EQTY 2024 brought esteemed leaders together to explore the past, present, and future of health equity. The speakers shared their expertise, showcased the latest innovations in advancing racial health equity across the country, and left us inspired. Thank you to all who participated and attended.
Missed EQTY 2024? Want to re-live some of the inspiring conversations? Read HealthCity's coverage of EQTY 2024, direct from the conference's floor.
When
Thursday, September 12, 2024
Where
Artists for Humanity EpiCenter
Boston, MA 02127
EQTY 2024 was a success! Get a glimpse of the inspiring conversations:
Featuring
Keynote speaker: Nikole Hannah-Jones, creator of the 1619 Project
A Look Back at EQTY 2024
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Nikole Hannah-Jones
Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter
Nikole Hannah-Jones is the Pulitzer Prize-winning creator of the 1619 Project and a staff writer at The New York Times Magazine. The book version of The 1619 Project and as well as the 1619 Project children's book, Born on the Water, were instant #1 New York Times bestsellers. Her 1619 Project is now a six-part docuseries on Hulu.
Hannah-Jones has spent her career investigating racial inequality and injustice, and her reporting has earned her the MacArthur Fellowship, known as the Genius grant, a Peabody Award, two George Polk Awards and the National Magazine Award three times.
She also serves as the Knight Chair of Race and Journalism at Howard University, where she founded the Center for Journalism & Democracy. Hannah-Jones is also the co-founder of the Ida B. Wells Society for Investigative Reporting, which seeks to increase the number of investigative reporters and editors of color, and in 2022 she opened the1619 Freedom School, a free, afterschool literacy program in her hometown of Waterloo, Iowa. Hannah-Jones holds a Master of Arts in Mass Communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and earned her BA in History and African-American studies from the University of Notre Dame.
The Myth that Made Us: Reimagining the Role of Essential Hospitals
Essential Hospitals can and should reimagine their role to offer world-class healthcare that addresses underlying social determinants of health, including economic justice, to eliminate the root cause of poor outcomes. Fireside chat led by Thea James, MD, MBA
Thea James, MD, MPH, MBA
VP of Mission, Associate Chief Medical Officer, Co-Executive Director, Health Equity Accelerator, BMCHS
(She/Her)
Dr. Thea James oversees BMCHS’ relationships and strategic alliances with local, state, and national partners to meet the full spectrum of essentials that enables patients and communities to thrive. She is also an associate professor of emergency medicine and director of the Violence Intervention Advocacy Program.
Dr. James has held a number of public health and health equity-related positions in her 27-year tenure at BMC, as well as practicing as an emergency room physician. She received her Doctor of Medicine from Georgetown University School of Medicine and trained in emergency medicine at Boston City Hospital, where she was chief resident. Dr. James currently serves on the boards of UPSTREAM USA, Blue Cross Blue Shield Foundation, Compass Working Capital, Health Alliance for Violence Intervention, and Community Servings.
Watch Dr. James' interview with BBC about the Health Equity Accelerator:
Andre Perry, PhD
Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Community Uplift, Brookings Institution
(He/Him)
Andre M. Perry is a Senior Fellow and Director of the Center for Community Uplift at the Brookings Institution. He is also a professor of practice of economics at Washington University of St. Louis and a scholar-in-residence at American University. A nationally known and respected commentator on race, structural inequality, and education, Perry is the author of the book Know Your Price: Valuing Black Lives and Property in America’s Black Cities, which is currently available wherever books are sold. Perry is a regular contributor to MSNBC and has been published by numerous national media outlets, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Nation, Bloomberg CityLab and CNN.com. Perry has also made appearances on HBO, CNN, PBS, National Public Radio, NBC, and ABC.
Perry’s research focuses on race and structural inequality, education, and economic inclusion. Perry’s recent scholarship at Brookings has analyzed Black-majority cities and institutions in America, focusing on valuable assets worthy of increased investment. Perry’s pioneering work on asset devaluation has made him a go to researcher for policymakers, community development professionals and civil rights groups. Perry co-authored the groundbreaking 2018 Brookings Institution report “The Devaluation of Assets in Black Neighborhoods” and has presented its findings on the price of home in Black neighborhoods across the country, including to the U.S. House Financial Services Committee. He has extended that report’s focus on housing in Black neighborhoods to include other assets such as businesses, schools and banks.
A native of Pittsburgh, Pa., Perry earned his Ph.D. in education policy and leadership from the University of Maryland College Park.
Bruce Siegel, MD, MPH
President and CEO, America’s Essential Hospitals
(He/Him)
Read more on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/bruce-siegel-793b5219/
Curing the Disparity: Achieving Equity in Drug Development and Distribution
Black and Brown communities deserve the most-cutting edge therapies. Together, we can achieve equitable access to transformational treatments. Panel moderated by Cindy Bo, MBA
Cindy Bo
SVP, Chief Strategy Officer, BMCHS
(She/Her)
Cindy Bo oversees the health system’s strategic plan and priorities with an emphasis on healthcare innovation, growth, and community and behavioral health integration.
