Articles by Cliff Despres

Ramirez to Receive ‘Icons in Healthcare Award’

April 23, 2018

Congratulations to Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, who has received the "Icons in Healthcare Award" from CentroMed, a San Antonio health and human service agency! The award recognizes individuals and groups for their important contributions to community healthcare. Dr. Ramirez has more than 30 years of experience developing robust health research and communication models to reduce cancer and improve health among Latinos locally and nationally. The award will be presented at a gala on Nov. 1, 2018. "I'm very thankful for this award and its recognition of our ongoing progress to boost Latino health in San Antonio," Ramirez said. Dr. Ramirez's studies and programs have contributed to increased cancer screening, better cancer risk ...

#SaludTues Tweetchat 4/24: Our Kids & the Need for Social and Emotional Learning

April 17, 2018

teacher and students reading taclking discussing raising hands

Social and emotional learning is BIG for early childhood development. Social and emotional learning is how Latino and all kids acquire the knowledge and skills to manage emotions, set positive goals, feel and show empathy for others, and build strong relationships. With strong social and emotional skills, kids overcome challenges and avoid unhealthy behavior. They also do better in and after school, and are more likely to become healthy, functioning adults. How can we find ways to optimize the teaching of social and emotional learning to kids? Let’s use #SaludTues on Tuesday, April 24, 2018, to tweet about new ways to promote social and emotional learning in and out of school for Latino and all kids! WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: Our Kids and the Need for Social and ...

Apply for Up to $2.5 Million to Study How to Make Health a Shared Value

April 16, 2018

Evidence for Action, a national program of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, is seeking research proposals for up to $2.5 million to study innovative ways to "make health a shared value." This "shared value" involves individual, family, and community factors to renew a societal commitment to health and health equity. The new funding aims to understand what drives and enhances these values. Proposals, being sought for differing budgets of up to $2.5 million for up to 48 months of work, could use data from placed-based initiatives to see the effect on mindsets, sense of community, or civic engagement, and the impact on population health. "We seek evidence on the extent to which...mindsets and expectations, sense of community, and civic engagement can be changed through ...

Ramirez Named Komen Scholar for Latino Breast Cancer Research

April 10, 2018

Amelie Ramirez komen scholar cancer research

Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, a top cancer health disparities researcher and director of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, today was named one of 12 new "Komen Scholars" by Susan G. Komen, the world’s largest non-profit funder of breast cancer research. Komen Scholars are an advisory group of distinguished leaders in breast cancer research and advocacy. Each scholar—chosen for their knowledge, leadership, and contributions to breast cancer research—will help guide Komen’s $956 million research program, present at national meetings, and serve as experts and advocates for Komen’s nationwide network of affiliates and in communities around the globe. Ramirez, as part of being named a Komen Scholar, will receive $600,000 over three years to study Latina breast cancer. She ...

Study: Optimistic Latinos Have Healthier Hearts

April 5, 2018

Latinos who are the most optimistic also are more likely to have healthy hearts, according to a new study. Rosalba Hernandez of the University of Illinois studied 4,900 Latinos living in the United States. She and her team found that, for each percentage point increase in Latinos' optimism, there was a better heart health score, too. Meanwhile, few of the less optimistic Latinos met the criteria for ideal heart health. “Each unit increase in a Latino adult’s level of optimism was associated with 3% higher odds of meeting the criteria for ideal cardiovascular health across four or more metrics,” said Hernandez, a social work professor, in a news release. “The correlation between optimism and cardiovascular health was consistent across heritage groups, regardless of age, ...

Report: Latinos Not Visible in Research, Nursing, and Doctoral Fields

March 30, 2018

Latinos are sorely underrepresented in clinical research and the healthcare workforce, said a minority health leader. Dr. Eliseo Perez-Stable, director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, called this issue a "crisis" during the recent National Hispanic Medical Association conference in March 2018, Medpage Today reports. He also covered these issues at UT Health San Antonio's Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos in February 2018. Latinos & Clinical Research Latinos face many health disparities in cancer. They tend to have low access to healthy food, physical activity, and social support services, according to Salud America! research. Yet they don't often join clinical trials, Perez-Stable said. "There hasn't been a single [prostate] ...

#SaludTues Tweetchat 4/3: How to Improve Access to Healthy Foods/Drinks

March 27, 2018

kids eating school lunch meal latino boy

Sugar isn’t always sweeter. Latinos and many other families live in food environments with an abundance of unhealthy high-sugar food and drink options. They have less access to fresh produce, clean water, and other healthy options. This situation, sadly, sets the stage for obesity, diabetes, and more. Let’s use #SaludTues on Tuesday, April 3, 2018, to tweet how to increase the availability of and access to healthy food and water for Latino and all families! WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: How to Improve Access to Healthy Foods/Drinks TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, April 3, 2018 WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludAmerica CO-HOSTS: Voices for Health Kids (@Voices4HK), Healthy Schools Campaign (@healthyschools), First 5 LA ...

A Rising Concern for Latinos: Urinary Tract Infections

March 23, 2018

urinary tract infection UTI stomach pain

Salud America! Guest Blogger Toby F. Handler, MD, Advanced Urology Centers of New York Anybody can get a urinary tract infection (UTI). A UTI occurs when part of the urinary system (kidneys, bladder, or urethra) becomes infected with bacteria. Many UTIs are painful but not serious, unless the infection reaches the kidneys. UTIs are preventable and treatable. Many Latinos are increasingly concerned and have unanswered questions about UTIs. Who Gets UTIs? UTIs don’t discriminate based on race/ethnicity. Latinos are just as likely to get a UTI as any other ethnic group, studies show. UTIs are much more common in Latina women than in Latino men. Approximately 50-60% of adult women have had at least one UTI. That’s because women have a much shorter urethra which is ...

Study: Latino Cancer Survivors Enjoy Higher Quality of Life—If Satisfied with Their Care

March 15, 2018

Guadalupe cornejo patient navigation promotora community health worker

Latino cancer survivors who were satisfied with their care had higher quality of life and more confidence dealing with their doctor, emotional distress, and daily activities than those less satisfied with their care, according to a new study by UT Health San Antonio and Northwestern University. The study, published in Cancer, surveyed 288 Latino breast, prostate, and colon cancer survivors in San Antonio and Chicago about patient satisfaction with cancer care influences their quality of life and confidence managing different aspects of their cancer experience. Overall, Latino cancer survivors in the study reported lower health-related quality of life than that of non-Latino white survivors in previous studies. Latino survivors who reported more satisfaction with their cancer ...

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Cliff Despres

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