News
2023
Health & Medicine presents at Illinois Minority Health Conference
December 8, 2023Ronisha Edwards-Elliot, director of Chicago AHEC and workforce programs, presented about the impact of race-blind college admissions and minority health at Illinois State University’s 2023 Illinois Minority Health Conference on December 4 and 5. The conference, “Achieving a Health Illinois by Eliminating Health Disparities,” aimed to raise awareness of health disparities and social justice issues, […]
Get Involved: AHEC Scholars
December 4, 2023The Illinois Area Health Education Center (AHEC) Network is seeking AHEC Scholars! Apply today to join the Chicago AHEC Scholars, hosted by Health & Medicine. Chicago-area students in health career programs are invited to apply for our enhanced learning program designed to give students in-depth knowledge and a diverse set of skills through a variety […]
Help Us Reach Our Winter Fundraising Goal.
As the festive season draws near, let’s remember that the pursuit of health justice is a year-round commitment. Our journey at Health & Medicine spans over four decades, a testament to our unwavering dedication to equity and justice. Our journey is less about a singular agenda and more about a collective commitment to human dignity […]
Staff Highlight: Matt McClintock
Health & Medicine is pleased to welcome Matt McClintock, who joined in November 2023 as the health workforce systems manager. Coming from a background in music, he has extensive youth development and community outreach experience, where he engaged young people in recruiting for after-school jazz programs, offered mentorship and guidance in college preparation, and helped […]
Schweitzer Fellows’ Retreat Focuses on Wellness and Personal Growth
The 2023-2024 class of Schweitzer Fellows recently gathered for our annual midyear retreat. This gathering served as a time for Fellows to reflect on their progress, learn new coping / wellness practices, and seek guidance on advancing their projects in community with their peers. The day started off with Fellow for Life Padriac Stanley […]
Voices of Diverse Older Persons: Illinois Aging Together’s Roundtable Series Unveils Key Insights for The Aging Equity Act
Illinois Aging Together, a campaign for aging equity in Illinois, held six virtual and in-person roundtable discussions this summer with community groups that represent people not usually represented in aging spaces. The organizations that we worked with were Access Living, Southsiders Organized for Unity and Liberation, Pride Action Tank, Hanul Family Alliance, and Telpochcalli Community […]
Health & Medicine’s Policy Director Wesley Epplin Gives Testimony to Chicago’s City Council Committee on the Budget and Government Operations
October 19, 2023Health & Medicine Policy Research Group recently presented testimony to the Chicago City Council Committee on the Budget and Government Operations regarding the proposed fiscal year 2024 budget for the Chicago Department of Public Health. In the testimony, Epplin emphasized the importance of increasing corporate funding for the Chicago Department of Public Health in order […]
Opinion: Chicago’s Public Health Department gets alarmingly little funding from the city
October 6, 2023“For current public health challenges — including the health equity imperative — and for preparedness for future public health emergencies, all jurisdictions need well-funded, high-functioning health departments. Chicagoans cannot afford for CDPH to continue being underfunded and understaffed. Starting with the 2024 city budget, Johnson and the Chicago City Council should sustain increased local investments […]
How Hospital Leaders are Promoting Trauma-Informed, Healing-Centered Culture Through Restorative Justice
September 28, 2023Health & Medicine’s Illinois ACEs Response Collaborative has been proud to work with partners at Rush University Medical Center on numerous trauma-informed efforts, including our Chicagoland Trauma-Informed Hospitals Working Group and Statewide Working Group to Address Childhood Adversity. In a special interview in honor of this past Trauma-Informed Awareness Day, our colleagues at Rush interviewed […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Acclivus, Inc.
