Health equity at heart of Texas Biomed's 3rd Global Health Symposium

SAN ANTONIO, April 24, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Texas Biomedical Research Institute's 3^rd Global Health Symposium on May 18 and 19 will convene experts from across the nation and the world to discuss how community, trust and science can help build health equity.

More than 60 global health executives, healthcare providers, philanthropists, business leaders, scientists, educators and students will be featured during 12 panel sessions and three keynote addresses. Participants can attend the hybrid conference online or in-person at the San Antonio Botanical Garden.

"The COVID-19 pandemic shone a harsh light on how various groups were disproportionally impacted," says Texas Biomed's Vice President for Development Akudo Anyanwu, MD, MPH. "But long before the pandemic, systemic inequities in healthcare access, delivery and research have been pervasive with cascading repercussions. We are hosting conversations about these issues with the hope of forging meaningful change."

The keynote conversation, on Friday, May 19 at 1 pm CDT, includes an intimate discussion between Texas Biomed President/CEO Larry Schlesinger, MD, and members of the Henrietta Lacks family, who are raising awareness about issues of consent and equity in healthcare and biomedical research. Henrietta Lacks was an African-American woman who died of cervical cancer in 1951. Her cancer cells, now known globally as HeLa cells, became the first immortal human cell line and have been an integral part of biomedical research.

The symposium is distinctly cross-disciplinary with topics in: Healthcare practice, delivery and access; Data, science and translational research; Leadership, policy and community advocacy; Business and philanthropy; and Emerging leaders. Speakers hail from such organizations as the National Institutes of Health, National Science Foundation, United States Agency for International Development (USAID), The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Grassroot Soccer, Peace Corps, Sanofi, Roche and dozens more.

"As a leader in infectious disease research, Texas Biomed aims to eliminate the threat of infectious diseases around the world," says Dr. Schlesinger. "But to truly achieve that, we must bring together innovators from across many different sectors and global communities to collaborate and build health equity."

Sessions include:

• Zipcode vs Genetic Code: Unraveling the importance of social determinants of health
• Alexa, Where's my healthcare?: How science can improve healthcare delivery
• Decolonizing Global Health: What should be the target of this movement and where does it lead us?
• Stop, Collaborate and Listen: Relationship building is equity building
• It's all related: Infection, inflammation, chronic disease and cancer

Craig Noonan, Senior Executive Consultant Global Telehealth Services for Viasat, Inc. and the President of 19Labs, will give a keynote address "Transforming Communities: Achieving Equality and Equity Through Connectivity + Digital Health Technology" on Thursday, May 18.

And David Wholley, M.Phil, Executive Vice-President of Strategy and Business Development for the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health, will give a keynote address "Supporting Equity in Biomedical Research and Development: Lessons from the Pandemic" on Friday, May 19.

Virtual registration is complimentary. To learn more, please visit: txbiomed.org/globalhealthsymposium

SOURCE Texas Biomedical Research Institute