With Cancer, Early Detection = Better Outcomes



65% of Americans 21 years of age and older say they are not up to date with one or more routine cancer screenings, according to a survey from the Prevent Cancer Foundation.   With this in mind, the Prevent Cancer Foundation has launched the Early Detection = Better Outcomes bilingual campaign to educate and encourage Americans to schedule routine cancer screening appointments.   “When people learn the benefits of early detection, they are much more likely to talk to their doctors and get screened to check their health,” said Jody Hoyos, CEO of the Prevent Cancer Foundation, in a press release. “Routine screenings should be part of your wellness routine, just like eating healthy, exercising and taking care of your mental health.”  Let us dive into what this campaign ...

Read More

SDoH Screening Is Tackling the Social Needs of Patients in US Community Health Centers


A bite of HOPE SDoH screening

Since the 1960s, community health centers (also called Federally Qualified Health Centers) have made it their mission to increase people’s access to primary healthcare by reducing barriers, such as cost, lack of insurance, distance, and language. But beyond clinic walls, many people have big social needs, like unstable housing, that hurt their health. That is why the National Association of Community Health Centers (NACHC) helped create a social determinants of health (SDoH) screening tool – PRAPARE® (Protocol for Responding to and Assessing Patient’s Assets, Risks and Experiences) – to enable community health centers to identify social needs among patients and refer them to local resources for aid. Today, PRAPARE® helps hundreds of community health centers, like the ...

Read More

#SaludTues 6/6/2023: Why and How to Nurture Civic Health


Why and How to Nurture Civic Health

Civic health is the ability to participate in one’s community and be involved in the decision-making process, from voting and advocacy to mentoring and volunteering. However, some places face more structural barriers to civic health, which threatens democracy. Structural barriers are policies and practices that create or maintain unfair and unjust outcomes and they also threaten health equity. Let’s use #SaludTues on June 6, 2023, to tweet about how policies, practices, and people can improve civic space and foster shared decision-making, so all people have the opportunity to meaningfully shape decisions that affect their communities. WHAT: #SaludTues Tweetchat: “Why and How to Nurture Civic Health” TIME/DATE: 1-2 p.m. ET Tuesday, June 6, 2023 WHERE: On ...

Read More

The American Heart Association Is Helping Businesses Address SDoH, Health Disparities


heart health

The conditions in which we are born, grow, live, work, and age – known as social determinants of health (SDoH) – can greatly help or harm our health. More health organizations and healthcare facilities are recognizing the impact SDoH has on overall health, especially in marginalized and medically underserved areas, such as in some Latino communities. The American Heart Association is one of these organizations. That is why they created the EmPOWERED to Serve Business Accelerator™, a program that supports local communities, small businesses, social entrepreneurs, and innovators in addressing health disparities through training, mentorship, and funding opportunities. Let’s explore the relationship between SDoH and heart health, and what the American Heart Association is ...

Read More

Keeping an Eye Out: 4 Ways to Promote Healthy Vision



For this year’s Healthy Vision Month, the National Eye Institute (NEI) is highlighting the theme of “Healthy Vision: A Family Focus” (“Visión saludable: ojos sanos para su familia”).  To ensure that everyone gets important eye health information, the NEI is sharing its helpful resources in Spanish – made through transcreation.   Transcreation is the process of taking a concept in one language and completely recreating it in another language, adjusting the literal translation to align with the cultural context of the intended audience.  “A successfully transcreated message (either written or visual) evokes the same emotions and carries the same implications in the target language as it does in the source language, but in a way that resonates with the target ...

Read More

Tell EPA: Limit PFAS ‘Forever Chemicals’ in Drinking Water


PFAS in drinking water

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is seeking public comments on its proposal to limit and regulate several types of “forever chemicals” called perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS). PFAS have been around since the 1940s and are known for their resistance to environmental degradation – hence their nickname, “forever chemicals.” EPA’s proposed changes are in response to recent research that PFAS harm human health, with negative impacts from fetal growth to cancer risk. We at Salud America! have created the following model comment you can use to support the regulation of PFAS in drinking water and the environment to protect the health of Latino and all communities. Comment before May 30, 2023! COMMENT NOW! Submit this Model Comment ...

Read More

Feeding Fort Worth with the FunkyTown Fridge



Kendra Richardson worried if her neighbors in Fort Worth, Texas, would have enough food as the COVID-19 pandemic worsened nutrition security, healthcare, and housing.   Richardson saw an opportunity to help – with a community fridge.  Richardson launched FunkyTown Fridge in September of 2020 with the purpose of feeding the community and giving neighborhood families access to healthy food, making it the first and only community fridge in Fort Worth at the time.   “We place refrigerators and pantries in food apartheid neighborhoods around Fort Worth, and then allow them to be accessible and open 24/7,” Richardson said. “So, it's free food, community-based on a give what you can, take what you need basis.”  Let’s explore how has Richardson’s FunkyTown Fridge ...

Read More

Webinar: How to Care for the Latino Caregiver


Caregiver webinar 6-27-23 tweet

Family is the heart of Latino culture. Many Latinos are expected to take on the respectable but high-stress role of caregiving for their aging parents, who are 1.5 times more likely than non-Latino Whites to develop Alzheimer’s disease. Join UT Health San Antonio's webinar — “How to Care for the Latino Caregiver” — at 11 a.m. CST on Tuesday, June 27, 2023, to explore how to support Latino caregivers as they support their families. Panelists from UT Health San Antonio, the National Alliance for Caregiving, and Genentech will share how to ease caregivers’ stress, anxiety, and depression, as part of Alzheimer's And Brain Awareness Month in June. This is a part of a webinar of a series, “Let’s Address Health Equity Together.” The series is a collaboration of ...

Read More

MS in Latinos: What Do We Know?


multiple sclerosis

Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is a chronic neurological disease that usually affects young adults of various races/ethnicities, including Latinos. However, compared to white people, there is less understanding of how the disease impacts the Latino community. Let’s explore more about MS, why less is known about MS in Latinos, and how Latinos can gain equal access to MS care. What Causes MS? Normally, our body’s immune system protects us from getting sick. But sometimes, our immune system can mistakenly attack parts of our own body. In MS, the immune system attacks myelin, a substance that coats nerve fibers, according to the National Institute of Neurologic Disorders and Stroke. Myelin can be found in our body’s central nervous system, which includes the brain, optic ...

Read More