FIRST JOINT HELLENIC MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY & RUTGERS UNIVERSITY e-SYMPOSIUM

FIRST JOINT HELLENIC MEDITERRANEAN UNIVERSITY & RUTGERS UNIVERSITY e-SYMPOSIUM: Combating Discrimination in Healthcare & Fighting Health Disparities in Greece & the U.S.A.

Research from across the globe speaks to the many determinants of health disparities that disproportionately affect a range of populations, including women, individuals with low socioeconomic status, ethnic and racial minorities, immigrants and refugees, people with disabilities, and individuals who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender (LGBT). Health inequalities –that is, systematic and avoidable inequalities in health outcomes– can be attributed to a wide variety of factors, including discrimination, which is the focus of our study. Discrimination has been associated, for instance, with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease among African American men compared to American men of European descent (Lockwood, Marsland, Matthews, & Gianaros 2018), a higher incidence of depression among women who identify as lesbian versus women who identify as heterosexual (Logie, Lacombe-Duncan, Poteat, & Wagner, 2017), and various psychosomatic problems among immigrant minority students in Germany, the Netherlands, and Sweden (Kauf, Wölfer, & Hewstone, 2017). Both health disparities and discrimination are difficult but not intractable problems. There are many examples of policy, educational, and other types of interventions designed to eliminate them both, as well as their deleterious effects on individuals, communities, and populations (Metzl, Petty, Olowojoba 2018; Williams, & Purdie-Vaughns 2016).

In this first of a series of e-symposia co-organized by the Hellenic Mediterranean University (see also: https://www.hmu.gr/en)1 and Rutgers University’s Schools of Communication and Information and Health Professions, faculty will share their research regarding the abovementioned issues in Greece and the United States. In the public part of the event, faculty members from different disciplines and professional backgrounds, including Communication, Nutrition and Dietetics, Nursing, and Social Work will give short presentations on their research. A reaction panel will kick off a Q&A session and conversation among all attendees.

Registration: To participate, please register by Monday, May 24, 2021 following the link below: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/1st-joint-e-symposium-fighting-health-disparities-registration-153158903403

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