Latinx Health: Local Lifelines and Liveability

1:45pm-3:15pm EST

Primary Presenter: Paula K. Davis

Session Type: Panel Discussion

Topic: Healthcare systems and services

Recording

Description

According to the Hispanic American Market Report, 2019, the Latinx population in the U.S. stands at more than 64,000,000 individuals. It is estimated that 11,200 of these individuals live in the Pittsburgh metropolitan area. The panel discussion, proposed by the OHSDEI will identify what health care services are currently available to the Latinx community, how to obtain these services, and how to identify and create newly needed health care services for this select population.

The audience will walk away from this program knowing how to:

Identify existing health care services and how to obtain them.
Advocate for the health care needs of the Latinx community.

Facilitators

Paula K. Davis, MA
Associate Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Health Sciences
pkd100@pitt.edu

As associate vice chancellor for diversity, equity, and inclusion, health sciences, at the University of Pittsburgh, Paula K. Davis, MA, coordinates the recruitment and retention of diverse faculty, students, and staff in the health sciences schools. She provides education on cultural competence, creating an inclusive environment and eliminating structural and implicit bias.

As the founding assistant vice chancellor, Ms. Davis has led the Office of Health Sciences Diversity in promoting a diverse and inclusive environment throughout the Schools of the Health Sciences. At the School of Medicine, she has served as assistant dean for admissions and financial aid, for student affairs, and director of diversity programs. Ms. Davis has worked in a variety of student-support fields, including academic advising, admissions, alumni relations, and financial aid, and has worked with pre-college, undergraduate, graduate, and medical students.

Adriana Modesto Vieira, DDS DMD MS PhD
Professor of Pediatric Dentistry Assistant Dean for Diversity, Inclusion and Social Justice University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine ams208@pitt.edu

Dr. Modesto Vieira received her DDS in 1988 from the Federal University of Bahia with a specialization in Improving Social Pediatric Dentistry from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro in 1989. She recently stepped away from her position as chair of the Pediatric Medicine program at the University of Pittsburgh School of Dental Medicine to accept the position of Assistant Dean for Diversity, Inclusion, and Social Justice at the School, where she continues to teach and perform research. In this newly created position, Dr. Modesto-Vieira works closely with University of Pittsburgh senior leaders and the School of Dental Medicine to improve support of a more inclusive and diverse faculty, staff workforce, and student body. Additionally, Dr. Modesto-Vieira works to link the School of Dental Medicine programing and efforts to those of the Office of Health Sciences Diversity and the University’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion.

Panelists

Monica Ruiz-Caraballo, MSW

Executive Director, Casa San José

Monica holds a master’s degree in Social Work with a focus on Community Organizing and Social Action. Monica has been working with Casa since 2014 when she started as an intern, then moved to service coordinator and then community organizer. Prior to that, she worked for Catholic Charities as a case manager. Born in Cleveland Ohio, Monica has Latino roots from Guatemala and Puerto Rico, where her mom and her dad are originally from. Monica is a powerful advocate for Latinos on legal, housing, development, and educational issues. She fights for those facing deportation proceedings and launches projects to assist women, children and youth. She partners with political, labor, religious, and law enforcement leadership to make Pittsburgh stronger and more welcoming to all. Monica recently received the 2021 Women and Business Award from Pittsburgh Magazine as well as the 2021 Dr. Cyril Wecht Western PA Humanitarian Award.

Patricia Documét, MD, DrPH

Chairperson, Executive Board, Casa San José, Associate Professor and Director of the Doctoral Program, Behavioral and Community Health Sciences Director of Latinx Research and Outreach, Center for Health Equity, Associate Professor, Center for Latin American Studies

Dr. Documét is Associate Professor of Behavioral and Community Health Sciences at the University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health and serves as Director of Latinx Research and Outreach at the Center for Health Equity. Originally trained as a pediatrician, she has 23 years of experience working with Latinx populations, including evaluation, mixed methods,and participatory studies with promotores. Most of her current work involves peer support or community health workers (CHW). For eleven years she has been associated with the Latino Engagement Group for Salud (LEGS), a coalition comprised of community members and organizations working with Latinx, focused on community-based participatory initiatives. Together, they have completed an assessment of the health of Latino immigrant men and have implemented a male promotores (CHW) network in Pittsburgh. Dr. Documét is extensively involved with the local Latinx community, serving currently as Board President for Casa San Jose, a welcome center for Latinx.

Diego Chaves-Gnecco, MD, MPH, FAAP

Diego Chaves-Gnecco MD, MPH is a Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrician, Associate Professor at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, Director and Founder of the program Salud Para Niños, the first pediatric bilingual clinic in southwestern Pennsylvania as well as a Latino Medical Student Association Faculty Advisor and Mentor. Dr. Chaves-Gnecco is a member of the Physician Inclusion Council at UPMC/PITT(PICUP), School of Medicine Diversity Committee, Department. of Pediatrics Diversity Committee - Pediatric Residency Diversity Committee.

Dr. Chaves-Gnecco's clinical and academic interest include the diagnosis and treatment of children with Autism and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, providing care to families and children with disabilities, providing care to children from minority and underserved populations and addressing barriers to health care access. Dr. Chaves-Gnecco has been honored with several recognitions for his work and to his services to the community.