September 8, 2023Health & Medicine’s Group Award recognizes that the sum of the whole is often greater than the individual parts and honors an organization or coalition that supports or enhances community self-determination and independence, focuses its work on any of the determinants of health, and has had an impact beyond the scope of its programs. Acclivus, […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Ezekiel Richardson, MD
August 31, 2023Health & Medicine’s Emerging Leader Award recognizes leaders with fewer than 15 years of experience who are currently involved in community-based work with broadly defined public health implications. Ezekiel Richardson, one of two 2023 recipients, is an emergency medicine physician in the city of Chicago, where he works with multiple organizations to prolong the lives […]
Advancing High Quality Care: Community Health Worker Initiative Releases Year 4 Report
August 29, 2023In 2017, Community Memorial Foundation (CMF) and Healthy Communities Foundation (HCF) collaborated to fund models of health care delivery that utilize Community Health Workers (CHWs), thus improving access to care and growing the health care workforce in the western suburbs of Chicago. CMF and HCF funded five organizations with diverse missions and target populations to […]
Letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago City Council: Fully fund the Chicago Department of Health
On August 29, Health & Medicine Policy Research Group submitted a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson and the Chicago City Council calling for more funding for the Chicago Department of Health. Protecting and improving the public’s health requires a fully funded public health system. The expiration of COVID-19 relief dollars threatens the vital public health […]
Health & Medicine Announces 2023 Schweitzer Seed Grant Recipients
August 24, 2023Each year, the Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellows Program offers seed grants to Fellows for Life interested in beginning, sustaining, or building on innovative community projects. Fellows for Life commit to designing, implementing, and reporting on direct service-oriented projects with existing community-based organizations. We are pleased to share our 2023-2024 Seed Grant recipients! Raheem Young, 2015-2015 […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Bonnie Ewald
August 23, 2023Health & Medicine’s Emerging Leader Award recognizes leaders with fewer than 15 years of experience who are currently involved in community-based work with broadly defined public health implications. Bonnie Ewald, one of two 2023 recipients, is a dedicated public service professional working at the intersection of health care and social service delivery, health policy, research, […]
Spotlight: Karen and Michael Koronkowski Support Frank J. Indihar, MD Fellowship
August 21, 2023Since its inception in 1996, the Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellows Program has provided a platform for graduate students to design and implement innovative projects that improve the health and well-being of underserved populations throughout Chicago. Individual donors are critical to the program’s sustainability, and we are incredibly grateful to have 5 out of 28 Fellows […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Diana Lemos
August 16, 2023Health & Medicine’s Research Award recognizes an individual involved in any aspect of quantitative or qualitative research, community-based research, or evaluative research that serves to promote improvements in quality of life while recognizing the multiple determinants of health. This year’s recipient, Diana Lemos, is a passionate advocate for community well-being and social and racial justice, […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Katie Thiede
August 9, 2023Health & Medicine’s Policy Award recognizes an individual working in advocacy, government, media, or philanthropy whose work encompasses the many facets of policy analysis, development, planning, and implementation. This year’s recipient, Katie Thiede, is a tireless champion for health equity and access to high-quality reproductive health care. With 20 years of experience at the helm of social […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Jorelle Alexander, DMD, MPH
August 2, 2023Health & Medicine’s Medicine Award recognizes an individual whose work in any aspect of health care delivery fosters system or institutional improvements. This year’s recipient, Dr. Jorelle Alexander, is an exceptional leader who prioritizes access to high-quality oral health care for everyone and remains committed to providing direct patient care; designing programs tailored to community […]
Joe Zanoni Receives Honorable Mention for 2023 Alice Hamilton Award for Occupational Safety and Health
Health & Medicine is excited to announce that board member Joe Zanoni has received an honorable mention for the 2023 Alice Hamilton Awards from the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health. Through a service project in the UIC School of Public Health’s Environmental and Occupational Health Sciences program where he serves as faculty, Joe and his team worked on guidance […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Nasir Zakaria
July 26, 2023Health & Medicine’s Health Award recognizes an individual working within the health arena with an emphasis on public health and improvements in the health of populations. This year’s recipient, Nasir Zakaria, is a community leader for the Rohingya population and is known nationally and internationally throughout the Rohingya community for establishing the first-of-its-kind Rohingya Culture […]
Meet Our 2023 Award Winners: Healthy Illinois Campaign
July 19, 2023Health & Medicine’s Group Award recognizes that the sum of the whole is often greater than the individual parts and honors an organization or coalition that supports or enhances community self-determination and independence, focuses its work on any of the determinants of health, and has had an impact beyond the scope of its programs. The […]
Health & Medicine is pleased to announce our Summer 2023 Ben Squires Equity Intern, Yasmeen Santana!
