TULSA, OK – [September 22, 2016]– The Tulsa Health Department in partnership with the YWCA Tulsa, the Oklahoma Public Health Association and the Oklahoma Health Equity Campaign will host a special presentation on racism and its impact on health outcomes at 1:30 p.m. on Monday, September 26, at the Tulsa Heath Department’s North Regional Health and Wellness Center, 5635 N. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.
The event will feature special guest Dr. Camara Jones, president of the American Public Health Association, the nation’s leading public health organization. The presentation is free to attend and open to health professionals and community members. Attendees must call 918-595-4462 to pre-register. Videoconferencing will be available in Oklahoma City at the City-County Health Department at 2700 NE 63rd St.
During the presentation, Dr. Jones will discuss the three dimensions of health intervention: providing health services, addressing the social determinants of health (including poverty and neighborhood conditions), and addressing the social determinants of equity (including racism and other systems of structured inequity). Dr. Jones will also discuss racism as a social determinant of equity and a root cause of “racial”/ethnic differences in health outcomes.
“We are pleased to welcome Dr. Jones to Tulsa for this important and timely discussion,” said Reggie Ivey, Tulsa Health Department chief operating officer. “Recently, our agency held a summit in north Tulsa for a candid discussion about all of the local factors that impact health. This well-attended event validated that our community is eager for open dialogue about health equity.”
Social determinants of health are conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship, and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks. The health of an individual is determined in part by access to social and economic opportunities; resources and supports available in their home, neighborhood, and community; the quality of schooling; the safety of their workplace; the cleanliness of their water, food, and air; and the nature of their social interactions and relationships.
Camara Jones, MD, MPH, PhD is a Senior Fellow at the Satcher Health Leadership Institute and the Cardiovascular Research Institute, Morehouse School of Medicine, in Atlanta. Dr. Jones was an Assistant Professor at the Harvard School of Public Health from 1994 to 2000, and a Medical Officer at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention from 2000 to 2014. Dr. Jones is a family physician and epidemiologist whose work focuses on the impacts of racism on the health and well-being of the nation.
Dr. Jones will also be presenting at the 77th Annual Oklahoma Public Health Association Conference on September 27, 2016.
About Tulsa Health Department
Since its establishment in 1950, the Tulsa Health Department serves as the primary public health agency to more than 600,000 Tulsa County residents, including 13 municipalities and four unincorporated areas. THD’s mission is to sustain an equitable system that prevents disease, promotes healthy living, and ensures preparedness. The agency is dedicated to empowering citizens to make healthy choices that carry forward for future generations. THD was among the first health departments in the U.S. to receive national accreditation through the Public Health Accreditation Board. For more information, please visit www.tulsa-health.org.
