BPHC Health Equity Symposium
This one-day symposium envisioned a healthier and more equitable future by building on lessons learned through the COVID-19 pandemic.
On April 26, 2023, the Boston Public Health Commission hosted a symposium examining challenges, innovations, and key learnings that emerged through COVID-19. The event highlighted collaborations and partnerships that led to interventions, public policy, community, and public-private sector collaborations that address inequities in chronic disease.
The symposium served to:
- Examine best practices and innovations developed during the COVID-19 pandemic in surveillance, prevention, and community mobilization and partnerships
- Share and amplify policy-driven equity solutions from leading voices in public health, healthcare delivery, community health, and policy
- Serve as a powerful convening space for attendee organizations and representatives
Video recordings are available below.
This website and event are supported by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) as part of a financial assistance award totaling $5,645,162 with 100 percent funded by CDC/HHS. The contents are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily represent the official views of, nor an endorsement, by CDC/HHS, or the U.S. Government.
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Event Date, Time & LocationWednesday April 26, 2023
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Boston Public LibraryMain Branch - Copley Square
230 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA
Symposium Information
Program8:30 - 8:35 AM Welcome, Guastavino Room
Kathryn Hall, PhD, MPH, Boston Public Health Commission
Bisola Ojikutu, MD, MPH, FIDSA
Commissioner of Public Health, City of Boston &
Executive Director, Boston Public Health Commission
Discussants:
Mary Travis Bassett, MD, Francois-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights, Harvard T.H. Chan
Sandro Galea, MD, DrPH, Boston University School of Public Health
Bisola Ojikutu, MD, MPH, FIDSA, Boston Public Health Commission
Michelle Wu, Mayor of Boston
Panelists:
Video Recordings
Advancing Health Equity: Lessons Learned from the COVID-19 Pandemic Welcome & Opening Remarks
Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Commissioner of Public Health and Executive Director for the Boston Public Health Commission, delivers her opening remarks during the 2023 Advancing Health Equity Symposium
Session 1 - Setting the Frame
Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Dr. Mary T. Bassett, and Dr. Sandro Galea discuss the challenges of advancing health inequity in Boston after the COVID-19 pandemic
Community Welcome from Mayor Michelle Wu
Mayor Michelle Wu welcomes members of the community to this year's Health Equity Symposium
Session 2 - Mobilizing our Communities
Pastor Dieufort Jean "Keke" Fleurissaint of True Alliance Center, Dianne Wilkerson of the Black Boston COVID-19 Coalition, LaShyra Nolen of We Got Us, and Gladys Vega of La Colaborativa discuss how they worked with community members during the pandemic
Session 3 - Innovations in Data and Surveillance
Panelists Kevin Cranston (MA DPH), Dr. Kathryn Hall (BPHC), and Elaine Nsoesie (BU Center for Anti-Racist Research) discuss approaches to disease surveillance that emerged from the COVID-19 pandemic
Session 4 - Fireside Chat with Secretary Kate Walsh
Dr. Ojikutu joins EOHHS Secretary Kate Walsh for a discussion about policies to advance health equity
Session 5 - Novel Strategies to Advance Health Care Equity and Justice
Panelists Charles Anderson, Joseph Betancourt, Thea James, David Williams, and Myechia Minter-Jordan discuss the impacts of systemic racism on health inequity
Session 6 - Policy, Partnerships, and the Future
Moderated by GBH's Paris Alston, Dr. Bisola Ojikutu, Senator Liz Miranda, Michael Curry, Juan Fernando Lopera, and Dr. Claire Pierre discuss the policy plans in motion to advance health equity in Boston
Symposium Speaker Bios
Speaker Bios
Symposium Planning Committee
Planning Committee
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS!
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Event Date, Time & LocationWednesday April 26, 2023
8:00 am - 5:00 pm
Boston Public LibraryMain Branch - Copley Square
230 Dartmouth Street, Boston, MA
