On Friday May 3^rd we had the honor to attend an important signing ceremony at the Mexican Consulate. The Ministry of Health of Mexico, represented by the Director for International Affairs, Hilda Dávila Chávez, signed three cooperation agreements between: The University of Kansas Medical Center (KUMC), Children’s Mercy Hospital (CMH) and Truman Medical Centers.

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Johana Bravo de los Rios and Mariana Ramirez, both graduate research assistants at Juntos Center for Advancing Latino Health, were selected to participate in the Exito! Summer internship at the Institute for Health Promotion Research (IHPR) at The UT Health Science Center at San Antonio next June, 2013.

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On Monday April 15^th, the existing agreement between Kansas University Medical Center (KUMC) and Universidad Autonoma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM) was renewed, and a new agreement between UAEM and Children’s Mercy Hospital (CMH) was signed.  Continue reading →

It is a pleasure to inform the successful graduation of the first group of Promotores de Salud, obtaining the state Certified Nurse Aid (CNA) certification at the Seward County Community College (SCCC). Juntos organized a graduation ceremony at Ruffino’s restaurant this past March 4^th at Liberal, KS. Continue reading →

From Thursday, April 11^th to Tuesday, April 16^th, 2013 we had a visit from the Universidad Autonóma del Estado de Morelos (UAEM). Our guests were:
Dr. Rodolfo Gatica Principal of the School of Medicine
Dr. Jesus Santa-Olalla Head of Graduate Studies and Research of the School of Medicine
Dr. Martha Andalco Academic Secretary of the School of Medicine
Dr. Patricia Castillo Academic Secretary of the UAEM
Dr. Norma Juarez Director of International Cooperation and Development of the UAEM.

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Last March 16^th Yazmin Reyna, Johana Bravo de los Rios, and Alejandro Gutierrez from Juntos gave a presentation on social and communication skills to an eager group of middle and high school students at the Latinos of Tomorrow Scholarship Fest Spring 2013. Juntos staff members enthusiastically talked with students about best practices in communication and had them role play some of the social skills needed to succeed in high school. It was a very interactive presentation which students enjoyed by much.

The Scholarship Fest is a day-long extended program that introduces students from the Kansas City metro area to the elements for planning and preparing for college. Some of the topics covered in the program include scholarships and financial aid, resume and academic vitas, college and scholarship timelines and deadlines, financial literacy, personal statement writing and dual credit courses in high school.

In an effort to recognize the work that Kansan women dedicate to their community, Dos Mundos newspaper highlighted the work of Juntos’ graduate research assistant, Mariana Ramirez.

Through the Breast Cancer Initiative that she coordinates, over 250 women in the Kansas City community have received education on breast cancer and breast cancer screening. In addition, those meeting the eligibility criteria have been connected to local resources for free or low-cost mammograms.  This work has been done in a strong partnership with the Ventanilla de Salud at the Mexican Consulate, Viva Saludable en Kansas, and the Promotora program from El Centro. Sandra Flores, the project-based promotora in this initiative, has been instrumental reaching out to the community

The Breast Cancer Awareness Initiative funded by the ACS and NFL is one of the several projects that Juntos has in place to fight disparities and advance the health of the Latino community in Kansas City.

If you would like information on breast cancer or resources for breast cancer screening, you can contact Mariana at 913 945 7872. She will be happy to help you!

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This past Saturday March 2^nd and Sunday March 3^rd, we had our First Ventanilla de Salud Móvil (Mobile Health Window) for the 2013 calendar year in Southwest Kansas. The event was held at the Hoover Pavilion in Dodge City, KS.

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The Greater Kansas City Hispanic Development Fund along with other community partners released the study titled Economic and Fiscal Contributions of International Immigrants in the State of Kansas and [Missouri]  lead by Dr. Eaton from the University of Missouri-Kansas City and assisted by Dr. Rosenbloom from the University of Kansas and Dr. Leatherman from Kansas State University. This thorough study describes the international immigrant’s impact on some of the main socio-economic aspects in Kansas and Missouri such as their economic contribution by industry sector and taxes, as well as the use of services like education, health care, and transportation. The study confirms that “immigrants are an integral part” of the states of Kansas and Missouri economy and reducing their participation in the labor market would have a negative effect on native employment income and the overall states’ fiscal position. Dr. Cupertino attended to the release of the study last week in representation of the Juntos Center for Advancing Latino Health.

To read the full documents click in the links below:

Economic and Fiscal Contributions of International Immigrants in the State of Missouri

Economic and Fiscal Contributions of International Immigrants in the State of Kansas

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The “60 minutos” workshop proved to be a fun and interactive session. Many 1st and 2nd year medical students and Juntos members joined LMMSA in our first Spanish Workshop of the year. Students enjoyed of various role-playing activities, in which the vocabulary discussed was put into practice. The goal of the workshop was to expose students to the basic Spanish medical terminology needed for a patient-encounter, a critical skill needed in our ever-growing Latino population in Kansas. We hope you enjoyed it as much as we did! We look forward to working with all you to strengthen your medical Spanish skills/vocabulary, and we hope you continue to attend our monthly workshops so you can continue to foster your language skills.

Thank you!