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September 2015
Celebrate Hispanic
Heritage Month, September 15 - October 15!
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OMH Director Dr. J. Nadine Gracia discussed the impact of the Heckler Report – the first comprehensive
study of racial and ethnic minority health by
the federal government – and the importance of culturally and linguistically
appropriate services during Louisville, Kentucky-based WFPL News’ recent series on health disparities. The series illustrates the
burden of health disparities on African Americans in Kentucky and on the nation
as a whole – from dollars spent on treating preventable diseases and lack of
diversity among health professionals to the everyday burdens of people living
with chronic conditions and without access to quality health care.
See
the full series on WFPL’s website.
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During Hispanic Heritage Month, we celebrate the many ways in which
Hispanic/Latino history and culture have shaped our nation’s path. This
year’s theme is “Honoring Our Legacy. Building Our Future.” Join us in celebrating Hispanic
Heritage Month and visit the Office of Minority Health website for more information on how you can get
involved.
Last week, U.S. Surgeon General Dr. Vivek H. Murthy launched Step it Up!, a Call to Action to Promote Walking and Walkable Communities, urging community planners, local leaders and ordinary Americans to help create more safe areas for walking and wheelchair rolling. Only half of U.S. adults get the recommended amount of physical activity to help reduce the risk of preventable, chronic disease like diabetes and heart disease. For many racial and ethnic minority populations, the rates are even lower, coupled with higher obesity rates.
Read
more on the Blog for Health Equity.
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A new Vital Signs
Report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) highlights a
worrying trend about heart health in America. One in two men and two in five
women have a heart age that is five or more years older than their actual age.
For African Americans, the average is 11 years older. View the CDC report
and learn what you can do to can help your patients, family, friends and
communities lower their heart age, and lower their risk for heart attack
and stroke.
September is Infant Mortality Awareness Month and the HHS
Office of Minority Health is encouraging everyone to get involved to reduce the
infant mortality rate, particularly in minority communities.
Follow us on Twitter and Facebook and join our mailing list to receive updates
on tools and resources for providers, advocates, consumers and others to
promote healthy babies and families.
Share these safe sleep resources in
Spanish from the Eunice
Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child
Health and Human Development, including a guide for grandparents, infographic for fathers and Safe Sleep for Your Baby video.
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Discover Baby Buggy Walk in the Park, a multi-city infant mortality awareness event and family health fair. See events happening across the country during September and find out more about hosting an event in your city.
Encourage your fellow students to become health ambassadors on campus and raise awareness about the link between healthy behaviors early in life and healthier babies in the future. Learn more about the Preconception Peer Educators program.
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Developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
(CDC) together with the American Society of
Hematology and the Sickle Cell Disease
Association of America, the Sickle Cell Trait (SCT) Toolkit is an online collection of user-friendly
health education materials related to sickle cell trait and related conditions.
Resources in the toolkit are geared towards the general public as well as health
care providers looking for patient education resources. New materials have been
added to the toolkit, including:
View the
Sickle Cell Trait Toolkit for more information.
Did you know
that almost 50 percent of African American men have a risk factor – such as
high blood pressure – that can lead to heart attack or stroke? Simple changes,
such as taking medication as prescribed, healthy eating, getting regular
exercise and quitting smoking – can make a big difference in improving health. Visit the
Million Hearts website to learn more about “Healthy is Strong” and what
you can do to help Million Hearts prevent one million heart attacks and strokes.
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Sickle Cell Awareness Month: See
the latest publications on sickle
cell disease added
to the Knowledge Center online catalog.
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