Prior to joining in 2024, Bo served as the senior vice president of strategy and business development for the Delaware Valley at Nemours, one of the nation’s largest multistate pediatric health systems. She also held consulting and business planning roles at Deloitte, Booz Allen, and Novartis AG and is an Aspen Institute Health Innovators Fellow. Bo received her Master of Business Administration from Columbia University and her bachelor's degree in marketing and management information systems from Binghamton University. She currently serves on the boards of the March of Dimes, Boston, the Clinic for Special Children, and Children & Families First.
Marsha Calloway-Campbell, JD
Vice President of Culture, Inclusion & Equity, Legacy Health Strategies
(She/Her)
Marsha Calloway-Campbell, JD, brings over 35 years of diverse expertise to Legacy Health Strategies. Her dual career as an attorney, practicing in the areas of employment law, estate planning, and probate law, and a market research consultant has proven to be successful over the years. At the helm of her consultancy firm, Marsha collaborated with leading Fortune 100 companies, specializing in qualitative research. Her professional experiences span across consumer-packaged goods, legal, pharmaceutical, and healthcare sectors, underscoring her versatility and depth of knowledge.
Marsha's path took a transformative turn in 2017 following her husband's multiple myeloma diagnosis. This personal experience reshaped her life, as she embraced the role of caregiver and, subsequently, a health advocate. Her dedication eventually led her to the role of director of a Black myeloma health initiative with a myeloma patient-advocacy organization.
Marsha's journey into health advocacy revealed her profound passion for health equity, transcending beyond myeloma. She is driven by a vision to leverage her extensive skill set and fervent passion to help others cultivate a legacy of health and cultural equity in diverse communities. At Legacy Health Strategies, Marsha is a pivotal force in promoting health and wellness, particularly for underserved populations by engaging with patients and communities of color. Her approach encompasses amplifying patient voices, tackling health disparities, and empowering patients with essential knowledge about clinical research.
Read more on LinkedInhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/marshacallowaycampbell/
Fabio Petrocca, MD
Director, Cellular Therapy Program, BMC
(He/Him)
Fabio Petrocca, MD, is an oncologist at Boston Medical Center (BMC), where he is also Director of the CAR T-cell Therapy Program. Dr. Petrocca is also an assistant professor of Medicine and Director of the Cellular Therapy Program at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. He is a physician-scientist focused on treating benign and malignant hematologic conditions, including lymphomas, leukemias, and multiple myeloma. His research focuses on the development of immune effector cell therapies for cancer and enabling equitable patient access to innovative and powerful cancer cell therapies such as CAR T. After completing his medical degree and oncology training in Italy, Dr. Petrocca completed a research fellowship at the Program in Cellular and Molecular Medicine at Harvard Medical School. He has been practicing for more than 15 years.
Beyond the Walls: How to Scale Equity Programs in the Community
Health systems must partner and reach outside their four walls to build scalable, resilient models of equity programming that improve the health of Black and Brown communities in Boston and beyond. Panel moderated by Elena Mendez-Escobar, PhD, MBA
Elena Mendez-Escobar, PhD
Executive Director of Strategy and Co-Executive Director, Health Equity Accelerator, BMCHS
(She/Her)
Dr. Elena Mendez-Escobar co-leads BMC’s innovation portfolio in health equity and social determinants of health and oversees the Grayken Center for Addiction.
Prior to joining, Dr. Mendez-Escobar was an associate partner at McKinsey & Company and co-founded its Center for Societal Benefit through Healthcare. She received her Doctor of Philosophy from University of Edinburgh and her Master of Business Administration from MIT.
Watch Dr. Mendez-Escobar talk about the Health Equity Accelerator and their 1-year anniversary video:
Stephanie Mitchell
Founder, Birth Sanctuary Gainesville
(She/Her)
Stephanie Mitchell is a Certified Professional Midwife who has practiced full scope midwifery in private collaborative practice, hospital, and tertiary care teaching settings since 2016. She holds a Bachelors of Science in Nursing, a Masters of Science in Nursing with a specialty in community-based midwifery, and a Doctorate of Nursing Practice.
Dr. Mitchell began her path working as a pediatric nurse, as a labor and delivery nurse, and then as a midwife in a collaborative midwifery group in one of the largest and highest volume hospital systems in Boston. In her time there she logged over 12,000 hours of patient care, attended thousands of births, and delivered over 600 babies.