July 13, 2023Yasmeen joined Health & Medicine in June 2023 as a Summer Equity Intern. She graduated from the University of California, Berkeley in 2020 with a Bachelor’s degree in Public Health and later moved to Texas to work at a federally qualified health center as a patient educator. Her passion for culturally appropriate health education and […]
Meet Our 2023 Health & Medicine Award Winners
July 11, 2023Health & Medicine is pleased to announce our 2023 award winners! These Chicago-area leaders exemplify the Health & Medicine mission to build power and momentum for social justice and health equity in Illinois. Help us celebrate the public health champions in our community! Join us for our 2023 Health & Medicine Awards Gala on September […]
Sponsorship and registration open for Health & Medicine’s Annual Awards Gala!
July 6, 2023Health & Medicine is excited to announce that sponsorship and registration is now open for its Annual 2023 Awards Gala held from 6-9 PM at on September 20, 2023 at Ignite Glass Studios in Chicago. The Gala celebrates the winners of our annual awards for Illinois leaders who exemplify Health & Medicine’s mission to build […]
Health & Medicine Calls on Gov. Pritzker to Reverse Decision to Deny Medical Care to Immigrants
June 27, 2023On Friday, June 16th the Illinois Department of Healthcare and Family Services abruptly announced that enrollment for the Health Benefits for Immigrant Adults (HBIA) program, which provides vital health coverage for Illinois immigrants ages 42-64, will be paused effective July 1. The notice also permits co-pays and reduced reimbursements to hospitals. As a member of […]
Chicago Area Schweitzer Fellowship Announces 2023-2024 Named Fellowship Recipients
June 6, 2023Tyler M. Linder, Rush University College of Medicine; Ivana Chmielewski, North Park University School of Nursing; Preetham Kastury, University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine; Angela Victoria Olivar, University of Illinois Chicago College of Dentistry; and Fatima Rasoul, Loyola University School of Social Work were awarded Named Schweitzer Fellowships—distinctions within a year-long service-learning program that […]
Apply for the Youth Community Health Worker Summer 2023 Pathway Program
June 2, 2023Are you a resident of the South Suburbs or West Side of Chicago, or more specifically the Austin, Garfield Park, or Lawndale neighborhoods? Are you, or will you be, a rising High School Junior or Senior by June 26, 2023? Then the Chicago Illinois AHEC Network has a perfect opportunity for you – a paid […]
CHW Programs Improve Health Outcomes But Need Sustainable Funding
May 31, 2023Sinai Urban Health Institute (SUHI) and Health & Medicine have released results from a first-ever survey of employers working with Community Health Workers, aimed at mapping the landscape for CHWs across the region. The Cook County Common Indicator Employer Survey showed strong employment of CHWs in the wake of the pandemic, but that Cook County […]
Organizations assisting with Medicaid redetermination need more resources and guidance
May 24, 2023Health & Medicine surveyed IL organizations serving Medicaid populations to identify areas of concern as millions of Illinoisans need to renew their Medicaid or find other coverage.
Speaker Announcements for Trauma-Informed Awareness Day
May 19, 2023Please join the Illinois ACEs Response Collaborative on May 25, 2023 day of virtual events focused on community-driven solutions for building a healing-centered future in Illinois. Learn more and register here. We are pleased to announce that Lieutenant Governor Juliana Stratton will provide a keynote address at this year’s Trauma-Informed Awareness Day opening session. Lieutenant […]
Fellows for Life Seed Grant Application Deadline Extended to May 12th
May 5, 2023Deadline extended! Fellows for Life are invited to submit proposals for seed grants of up to $3,000 to create, sustain, or build upon a year-long project to help improve the health and well-being of an underserved Chicago community. The project should be direct service oriented and should involve an existing community-based organization. The Fellow for […]
Executive Director, Margie Schaps speaks out about under-resourced clinics and “safety net” hospitals
May 3, 2023Margie Schaps was quoted in a recent WBEZ article, “Mental health and medical deserts: the crisis facing Chicago’s next mayor”. Read the article here.
