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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

Webinar Series: Let’s Address Health Equity Together


Webinar Series Let’s Address Health Equity Together

Health equity is where everyone has a fair, just opportunity to be healthier. How can we reach this ideal, especially as Latinos face cancer and chronic disease health disparities rooted in systemic inequities in access to clinical trials, income, health care, food, housing, and discrimination? You're invited to a webinar series, "Let’s Address Health Equity Together," a collaboration of the Salud America! program at the Institute for Health Promotion Research at UT Health San Antonio, the Mays Cancer Center at UT Health San Antonio, and Genentech. Here are the three webinars from 2024: 4/25/24: How to Identify and Equitably Respond to Local Cancer Needs 7/15/24: How to Support Latino Cancer Survivors 9/10/24: How to Fight Back Against El Asesino Silencioso Here ...

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#SaludTues Tweetchat 2/7/23─Three Years Later: How COVID-19 Is Impacting Latinos


Latino family covid is impacting latinos

COVID-19 is not over. For the past three years, the virus has disrupted life and health. Data continue to show that the pandemic worsened historical health and social inequities, especially for Latinos. How can we address this? Let’s use #SaludTues on Feb. 7, 2023, to explore health inequities facing the Latino population over the past three years (and long before that), and share solutions and strategies to promote health equity in the face of COVID-19! WHERE: Twitter WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat “3 Years Later: How COVID-19 Is Impacting Latinos” WHEN: 1-2 p.m. ET (12-1 p.m. CT), Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023 HOST: Salud America! at UT Health San Antonio (@SaludAmerica) CO-HOSTS: Latinx Voces LLC (@latinxvocesllc); LatinaStrong Foundation (@LatinaStrongDr); Public ...

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Nearly Half of US States Are Failing Mothers and Babies


maternal health

It’s no secret that maternal and infant health in the US needs massive improvement. As 2022 comes to a close, this year’s March of Dimes Report Card for maternal and infant health is yet another indication of what our nation’s New Year’s resolution should be: improving health outcomes for mothers and babies. On an A – F grading scale, with A being the best score, and F being the lowest, the report card revealed that 24 states are failing in maternal and infant health with a grade of a “D+” or lower. Let’s unpack the report card and what these findings mean for Latinas and all women and babies. What’s Included in the Report Card? The report card uses the latest key indicators to describe and improve maternal and infant health in each state. These key ...

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Building Collaboration for Action on Latino Cancer


Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos Building Collaboration for Action

U.S. Latinos face heavier burdens of stomach, liver, and cervical cancers, and worse outcomes for many cancers, than their White peers. But why? Unfortunately, many factors cause these disparities, from poverty and a lack of healthcare access to cultural barriers, acculturation, and genetic heritage. That's why it takes everyone working together to address Latino cancer. To this end, UT Health San Antonio has published a new open-access book, Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos: Building Collaboration for Action. The book is a collection of articles based on presentations at the 2nd biennial Advancing the Science of Cancer in Latinos conference on Feb. 26-28, 2020, in San Antonio, co-hosted by Mays Cancer Center and the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) ...

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11 Holiday Actions for Health Equity



Volunteering for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s helps other people. It gives the volunteer a nice emotional boost, too. So why not volunteer your "voice" or "actions"? We at Salud America! invite you to take or start these 11 actions to promote health equity for Latino and all families this holiday season! 1. Start a School Food Pantry! About 1 in 6 children are food insecure. They don’t know where their next meal is coming from. Your school can help these kids! Try the Salud America! “School Food Pantry Action Pack.” This is a free guide to help school personnel talk to decision-makers, work through logistics, and start a School Food Pantry to help hungry students and reduce local food insecurity. A School Food Pantry accepts, stores, and redistributes ...

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Get Help Quitting Smoking for the Great American Smokeout on Nov. 17!


quitxt-phone-smokeout-quit-smoking

You don’t have to stop smoking in one day. Start with Day 1. On Thursday, Nov. 17, 2022, you can join thousands of people who will begin their smoke-free journey with the Great American Smokeout. This annual event from the American Cancer Society encourages smokers to make a plan to stop smoking. Need help? 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. “For the Great American Smokeout, 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, ...

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‘Siento Que Me Ayudó, Porque Estoy Aquí’: Por qué Diana López Decidió Participar en un Estudio Clínico


Diana Lopez

Cuando se le preguntó sobre los logros en su vida, Diana López de San Antonio, Texas, no tuvo que pensar mucho en su respuesta. Sobrevivir al cáncer. López fue diagnosticada con cáncer de seno a los 42 años. Al igual que muchos de las personas que son diagnosticadas, fue un shock para López y sus seres queridos. "En ese momento tenía miedo porque piensas, te dicen: 'Tienes cáncer' y dices: 'Voy a morir'", dijo López. Con la ayuda de un estudio clínico – un estudio con pacientes que voluntariamente participan y que ayuda a los investigadores a aprender cómo reducir el progreso, controlar y tratar enfermedades como el cáncer – López se mantuvo fuerte y continuó luchando, sin importar el obstáculo. Un Diagnóstico de Cáncer y su Impacto López descubrió un ...

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Oprah Chooses Dr. Amelie Ramirez as a ‘Cycle Breaker’ for Latino Health



TV personality Oprah Winfrey has selected Dr. Amelie Ramirez of UT Health San Antonio as a "Cycle Breaker" for her groundbreaking work to build health equity in the Latino community. Cycle Breakers is a video series from the Smithsonian Channel that spotlights leaders who are solving health disparities in marginalized communities. Each Cycle Breaker is chosen by Oprah to augment her documentary, The Color of Care, which chronicles how people of color suffer from systemically substandard US healthcare and how COVID-19 exposed the tragic consequences of this inequity. Ramirez's episode, released Oct. 3, 2022, features her life's work to break the cycles of inequities that worsen health for Latinos. "Cycles are tough to break. Amelie Ramirez is the driving force behind an ...

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‘La Última Lanzada de Dados’: Cómo un Estudio Clínico de Cáncer Salvó a Timothy Leech


Timothy Leech with wife Katie

Timothy Leech acababa de celebrar su cumpleaños número 40, cuando recibió una noticia que cambió su vida. Timothy fue diagnosticado con carcinoma de células escamosas en etapa 4, una forma de cáncer de piel, en 2014. Los médicos le dijeron que le quedaba poco tiempo de vida. “Claro que me asusté, Pensé que me iba a ir muy rápido", dijo Timothy. Pero hoy, ocho años después, Timothy es un sobreviviente de cáncer. Él le da crédito a su esposa, Katie Leech, a su equipo médico y a un estudio clínico por llevarlo a donde está hoy, no completamente libre de cáncer, pero "tan pequeño que no se puede medir". Un estudio clínico es un estudio de investigación que ayuda a los investigadores a aprender más para ayudar a reducir el progreso, controlar y tratar ...

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