WILKES-BARRE, LUZERNE CO. (WOLF) — The sixth annual Latino Health Summit brought healthcare, social service, and public health leaders together in Wilkes-Barre to address health disparities and advance health equity across Pennsylvania.
The summit also provided an opportunity to hear directly from the community and find solutions to the challenges facing Latino and underserved populations.
Latino Connection CEO George Fernandez explained the importance of bringing these voices together.
“We are based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. And we travel across the state with our statewide Latino Health Summit. This year we chose to bring it to Wilkes-Barre. The growing Hispanic American community is very large here in the area, and we’re just thrilled to bring workshops, learning sessions, activities, free produce, free vegetables. Over 30 plus vendors are here today with over 15 top corporate sponsors and over 500 community members,” said Fernandez.
“We bring together public and private organizations to discuss ways to improve the health outcomes of Latino Americans in Pennsylvania. As you can tell, it’s a very lively event. Today we are hosting state leaders, Pennsylvania Secretary of Department of Health, Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Department of Aging,” said Fernandez.
Chief Administrative Officer with Jefferson Health Plans, Catherine Bird, said healthcare should be accessible to everyone, and the event helps connect the community with important resources and information.
“It’s our opportunity to connect with our Latino community to see what are the needs that are happening across the suite of health care. We know that health care doesn’t just happen in hospitals and provider offices. We want to make sure that we’re hearing from the community what their needs are. I was honored to serve on a panel with my colleagues about advancing care and seamless access across the spectrum, keeping people covered, making sure that they have access to those resources, and bringing those resources to where people live, work, and play,” said Bird.
Pennsylvania Healthcare Director Galen Burleigh with Genentech said the company is proud to support the summit’s mission while working to improve access to affordable care for underserved communities.
“We’re very committed to advancing inclusive research in our clinical trials. We also want to improve access and affordability for all patients who need our treatments. And ultimately engage with communities like this one here so that anyone, anywhere in the United States gets the access to care that they need,” said Burleigh.
The Latino Health Summit was hosted by Latino Connection and presented by Jefferson Health Plans.