Call for Nominations: 2023 Health & Medicine Awards
March 31, 2023Nominations are now open for our 2023 Health & Medicine Awards! Help us celebrate the public health champions in our community who transform and improve the lives and well-being of all—both every day and in times of crisis—by nominating an individual or organization who exemplifies Health & Medicine’s mission to build power and momentum for […]
In Memoriam: Judith Heumann
March 6, 2023March 4, 2023, disability rights legend Judith Heumann passed away. Heumann was a leading voice for the rights of disabled persons and a tireless advocate for health care, dignity, social justice, and inclusion for all people. Health & Medicine is proud to honor her legacy passion for our shared vision—a society free of social and health inequities […]
Policy Director Testifies After City Fails to Protect Neighborhoods from Industrial Pollution
March 1, 2023On February 23, 2023, Wesley Epplin, Health & Medicine’s Policy Director, testified at the Chicago Environmental Justice Network press conference. Environmental Justice advocates joined Alderwoman Rossana Rodriguez Sanchez (33rd Ward) to call for changes, reform, and oversight in the wake of two reports charging that the City of Chicago fails to protect residents from industrial […]
Challenging Inequities for Transformational Care
February 17, 2023Health & Medicine is pleased to announce our 2022 Annual Report! We have spent 41 years advancing social justice and addressing health inequities, protecting and expanding health care access across Illinois by improving health care delivery systems, and shaping policies that address the structural and social determinants of health. Join us in reflecting on our […]
Join the Statewide Movement for Aging Equity
Health & Medicine is building a statewide movement for aging equity, Illinois Aging Together. We are proud to showcase our newest video about this campaign, highlighting aging advocates and older persons throughout the state. Hear firsthand what it’s like to grow older in Illinois and what changes and planning we need to build a state that […]
Health & Medicine Announces 2023 Policy Agenda
February 1, 2023Each year, Health & Medicine’s policy priorities shift to adjust to the most pressing public health equity issues. We align these priorities with our core values, our mission to build power and momentum for social justice and health equity in Illinois, and our vision of a society free of social and health inequities so that […]
Trainings on Trauma-Informed Policy & Practice for a Thriving and Equitable Illinois
January 20, 2023Trainings on Trauma-Informed Policy & Practice More than 61% of adults in Illinois have experienced at least one Adverse Childhood Experience (ACE), a potentially traumatic event such as abuse, witnessing violence, and experiencing discrimination, linked to poor health and social outcomes later in life. Community experiences such as gun violence, lack of educational or economic […]
Chicago AHEC Scholars Seeking Up-and-Coming Health Professionals
January 16, 2023Apply today for our next cohort of AHEC Scholars! Chicago-area students in health career programs are invited to apply for our enhanced learning program designed to give students in-depth knowledge and a diverse set of skills to ensure success. Health & Medicine’s Chicago Area Health Education Center (Chicago AHEC) is part of the National AHEC Organization (NAO) […]
Health & Medicine Welcomes Spring 2023 Equity Interns
January 15, 2023This fall, Health & Medicine welcomes our seventh cohort of interns in our Equity Intern Program: Marissa Jones, Norma Narsa, and Denesha Pruitt. Marissa Jones graduated with a bachelor’s degree in sociology and minor in childhood studies from Case Western Reserve University in 2019. After receiving her degree, she worked at Old Brooklyn Community Development […]
Honoring Martin Luther King Jr. Day
January 12, 2023“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.” —Martin Luther King Jr. As I read through hundreds of powerful MLK, Jr. quotes recently, this one stood out as perfect for our times. We are fortunate to live in a state that supports a woman’s right to choose, has expanded […]
