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July 26 forum on Latino health, communities in S.C. is one of first such programs in the region
July 18, 2012
A Health Disparities Community Forum on Latino health will be held from 5 – 7 p.m. Thursday, July 26, at St. Peter's Catholic Church, located at 1529 Assembly St. in Columbia.
The program, which is free and open to the public, is sponsored by the Institute for Partnerships to Eliminate Health Disparities (IPEHD) and the Consortium for Latino Immigration Studies (CLIS), both of the University of South Carolina's Arnold School of Public Health.
Dr. Myriam Torres, CLIS director and a professor in the Arnold School's Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, said the event is one of the region's first to focus on Latino health and communities in South Carolina.
"The Latino population in South Carolina has increased dramatically over the past 10 years," Torres said. "Understandably, as the number of Latino families and workers increases in the Midlands and throughout South Carolina, questions and concerns arise about health care access, rights and responsibilities and employment issues."
Latinos comprise about 5 percent of Richland County's population and 5.5 percent of the population in Lexington County. These numbers represent nearly a 112 percent growth in population in Richland County from 2000 and a 248 percent difference in Lexington County for the same period of time, she said.
"This forum provides members of the Latino community with the opportunity to ask questions, and it gives local leaders, government officials and community advocates the chance to listen and take action to address needs that develop as people adapt to life in South Carolina," said IPEHD Director Dr. Glover, the Arnold School's associate dean for health disparities and social justice and a professor in the Department of Health Services Policy and Management.
Guest speakers will include Tammy Besherse, staff attorney for the Appleseed Legal Justice Center, who will address the rights and responsibilities of the Latino community; Sue Berkowitz, executive director of the Appleseed Legal Justice Center, who will discuss healthcare access to the Latino population; and lawyer Mike Pinilla of the Mike Pinilla Law Firm who will talk about job requirements in South Carolina for Latinos.
