Latino Health Summit Highlights

The Latino Health Summit: Latino Cultures and Beliefs in Health Care was held on Nov. 16-17, 2006, at the Greater Richmond Convention Center, Richmond, Va. This event was sponsored by the VCU Center on Health Disparities and the School of World Studies.

‘Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Health Care: Understanding Laws and Polices that Impact Health Care Providers’

Discussion panelists: Paul Cushing, B.A., Guadalupe Pacheco Jr., M.S.W., and Amy Wilson-Stronks, MPP, CPHQ

This discussion introduced participants to the federal and national initiatives about the delivery of culturally and linguistically appropriate health care services offered through the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office for Civil Rights and Office of Minority Health, and the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations. The discussion covered the history, background and research behind existing requirements and standards, as well as changes coming in the near future.

‘Unequal Treatment: Implications for Health’

Keynote speaker: Joseph Betancourt, M.D., M.P.H.

The Institute of Medicine’s report “Unequal Treatment” explores how persons of color experience the health care environment. The report gives evidence for significant predictors that affect the quality of health care received based on race and ethnicity, even after socioeconomic differences are taken into account. In his lecture, Betancourt highlights key issues involving racial and ethnic disparities in health care and describes how Latinos are disproportionately affected by these issues.