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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

Kendra Cruz: Listening to Hear Community Health Needs


Kendra Cruz

Listening to community needs is critical to solving health disparities. Kendra Cruz embodies this goal, as she has displayed a willingness to listen intently and a passion for addressing any identified health concerns in the community. Cruz is already working on studies on smoking cessation and HPV, and she’s interested in working with rural Latinos to learn their needs and identify ways to best provide resources. Her desire to listen and respond to people’s health needs is just as beautiful, if not more so, than the amazing traditional dresses she keeps from her native Oaxaca, Mexico. Cruz came to the states at age 8 without speaking any English, but was fortunate to learn the language in a school year. At 14, she returned to Mexico to be closer to her family, but at 17 ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 3/7: How to Get Diverse Partners to Buy into Physical Activity


Isometric Cityscape healthy with trees buildings

What does "active living" really mean? It means infusing physical activity into your daily life. We shouldn't have to depart from our normal routines to get the mental and physical benefits of moving more and sitting less, which are proven to improve your health and reduce your disease risk. But not all neighborhoods have safe sidewalks or parks, and not all schools and employers provide time or space to be active. This causes certain disparities in adverse health outcomes for certain populations. Let’s use #SaludTues on Tuesday, March 7, 2017, to tweet on how diverse partners can unite to make daily physical activity a reality where Latinos and all people live, learn, work, and play: WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “How to get Diverse Partners to Buy Into Physical ...

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Wanted: More Latino Heart Doctors


doctor with patient clinical trials outreach manual

The number of Latino doctors has declined 22% over the past few decades, even as the Latino population has skyrocketed. But Latino heart doctors are even more rare. Only 3.2% of U.S.-trained and practicing cardiologists are Latino, compared to 41.9% white, 14.2% Asian, 2.4% African American, and about 38% unknown or other, according to a report by American Heart News. Among Latinos, most doctors internists or general practitioners. Fewer Latinos go into cardiology than surgery, psychiatry or emergency medicine. "Experts say they wish more medical students in general chose to specialize in cardiology," according to the American Heart News article. "But getting more racially and ethnically diverse cardiologists to treat patients in their respective communities is especially ...

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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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