GOOD HEALTH: AN ISSUE OF SOCIAL AND ECONOMIC JUSTICE
How healthy are residents of St. Joseph County?
WHEN: TUESDAY, APRIL 19, 2016, 7 PM
WHERE: LASALLE BRANCH LIBRARY (3232 W Ardmore Trail, SB)
SPONSOR: COMMUNITY FORUM FOR ECONOMIC JUSTICE
.
Meet our new County Health Officer. Dr. Luis Galup, a trained pathologist and former director, president and CEO of the South Bend Medical Foundation, was appointed full-time health officer for St. Joseph County in 2015. He will describe current priorities for the St. Joseph County Health Department. Although these priorities haven’t changed under his leadership, increasing budget constraints are affecting the operations of the health department.
Hear Dr. John Hagen analyze the 2016 findings of the County Health Rankings for St. Joseph County. An annual report produced since 2010 by the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the “Rankings” is considered a “population health checkup” for the nation’s over 3,000 counties, and summarizes the overall health outcomes of each county as well as the factors that contribute to its health. John is a health and human services consultant and a member of the Community Forum for Economic Justice.
For a PDF of John's presentation, see the Resources section, above.
Akila Karanja, MSN, RN, FNP-BC is a Board Certified Family Nurse Practitioner currently in primary practice at IHC Bendix Community Health Center, a Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC). As an FQHC primary care provider, Akila is strategically placed as a liaison between the underserved community and accessible, equitable medical care and treatment. She will describe the needs of the community as described by her patients.
Why is good health an issue of social and economic justice?
Health is influenced by where and how we live. Good health requires safe neighborhoods, with affordable housing, access to healthy food and quality education. It requires a just income, sufficient to provide these necessary components of good health as well as access to medical care that prevents health problems and provides equitable treatment when problems do occur.
Poor health disproportionately burdens people who live in places that limit opportunities to live long and well. Gaps in health care could be narrowed, if not eliminated, if we take steps to create more equitable opportunities.
Please join us in discussing this important topic.
