give Mental Healthcare to Spanish Speakers



Mental health isn't talked about enough in the Latino community. Even if they want to talk, their doctors are rarely equipped to overcome language and cultural barriers to answer questions. That's starting to change in Missouri. A new residency program is recruiting doctors-in-training to provide Spanish-language mental healthcare services to Latinos in clinics across the state. The program is a collaboration between Ponce Health Sciences University in Puerto Rico, which operates a satellite campus in Missouri, and Compass Health Network, a nonprofit with healthcare clinics serving rural residents across Missouri, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports. "Very few Missouri clinics have therapeutic staff who speak Spanish," according to the news report. "Compass Health Network ...

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Pediatricians Host Spanish-Language Health Podcast



Getting Latinos to go and see a primary care provider is hard enough. Even when they reach a doctor, many families get frustrated with little time to ask questions. In response, two Latina pediatricians started a Spanish-language health podcast for Latino parents! Drs. Edith Brancho Sanchez and Angela Castellanos of Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia started the podcast, "Las Doctoras Recomiendan," in March 2018 to provide reliable, free health information, whyy.org reports. Why and how did they make it happen? The Issue of Latino Healthcare Access At least 27% of Latinos report having no usual health care provider, according to a Salud America! research review. Latino parents face barriers to medical care, like lack of insurance, legal status, language, high cost. This ...

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Workshop Turns Janitors into Latino Health Advocates


health workers promotores

Promotores de salud are trained community members who promote everything from proper sleep to reducing child abuse among Latinos. Did you know even janitors can be promotores de salud? In fact, the nonprofit Building Skills Partnership and the U.S. Office of Minority Health conducted a workshop in June 2018 to help organizations secure health grants and train low-income male custodians to promote early detection of HIV and Hepatitis C to their Latino friends and family. The project had two phases: A three-day grant-writing workshop for organizations like Para Los Niños, the National Health Foundation, Esperanza Community Housing, The California Hispanic Commission on Alcohol and Drug Abuse, El Centro de Ayuda, the Arthritis Foundation, and the Los Angeles Alliance for ...

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Can a Block Party Push Health in a Disadvantaged Neighborhood?


Block party

Goodbye, boring health fairs. Hello, block parties for health. City leaders and health advocates in Wilmington, Del. (12.2% Latino), will host about 30 block parties this summer to promote family time, play, and neighborhood health in areas with high rates of obesity, diabetes, and cancer, delawareonline reports. The block parties, called "Play Street," will take place from June through August. They're part of the New Castle Healthy Neighborhoods program made possible by a federal grant. At each block party, officials block off a part of the streets so families can partake in activities like basketball and jump rope. Healthy snacks and drinks will be on tap. Health screenings will be available. But no more than two health info booths will be set up. "We want kids to ...

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How Can Young Adults Support Their Partners in Preconception Health?



Healthy mind. Healthy body. Health baby. Whether you are planning to get pregnant now, next month, or in the future, preconception health is extremely important for Latino and all parents. When you hear about preconception health, one often assumes this responsibility lies with the women, but a man's health can be just as important when it comes to having a healthy baby. At a population level, preconception health can drastically improve birth outcomes by reducing the number of babies born prematurely or at low birth weights, according to the CDC. What should both partners do before planning a pregnancy? For Latino and all families, preconception health should involve both partners wanting to take initiative to improve the chances of a healthy pregnancy. Regardless of ...

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How To Get Latinos Ready For College


classroom

The road from high school to college isn’t easy for Latinos. They may speak mainly Spanish. They often lack resources and legal documentation. Some aren’t prepared for complex financial aid and college applications. That’s why one college readiness program uses cultural competency to help Latinos. The Juntos program, a six-week Spanish-language workshop offered through Oregon State University, prepares Latino high-school students for higher education and includes ongoing advisement for students and families, according to The Daily Astorian. Juntos helps Latinos deal with high school graduation requirements, college admission, and getting financial aid─and the workshops include dinner and childcare. “[Juntos gives Latinos] the keys to be able to open the door to ...

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