Morehouse School of Medicine and City of East Point to Hold Health Equity Summit
Third annual event marks partnership between historically Black medical school and City of East Point
ATLANTA, GA – AUGUST 19, 2024 – Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) and the City of East Point, Georgia, will hold the third annual East Point Health Equity Summit on Saturday, August 24, sponsored by CareSource, Viiv Healthcare, and Amazon, hosted by Hight Health in collaboration with the American Heart Association. The event will take place from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at East Point City Hall, 2757 East Point Street, East Point, GA 30344. Participants can register in advance by clicking here.
“Since launching this partnership three years ago, East Point has become a model for other cities in Georgia and around the nation,” said Megan Douglas, JD, Associate Professor in the MSM Department of Community Health and Preventive Medicine and Director of Research and Policy at the National Center for Primary Care (NCPC). “With the collaboration of the East Point Health Equity Community Advisory Board, we have supported East Point residents and city leaders to embrace health equity as a guiding principle, including adding it to the city’s comprehensive plan.”
MSM and the City of East Point launched their partnership in 2021 after the NCPC was chosen by US Department of Health and Human Services' Office of Minority Health to participate in the Framework to Address Health Disparities Through Collaborative Policy Efforts program. The initiative is designed to help identify and address policies that may create or perpetuate health disparities and contribute to structural racism. Since then, MSM and the city have collaborated on a number of projects and programs to benefit the health and wellbeing of East Point residents.
“Since the beginning of this partnership, the momentum for advancing health equity in the city has dramatically increased,” said East Point Mayor Deana Holliday Ingraham. “Our residents and leaders are more aware of the health disparities resulting from racially motivated political decisions made more than 100 years ago and we are prepared to continue using the policy tools and resources in our community to dismantle these historical inequities.”
The summit will feature vendors providing free health resources, health screenings conducted by the MSM Health Equity for All Lives (HEAL) Clinic, celebrity guests T-Mo Goodie of Atlanta based hip hop group Goodie Mob and keynote speaker Dr. Lawrence Sidbury, Jr., NFL veteran and healthcare administrator, and community conversations intended to foster awareness and advocacy for health equity and health justice. Youth activities, games, giveaways, and food trucks will also be available.
On Friday, August 23, an exhibit will be unveiled during an invitation-only event of East Point’s photovoice project, a unique storytelling medium in which East Point residents shared their thoughts on health equity through photos and interviews. The exhibit will be available for public viewing at the ArtsXchange in East Point, 2148 Newnan St, East Point, GA 30344, from August 23 through September 1, 2024.
For more information about Morehouse School of Medicine, please visit MSM.edu.
About Morehouse School of Medicine
Founded in 1975, Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM) is among the nation’s leading educators of primary care physicians, biomedical scientists, and public health professionals. An independent and private historically-Black medical school, MSM was recognized by the Annals of Internal Medicine as the nation’s number one medical school in fulfilling a social mission — the creation and advancement of health equity. MSM faculty and alumni are noted for excellence in teaching, research, and public policy, as well as exceptional patient care. MSM is accredited by the Commission on Colleges of the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools to award doctoral and master’s degrees. To learn more about programs and donate today, please visit MSM.edu or call 404-752-1500.
Contact
Jamille Bradfield
Director, External Communications, Media Relations
& Crisis Communications
Morehouse School of Medicine
jbradfield@msm.edu