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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

Dr. Amelie Ramirez Helps Revolutionize Cancer Care for South Texans


Amelie Ramirez of UT Health San Antonio health equity Systemic and Behavioral Change

Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, leader of Salud America!, joined a KSAT News town hall on Oct. 8, 2024, to share insights on a growing effort to address cancer in majority-Latino South Texas. The event, “Revolutionizing Cancer Care for South Texans: A New Era of Treatment,” was hosted by KSAT anchor Stephania Jimenez. It featured Ramirez, Dr. Mark Bonnen, chief medical officer at the Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio, and Jeff Flowers, chief executive officer at the UT Health San Antonio Multispecialty & Research Hospital. Ramirez shared about the state of cancer and the need to address the non-medical drivers of health in South Texas. She also urged cancer survivors to join the Avanzando Caminos study. The study aims to enroll 1,500 Latino cancer survivors in South ...

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Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez Featured in Webinar: Addressing Cancer Through Research, Outreach, and Training


Amelie Ramirez - UT Health San Antonio 1

Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, leader of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, shared insight on cancer on a webinar from the National Cancer Institute. The webinar was set for Oct. 2, 2024. Ramirez's presentation focused on reducing US cancer for all people, including Latinos, through research, outreach, and training. Dr. Ramirez & Her Health Promotion Research Ramirez is an internationally recognized health researcher at UT Health San Antonio. Here, she is professor and chair of the Department of Population Health Sciences and director of the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio. She also is associate director of cancer outreach and engagement at the Mays Cancer Center. She directs the Salud America! national multimedia health program. The ...

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Dr. Amelie Ramirez Helps Lead New Project to Improve Heart Health in South Texas


Dr. Amelie Ramirez san antonio women's hall of fame

A team of researchers at UT Health San Antonio, including Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, is among four teams from across the United States that have been selected to launch community engagement centers on heart health thanks to a generous contribution from the American Heart Association and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. A total gift of $20 million from the American Heart Association and Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will support the four teams of scientists and community leaders to engage the community in research to improve health. Led by UT Health San Antonio’s Vasan Ramachandran, MD, FACC, FAHA, and Amelie G. Ramirez, DrPH, MPH, the COmmuNity eNgagEment for building Capacity, Trust, and Ownership of Research (CONNECTOR) is the name of the community engagement resource center and ...

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Webinar: How to Fight El Asesino Silencioso



High blood pressure is a silent killer (el asesino silencioso in Spanish) that can spur heart disease and stroke among Latinos. We addressed heart health at UT Health San Antonio’s webinar, “How to Fight El Asesino Silencioso,” at 11 a.m. Central on Tuesday, Sept. 10, 2024, in advance of Hispanic Heritage Month. This webinar featured experts from UT Health San Antonio, the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), and Genentech to share resources and relevant tools that Latino families and healthcare workers can use to help prevent, treat, and manage high blood pressure, also called hypertension. This is a part of a webinar series, “Let’s Improve Health in South Texas and Beyond." The series is a collaboration of the Salud America! program at the Institute for ...

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Watch Our Award-Winning Bilingual Video on Clinical Trials!



Our collaborative bilingual video that focuses on Latino participation in clinical trials was a "Silver Winner" at both the 2024 W³ Awards and the 45th Annual Telly Awards! The video, created by Genentech with help from the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio, the team behind Salud America!, shows why Latino participation in clinical trials is important for the future of clinical research. Clinical trials are studies with volunteers that can help researchers learn how to slow, manage, and treat different cancer and disease. “The lack of Latinos in clinical trials makes it hard for researchers to develop new treatments for this group, which suffers a heavy burden of cancer,” said Dr. Amelie Ramirez, director of Salud America! and the Institute ...

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Farmers Markets Are Essential for Local Food Systems


Michelle Greigo at the dignowity hills farmers market

Does your town have a farmers market? Farmers markets are a path to healthy food access. They are especially important amid the push for nutrition security. Fortunately, the Farmers Market Coalition is stepping up to support farmers markets. They’re supporting markets and sharing how markets increase access to healthy, fresh produce and social connections, and engage farmers in the local economy. "As hubs for connection and community resilience, farmers markets have particularly risen to the occasion this year by providing a necessary sense of unity and stability during a time of great uncertainty," according to the coalition. "Farmers markets don’t just happen. The hard work of farmers market operators should be recognized." For National Farmers Market Week ...

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Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez: Empowering Latino Health on CDC Podcast


Amelie-Ramirez-of-UT-Health-San-Antonio Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez Susan G. Komen Scientific Advisory Board

Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, leader of Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio, shares insights on health on a new episode of the CDC's Listen Up! podcast series for health communicators, by health communicators. Her episode is "Not a Monolith: Empowering Latino Health." She also shares the importance of Salud America! Salud Heroes, how to take action to improve the non-medical drivers of health, and how to build trust and wellbeing within communities. Listen to Ramirez's episode. See the full Listen Up! podcast series, hosted by Dr. Betsy Mitchell in CDC’s Office of Communications. "It's family, faith, and language that are key, important ... issues to keep in mind [when sharing health messages to empower people]," Ramirez said on her episode. Dr. Ramirez & Her Health ...

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Get Help Quitting Smoking for World No Tobacco Day on May 31!


quitxt quit smoking service new grant

On May 31, you can join thousands of people who will begin their smoke-free journey on World No Tobacco Day! This annual event from the World Health Organization to "draw global attention to the tobacco epidemic and the preventable death and disease it causes." Need help quitting smoking? Enroll in Quitxt, a free English or Spanish text-message service that turns your phone into a personal “quit smoking” coach from UT Health San Antonio. To join Quitxt, text “iquit” (for English) or “lodejo” (for Spanish) to 844-332-2058. “On World No Tobacco Day, we’re excited to share Quitxt to provide real-time help with motivation to quit, setting a quit date, handling stress, and much more, all on your phone,” said Dr. Amelie G. Ramirez, director of the Salud America! ...

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Watch Webinar: How to Support Latino Cancer Survivors



Latinos with cancer face a challenging survivorship journey. Explore these cancer survivorship challenges at UT Health San Antonio’s webinar, “How to Support Latino Cancer Survivors,” which occurred at 11 a.m. Central on Monday, July 15, 2024. The webinar featured experts from the Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio, Genentech, as well as cancer survivors and safety-net organizations, who will explore cancer among Latinos and how to help them on the road to recovery. Topics covered patient support, support groups, clinical trials, referrals to resources through screening for non-medical drivers of health, and more. This is a part of a webinar series, “Let’s Improve Health in South Texas and Beyond." The series is a collaboration of the Salud America! ...

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