During this time she saw firsthand the life-changing—and life saving—potential of full-scope midwifery care. In her time with the hospital, she bore witness to many experiences of pain, trauma, and unexpected and unnecessary negative outcomes. She also saw many transcendent birth experiences, beautiful, supported, and ending with joy .
While so many things on our healthcare journeys are beyond our control, one thing Dr. Stephanie realized during this time was that the thing that often made the difference between negative and positive birthing experiences was simple: knowledge.
When people giving birth are empowered with the time and knowledge to process choices and options, understand risks and benefits, and make the most informed decisions on their birthing journeys, outcomes are vastly improved.
In 2020, Dr. Stephanie moved to Gainesville, AL, with her partner of 20 years, Jamie—back to his hometown to follow his dream of owning his own restaurant. At that time, as she was looking for a Birth Center to join so she could continue her work as a midwife, she was surprised to find zero freestanding Birth Centers serving her region. So, she decided to build her own and Birth Sanctuary Gainesville was born.
She is mother to four children, Jasmyn, Jaymie, Jayar, and Jesse. She has two miniature schnauzers named Issa and Nucky. In her spare time, you can find her vlogging, blogging, reading, or enjoying the outdoors. Her most glorious times are when she finds ways to combine all of these facets and fabric of love together! She is beyond thrilled to be bringing the first freestanding birth center to the state of Alabama.
Elsie Taveras, MD, MPH
Chief Community Health & Health Equity Officer, Mass General Brigham
(She/Her)
Elsie M. Taveras, M.D., M.P.H. is the inaugural Chief Community Health and Health Equity Officer at Mass General Brigham and Executive Director of the Kraft Center for Community Health at Massachusetts General Hospital. She leads system-wide strategies to improve health equity and the health of the communities served by Mass General Brigham. She is a pediatrician at Massachusetts General Hospital, the Conrad Taff Professor of Pediatrics in the Field of Nutrition at Harvard Medical School, and a Professor in the Department of Nutrition at Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.
Dr. Taveras is a leading expert in community health equity, childhood obesity, maternal-child health, and health disparities. Her research and community health leadership have influenced the development of national programs to improve health outcomes and eliminate inequities for socially at-risk populations. She is a recipient of the Public Health Leadership in Medicine Award from the Massachusetts Association of Public Health for her work improving health and health care in community-based settings.
Dr. Taveras received her Bachelor of Science and medical degrees from New York University and completed her internship, residency, and chief residency at the Boston Combined Residency Program in Pediatrics at Boston Medical Center and Boston Children’s Hospital and holds an MPH from the Harvard T. H. Chan School of Public Health.
From Survive to Thrive: Mental Health Care that Empowers Black People
A cohesive network of mental health care providers who share insights and techniques, ensures sustainable, culturally sensitive and effective care options across Black communities globally. Fireside chat led by David C. Henderson, MD
David C. Henderson, MD
Chief of Psychiatry, BMC
(He/Him)
Dr. David C. Henderson is a psychiatrist and the Chief of Psychiatry at BMC, and professor and Chair of Psychiatry at Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine. Presently, he also serves as Co-Director of the NIMH T32 Boston University Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine/Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) Global Mental Health Clinical Research Fellowship.
Dr. Henderson has worked internationally for the past 25 years in resource-limited settings, and areas impacted by mass violence, disasters, and complex emergencies. He has conducted numerous studies of trauma in areas of mass violence and develops programs to assist with vulnerable populations, including in Bosnia, Cambodia, East Timor, Ethiopia, Haiti, Liberia, New Orleans, New York City, Rwanda, Peru, South Africa, and Somaliland, among other places. In the United States, Dr. Henderson has conducted more than 30 randomized clinical trials among severely mentally ill populations. His research interests include treatment-resistant schizophrenia and the use of psychopharmacological and antipsychotic agents in the treatment of schizophrenia. Dr. Henderson is a leader in understanding the impact of antipsychotic agents on weight, cardiovascular disease, and lipid and glucose metabolism and the development of interventions and prevention strategies.
Dr. Henderson received his medical degree from University of Massachusetts Medical School and his bachelor's degree from Tufts University. He completed his residency at MGH and trained as chief resident and a research fellow at the Freedom Trail Clinic at the Erich Lindemann Mental Health Center in Boston. Dr. Henderson is a member of the National Medical Association; New England Medical Society; Sigma Xi, The Scientific Research Society of Harvard-Radcliffe; and Black Psychiatrists of America Executive Committee. He has served as a Distinguished Fellow in the American Psychiatric Association since 2006 and is also the U.S. editor of the International Journal of Culture and Mental Health.
Devin Cromartie Bodrick, MD, MPH
Assistant Professor, Boston University School of Medicine; Psychiatrist, Boston Medical Center
Dr. Devin Cromartie Bodrick, MD, MPH, currently is an Assistant Professor and Boston University School of Medicine and Psychiatrist at Boston Medical Center. She is also First Lady of the Historic Twelfth Baptist Church of Roxbury in Boston.
