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Cliff Despres

Cliff Despres, who has more than a decade of experience in journalism and public relations, is communications director for Salud America! and its home base, the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio.


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Articles by Cliff Despres

Maria Alvarez: Perseverance Paves Way for Cancer Prevention


Maria Alvarez

Maria Alvarez, proudly waving her native country’s flag for “Dios, Patria, y Libertad,” (God, motherland, and freedom), draws inspiration from her Dominican heritage and perseverant family to help people live healthier lives. Alvarez learned hard-working ways from her truck-driving father and education-seeking mother. When her family struggled with asthma and lung cancer, she stepped up in a big way as a researcher on these very topics. Alvarez, who has a master’s degree in health education and health behaviors from Teachers College Columbia University, is a Clinical Research Coordinator in the Hematology and Oncology Department at Columbia University Medical Center (CUMC). She has collaborated on studies and educational projects associated with cancer, prevention ...

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Diana Diaz: Pushing for Cancer Prevention among Latinos


Diana Diaz

With a mother that instilled accountability, Colombia native Diana Diaz has taken responsibility to push hard for cancer control and prevention. Diaz, a research coordinator at Moffitt Cancer Center, is already helping conduct trials in tobacco research and lung cancer. She wants to demystify the stigma of terror and language barriers that patients face in cancer centers. Diaz applied for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program, which recruits 25 master’s-level students and professionals for a five-day Summer Institute to promote doctoral degrees and careers studying Latino cancer. Éxito! is led by Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez at UT Health San Antonio, with support from the National Cancer Institute (NCI). “[Éxito!] has provided me with a more narrow ...

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Blanca Chavez: Health is a Basic Human Right


Blanca Chavez

In a world in need of optimism, Blanca Chavez is a shining beacon of positivity. Based on her upbeat grandfather’s legacy and her father’s goal-oriented example, Chavez believes that good health is a human right. She wants to reframe negative concepts into stigma-busting, health-boosting solutions. Before starting her master’s degree in public health, Chavez worked at community health centers throughout Washington to improve the quality of care among immigrant populations. Chavez, a proud bicultural and bilingual Chicana from Washington, said the accounts of cancer that she witnessed in the communities she has lived and served give her motivation to specifically focus on the elimination of cancer disparities. To further her goals, Chavez applied for the Éxito! Latino ...

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Salud America! Gets $1.5M to Improve Latino Child Health


Latino kid holding basketball

The Salud America! national Latino childhood obesity prevention program has received a one-year, $1.5 million grant from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) to empower people to work for policy changes to help Latino children grow up healthy. Salud America!, established in 2007 and based at UT Health San Antonio, has a national online network of 100,000 parents, health providers, and school and community leaders who support its mission: "Inspire people to drive community change for the health of Latino and all kids." The new funding will allow Salud America! to expand its network and engage members with enhanced educational content—multimedia role model stories, social media events, online resources, digital action campaigns, and marketing—geared toward healthy ...

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Richard Gamarra: From Prison to Public Health


Richard Gamarra

New York native Richard Gamarra spent seven years in prison after falling victim to the lures of gangs, drugs, and money. But he used his time in prison wisely. He continued his education and took an interest in public health, specifically the effects of drugs, violence, mass incarceration, and solitary confinement on mental health. Now outside of the prison walls, Gamarra has overcome his early-life troubles with an encouraging, pay-it-forward attitude and has earned a master’s degree in public health at Columbia University in the Ivy League. "The former Latin King gangbanger, after seven years behind bars for assault and weapon convictions, [graduated May 17, 2017] from Columbia University’s renowned Mailman School of Public Health," according to a great profile of ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 2/28: Let’s Talk Eating Disorders!


latina hispanic woman mental health eating disorders

Did you know this week is National Eating Disorders Awareness week? An increasing amount of Latino and other minority populations deal with "disordered eating"—restrained, compulsive or binge eating and an associated loss of control—in different ways depending on their culture. Let’s use #SaludTues on Feb. 28, 2017, to tweet about #EatingDisorders, their impact on Latinos, and info, resources, and tips how to promote healthy eating patterns for all! WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Let’s Talk #EatingDisorders” DATE/TIME: 1-2 p.m. ET (Noon-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, Feb. 28, 2017 WHERE: On Twitter with hashtag #SaludTues HOST: @SaludAmerica CO-HOSTS: @EDCoalition We’ll open the floor to your stories and experiences as we explore: What are some signs of ...

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Brenda Frutos: Fighting for Latino Health Equity


Brenda Frutos

Growing up as “the minority kid” in school isn’t easy, but it helped Brenda Frutos develop a passion for fighting for health equity among Latinos. Frutos not only earned her master’s degree in public health from West Chester University of Pennsylvania, she also is working as a certified health education specialist. She provides research and technical support in the Department of Family Medicine at Lehigh Valley Health Network in Pennsylvania, and also has experience helping with interventions in breastfeeding among underserved women. Motivated by the hard work of her significant other who overcame challenges to reach medical school, Frutos wants to continue pursuing more education. Frutos applied for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training program, which ...

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Get Bilingual Texts to Help You Quit Smoking


quitxt selfie group shot smoking tobacco

Smoking is a tough opponent to beat. Quitxt is a free texting service in English or Spanish that turns your mobile phone into a personal coach to help you quit smoking, using interactive and entertaining texts, online support, and music and videos from UT Health San Antonio researchers. The service’s bilingual texts help with motivation to quit, setting a quit date, finding things to do instead of smoking, handling stress, and more. Join in English: Text “iquit” to 57682. Join in Spanish: Text “lodejo” to 57682. “Text-message applications have scientifically proven to roughly double one’s odds of quitting smoking, so we developed Quitxt specifically for young adult Latinos to help them quit for good,” said Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, study leader and director of ...

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Jose De Jesus: Applying What Works to Solve Health Problems


Jose De Jesus

Jose De Jesus’ grandmother had to cook Puerto Rican “mofongo” (Puerto Rican dish) on a large enough scale to nourish him and his six siblings. In the same way, a successful health intervention or program needs to be applied in order for people to receive the health benefits. That’s why De Jesus wants to tackle health disparities by applying and implementing proven programs to bring things like cancer prevention and physical activity to kids and families. He’s already helped many people in need as a health educator by working on several social issues, such as homelessness, criminal justice, mental health, and job development. The elimination of cancer health disparities is his newest passion. That’s why De Jesus applied for the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research ...

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