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Two-day Presidential Symposium on Society and Health opens March 30

Two-day Presidential Symposium on Society and Health opens March 30

SYRACUSE, N.Y.-- Experts on issues ranging from the local heroin and opioid epidemic, to community violence and to refugee and women’s health will gather at Upstate Medical University March 30 and 31 for a Presidential Symposium on Society and Health.

The event, which is free and open to the public, will be held at the CNY Biotech Accelerator, 841 East Fayette St. Registration is available at the door, but seating is limited. To register in advance, call 315-464-7868 or email rsvp@upstate.edu. Free parking is available on site.

The symposium’s keynote presenter is Steven H. Woolf, MD, MPH, professor of family medicine and population health and director of the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center on Society and Health. He will deliver the keynote address, “Getting Serious About Population Health: The Importance of Cross-Sector Collaboration,” at 11 a.m. March 30.

Woolf has a career that is focused on promoting the most effective health care services; on advocating the importance of health promotion and disease prevention; and the need to address the social determinants of health. Woolf has published more than 170 articles. He has emphasized outreach to policymakers, the public, and the media to raise awareness about the factors outside of health care that shape health outcomes. Woolf was elected to the Institute of Medicine in 2001.

Joining Woolf in addressing the symposium is New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochul, who chairs the state’s Regional Economic Development Councils and serves as co-chair of the state’s Heroin and Opioid Abuse Task Force. Hochul will provide a “State Perspectives on Health and Society” at 9:30 a.m. March 30

“The Presidential Symposium on Society & Health highlights Upstate's engagement with the social factors that influence the health of communities, or what we call the "social determinants of health,” said symposium organizers Christopher P. Morley, PhD, interim chair of Upstate’s Department of Public and Preventive Health and Katherine Beissner, PT, PhD, interim dean of the College of Health Professions.  “It has become increasingly recognized that in order to care for people and populations across their lifespan, as well as to support systems of care that promote the preservation of health in addition to the treatment of maladies, we must move upstream from the clinic, and address problems at their source.”

Below is the symposium program.

Thursday, March 30

9 a.m., Welcome.
Robert J. Corona, DO, MBA, professor and chair of Pathology, and vice president of innovation and business development, Upstate Medical University.

Opening remarks.
Danielle Laraque-Arena, M.D.,  president, Upstate Medical University.

9:30 a.m. Presentation.
Kathleen Hochul, Lieutenant Governor, New York.

10 a.m. The Heroin/Opioid Epidemic.
Indu Gupta, MD, MPH, Onondaga County Health Commissioner; Brian Johnson, MD, director of addiction medicine, Upstate Medical University; Helen Hudson, Common Council, Syracuse.  Moderator: Candace Hatten, fourth-year student, College of Medicine.

10:50 a.m. Break

11 a.m. Keynote Address: Getting Serious About Population Health: The Importance of Cross-Sector Collaboration.
Steven Woolf, MD, MPH, professor of family medicine and population health and director of the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center on Society and Health.

Noon Lunch

1 p.m. Community Violence.
Panel chair: Margaret Formica, PhD, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Upstate Medical University. Panelists: Larry Williams, program director of Syracuse Save Our Schools; William Marx, DO, Surgery, Trauma and Critical Care, Upstate Medical University; Diane St. Fleur, MD, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Upstate Medical University

2:30 p.m. Health and Place.
Panel chair: Telisa Stewart, DrPH, Public Health and Preventive Medicine, Upstate Medical University; Susan Dieterlen, PhD, DeftSpace Lab; Bill Simmons, executive director of Syracuse Housing Authority; Brian Thompson, MD, Obstetrics and Gynecology, assistant dean for diversity, Upstate Medical University; Chuckie Holstein, executive director, FOCUS Greater Syracuse. Moderator: Dominick Vilsaint, Class of 2019, College of Health Professions.

4 p.m. Reception.

Friday, March 31

8:30 a.m. Continental Breakfast.

9 a.m. Understanding the Health Disadavantages of U.S. Women.
Steven Woolf , MD, MPH, professor of family medicine and population health and director of the Virginia Commonwealth University’s Center on Society and Health; Jennifer Karas Montez, PhD, Gerald B. Cramer Faculty Scholar of Aging Studies, Department of Sociology, Syracuse University.

10 a.m. Refugee health. Najah Zaeed, DrPH, adjunct professor, Syracuse University; Ayan Mohammed, physician assistant, Resettled American, provider to refugee population; Peter Cronkright, MD, associate professor of internal medicine and family medicine, Upstate Medical University; Eman, New American resettled from Syria; Kathryn Stam PhD, professor of anthropology SUNY Polytechnic Institute. Moderator: Trina Karbowniczak, RN, Class of 2018, College of Nursing, Upstate Medical University.

11 a.m. Preparing Health Care Practitioners to Address Social Determinants. Panel chair: Christopher P. Morley, PhD, MPH, interim chair, Department of Public Health and Preventive Medicine, vice chair, Department of Family Medicine.

Panel: How we teach it at Upstate Medical University. Rebecca Garden, PhD, associate professor of bioethics and humanities, and public health and preventive medicine, Upstate Medical University; Nienka Dosa, MD, MPH, associate professor of pediatrics, Upstate Medical University; Gary Brooks, DrPH, PT, associate professor of physical therapy education, Upstate Medical University; Bambi Carkey, DNP, assistant professor in the College of Nursing, Upstate Medical University. Moderator: Nicholas Runeare, Class of 2017, College of Medicine.

In her inaugural address last April, Laraque-Arena proposed a series of six symposia to address a range of important issues. The first was held in October and featured geneticist Mary-Claire King as the keynote speaker, who led the discussion on genetics and precision medicine. In addition to the March symposium, other proposed symposium topics include Gender and Equity in Academic Medicine; Health Professionals for the 21st Century; Life-course Approaches to the Health of Infants, Children, Adolescents, Young Adults and Elders; and Sustainable Environment.

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