She grew up in Prince Georges County, Maryland, and graduated summa cum laude from Howard University with her Bachelor of Science in Biology and in 2012. She went on the receive her Doctor of Medicine from Harvard Medical School, and her Master of Public Health from Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in 2017. Her ultimate goal in medicine and public health is to combat health inequities that affect African Americans and other disenfranchised populations. Her research and clinical interests include child and adolescent psychiatry, Autism Spectrum Disorder and Intellectual Disabilities, stress and trauma disorders, community-based research, implementation science, substance use disorders, and intersections of religion/spirituality and mental health.
A Healthier Future: Building Wealth Through Workforce Development
Workforce development is a pathway to economic mobility, fostering generational wealth. By opening doors to underserved communities as a vibrant talent pool for job opportunities, health systems can increase access to financial security and allow everyone to prioritize their health and wellbeing into the future. Panel moderated by Petrina Martin Cherry, MBA
Petrina Martin Cherry
VP, Community Engagement and External Affairs, BMCHS
(She/Her)
Petrina Martin Cherry is responsible for leading all external affairs and community engagement outreach for the health system, with an eye to healthcare equity, social determinants of health, diversity, and inclusion.
Prior to joining in 2016, Martin Cherry spent 15 years in entertainment marketing and media training for celebrities and non-profit organizations. She received her Executive Master of Business Administration from Georgia State University’s J. Mack Robinson School of Business and her Bachelor of Arts in English literature from University of South Carolina. Martin Cherry currently serves on the advisory board for The Boston Foundation, Boys and Girls Club of Boston, American Hospital Association Advisory Board, and MA State Black Empowerment Council.
Watch Petrina Martin Cherry talk about BMC’s Health Equity Accelerator's plan regarding Economic Mobility:
Lisa Kelly-Croswell
SVP, Chief Human Resources Officer, BMCHS
(She/Her)
Lisa Kelly-Croswell oversees human resources, occupational health, and volunteer services and leads organizational growth strategies for the health system.
Prior to joining in 2013, Kelly-Croswell held a wide range of human resources leadership roles at Vertex Pharmaceuticals, Nitromed Inc., CIGNA, Monsanto, and Frito-Lay. She received her Master of Arts in labor and industrial relations and her Bachelor of Science in finance from University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Kelly-Croswell currently serves on the boards of Eiger Bioparmaceuticals, Greater Boston Food Bank, and New England Human Resources Association.
Robert Lewis Jr.
Nicholas President & CEO, Boys & Girls Club of Boston
(He/Him)
Robert Lewis, Jr. is a nationally recognized thought leader, public speaker, and social innovator. With a long history of nonprofit and community leadership, Robert is known as a catalyst for collaboration between diverse business, civic and public sectors and a tireless advocate for urban youth.
Robert joined the Boys & Girls Clubs of Boston in 2022 and has since set the organization on a new strategic course with a broad focus on health, education, and workforce readiness, all essential components to a child’s holistic development.
Prior to joining BGCB, Robert launched The BASE in 2013 to shift the national mindset about what it takes for urban youth to succeed. The BASE leverages their passion for sports to create pathways to higher education and meaningful careers.
Fred Lowery
Executive Vice President and President, Laboratory Products and BioProduction, ThermoFisher
(He/Him)
Fred became Executive Vice President and President, Laboratory Products and BioProduction in April 2024. In this role, Fred has responsibility for our Laboratory Products, Customer Channels and BioProduction businesses. Prior to this role, he served as Senior Vice President and President, Customer Channels since January 2021. He joined the company in 2005 as head of operations for the Molecular BioProducts business of Fisher Scientific International. When Fisher Scientific merged with Thermo Electron in 2006, Fred was named Vice President and General Manager of the Chromatography Consumables and Specialty Glass business.
Innovation Spotlights
Four individuals will share their cutting-edge innovations that target racial inequities in crucial areas, such as cancer, pregnancy, infectious diseases, chronic conditions, behavioral health, social determinants of health, DEIA training, and/or workforce development. Gain insights into inventive solutions that are advancing health equity as these innovators share their visions for a more inclusive and just healthcare system.
- ThriveLink: Telephonic AI-Driven Solution for Enrolling Low-Income Families in Social Programs
Kwamane Liddell, JD, MHA, BSN - Healing on Wheels: A Mobile Clinic's Journey to Improve Mental Wellness
Mollie Williams, PhD, MPH - Enhancing Cultural Humility in Food is Medicine Services
Olivia Thomas, MS, RDN - Decolonizing Mindfulness-Based Interventions to Embrace Diversity: When Culturally Sensitive Approaches Empower Latinx Immigrants from Inside Out
Andrea Ruf, Ph.D.
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