Living with a cognitive disease is difficult because of how it impacts you and those around you. It can create a stigma, which prevents people from seeking help. This stigma can be worse for Latinos, who face cultural barriers and are often affected by these disorders at a high rate. That’s why physicians like Dr. Gus Alva are trying to help Latinos heal from diseases like Parkinson’s. He teamed up with Acadia Pharmaceuticals and StoryCorps nonprofit for the “Yours, Truly” campaign, a bilingual effort to use multicultural storytelling to bring awareness to the non-motor symptoms of Parkinson’s disease. “This campaign is quite important because it really lends to the public an opportunity of being able through storytelling to convey some very important information ...
COVID-19 continues to burden communities of color, particularly low-income and Latino immigrant populations. Often, these communities have fewer resources and need support and health education to fight COVID-19. That’s why groups like the COVID Community Corps (CCC) were started. “It’s about getting into those really hard-to-reach populations and communities and bringing the information in a very linguistic and culturally competent manner,” said Nayeli Salazar de Noguera, the program outreach manager for the CCC. Through canvassing and educational initiatives, the CCC aims to reach underserved communities and increase public confidence in and uptake of COVID-19 vaccines. Learn how they are building vaccine confidence in low-vaccinated parts of New Jersey!
Launching ...
When it comes to triple negative breast cancer, Ricki Fairley is a veteran on the battlefield. “I am a 10-year survivor of triple negative breast cancer. My doctor gave me two years to live, and I'm on 10,” Fairley said. Fairley is the CEO and co-founder of TOUCH—the Black Breast Cancer Alliance. She is determined to diversify clinical trials, which can help find better therapies for Black, Latino, and other people of color. “I'm really on a path, a mission to eradicate Black breast cancer and really change the game on how we talk to Black women about clinical trials. And right now, we only have 3% participation in clinical trials. So, the drugs that are currently on the market and the ...
As a teenager, Hilda Ramirez saw how the educational system did not support Latino students, limiting their chances for academic success and future mental and physical health. These inequities in education led Ramirez to a career in advocacy for Latinos. Today, as the executive director of the Latino Education Institute and a representative of the Latino Empowerment and Organizing Network (LEON), she advocates for the well-being of Latino youth in Worcester, Massachusetts (21.9% Latino). She recently helped create a seven-member commission in Worcester city government organizational to examine the impact of local policy on Latinos. This work is critical in promoting and encouraging legislation that will benefit the Latino community and address health inequities in education ...
If one were to walk in the streets of Boston and see a colorful mural, there’s a big chance Silvia López Chavez created that masterpiece. López Chavez is a Dominican-American visual artist changing the meaning of advocacy. Throughout her career she has created many murals with bold and vivid colors capturing Latino traditions and culture while emphasizing the intersection of art design and community issues like the environment and healthy food. “I think that as an artist, I feel the responsibility of being someone who is not only creating art, to change and transform spaces, but also people,” López Chavez said. “And I think that my goal is to be able to connect as much as possible using art as a vehicle for connection with others to myself, to others and also ...
Dr. Benjamín Aceves wasn’t sure if he wanted to pursue a PhD. He was hesitant about the commitment. He didn’t have a background in academia that many pursuing PhD programs do. But after attending the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training at UT Health San Antonio, Aceves grew his network of scholars and learned about resources that could help him succeed in a PhD program. “My experience at Éxito! was mind-opening for sure,” Aceves said. He went on to earn his PhD and now is a postdoctoral scholar at the University of California in San Francisco, where he researches the intersection of Latino health, chronic disease prevention, and the social determinants of health.
Learning About Éxito!
Aceves learned about Éxito! from his peers, who encouraged him to ...
Dr. Mirella Díaz-Santos has a personal fight to end Alzheimer’s Disease. Her grandmother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s when Díaz-Santos was in school. “I needed to know more about how this ‘disease’ can change someone who you love so much. How can it change it completely?” Díaz-Santos said. Díaz-Santos is an assistant professor in residence at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) in the department of neurology and psychiatry. She’s also the director of research of the Hispanic Neuropsychiatric Center of Excellence at the Semel Institute for Neuroscience and Human Behavior and is involved with the Women’s Alzheimer’s Movement to bring awareness to Alzheimer’s within the Latino community. Although she’s experienced bias and discrimination ...
Maria Maldonado knows what it’s like to experience the tragedy of COVID-19. She lost five family members to the virus in the past year, including her mother. “It was just a tidal wave. And it was just very hard for us to go through something so tragic, back to back. It was a very difficult time,” Maldonado said. When the vaccine became available for adults, Maldonado couldn’t wait to get one. “I was not hesitant at all. Why? Because I trust science. They developed it fast, but they still took the protocols and the safety measures that they had to take,” Maldonado said. Once the vaccine was available for children ages 5 to 11, Maldonado got her 9-year-old son Jacob vaccinated. She hopes that other Latino parents will vaccinate their children and help protect ...
Like many Latino students, Donají Stelzig was unsure if she should pursue a PhD. She was intimated by the barriers and didn’t think she was capable of doing it, especially since she already had a full-time job and family. But after attending the Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training at UT Health San Antonio, the researchers and scholars she met encouraged her to apply and followed up with her even when she was doubtful. Now, Stelzig has a doctoral degree and is a visiting assistant professor and lecturer at the University of Houston, where she also directs the Community Health Worker Training Center at the Honors College. She’s grateful for the Éxito! experience and how it helped her build a network to succeed throughout her career.
Learning About ...
