UC Merced health experts will join other Central Valley medical leaders on Friday, Nov. 22, for the Rural Poverty and Health Equity Summit in Delano.
Professor Nancy Burke, chair of the Department of Public Health at UC Merced, is a featured speaker and will be part of the event’s opening panel discussion on building strong partnerships.
Public health Professor Sandie Ha will join a panel discussing the impact of air quality on health; health psychology Professor Anna Song, director of UC Merced’s Nicotine and Cannabis Policy Center, will join a discussion on substance use; and Dr. Thelma Hurd, UC Merced’s new director of medical education, will be on a panel looking at the impact and implications of rural health.
“Inspired by the recent National Academies of Science report ‘A Roadmap to Reducing Child Poverty,’ the summit promises to generate exciting ideas and strategies from UC Merced, UCSF-Fresno, CSU Bakersfield, CSU Fresno and Bakersfield College faculty who have been working on the front lines where poverty and adverse health outcomes intersect,” Burke said. “UC Merced’s strong showing is a testament to the university’s commitment to address health disparities in the region.”
The summit is hosted by Bakersfield College on behalf of the Rural Health Equity and Learning Collaborative, which works to improve health, education and economic outcomes in rural communities throughout the San Joaquin Valley.
Register for the summit online. The cost is $40.
