Two faculty members from the Drexel University School of Public Health, Dr. Randall Sell and Dr. Lisa Bowleg, along with Dean Marla J. Gold, spoke at the 3rd National Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Intersex (LGBTI) Health Summit in Philadelphia.
The summit was held from Wednesday, March 14 through Sunday, March 18 at the Doubletree Hotel Philadelphia. The Drexel School of Public Health was a co-sponsor of the health summit.
Click here for more information about the 2007 Health Summit and Drexel faculty workshops.
The summit brought together over five hundred health care professionals, academics, activists, community members, and their allies to share cutting-edge information and develop strategies to better serve the health and wellness of the nation’s LGBTI communities.
Dr. Bowleg led a workshop entitled, “Multiple Jeopardy and Beyond: The Mental Health Trials and Tribulations of being Black, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered,” as well as a plenary session about LGBTI health risks and a second workshop on coming-out experiences.
Dr. Sell led a session on developing data advocacy outreach using examples from a program in Massachusetts, and Dean Gold participated in a panel discussion about the socio-political health of communities.
Dr. Bowleg is a leader in the research and influence of social factors in minority stress, resilience and coming out issues among African American lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered people. She received her Ph.D. in Applied Social Psychology from George Washington University and previously served as a faculty member at the University of Rhode Island.
Dr. Sell is one of the nation’s foremost researchers on defining and measuring sexual orientations, and sampling minorities for public health research. He was one of the first to estimate the prevalence of sexual orientations in a probability sample of the United States, United Kingdom and France. He also created and maintains www.GayData.org, which is routinely used by researchers, students and the media as a primary source for public health data. Dr. Sell earned his Doctorate degree from Harvard University and Masters in Public Policy from the University of Pennsylvania.
Marla Gold, MD was named the dean of Drexel University’s School of Public Health in 2002, and also serves as a professor at the school’s Department of Health Management and Policy. Dr. Gold has provided care for people with HIV/AIDS for more than 15 years, and is a national authority on the design and implementation of health and support services delivery systems to under and uninsured populations.
This year’s summit theme, Beyond Boundaries: A Blueprint for LGBTI Healthcare Equality, was designed to develop a long-term strategic plan for LGBTI health and wellness.
The summit’s leadership team included key figures from national LGBTI advocacy groups; local LGBTI health centers, such as summit host Mazzoni Center; the City of Philadelphia; researchers and educators from institutes and universities, including the Drexel School of Public Health; health care practitioners, and others.
Related Workshop/Plenary Sessions:
Wednesday March 14, 11:45 am – 12:15 pm
WORKSHOP: Multiple Jeopardy and Beyond: The Mental Health Trials and Tribulations of Being Black, Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered
Lisa Bowleg & Kelechi Uwaezuoke
This workshop will explore the mental health implications of belonging to both ethnic and sexual-orientation minorities, as well as coping with multiple minority stress and fostering resilience.
Lisa Bowleg is an associate professor at the Drexel University School of Public Health.
Kelechi Uwaezuoke's research interests include health disparities with a particular focus on HIV/AIDS. Her Community Based Master's Project is focused on developing a model for rapid HIV testing and patient risk referrals at St. Christopher's Children's Hospital.
Wednesday, March 14, 2007
PLENARY SESSION: "What is Risk? LGBTI Health and the Risk Paradigm"
Moderator: Michael Hinson is the Deputy Managing Director, City of Philadelphia
Speakers:
Lisa Bowleg, Associate Professor, Drexel University School of Public Health
Bill Jesdale, Department of Community Health, School of Medicine, Brown University
John Leonard, Senior Vice President, Better World Advertising, San Francisco, CA
Shane Snowdon, Director of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender & Intersex Resources, University of California San Francisco
Often times when speaking about our constituencies to outside parties, our work is permeated by terms like "at-risk," "crisis," "in need," "high-risk," etc. How do these terms and ideas represent a subtle pathologization of LGBTI communities? In this plenary, we hope to explore the ramifications of the current paradigm, and ask participants to look at the work we do in another perspective. Remarks by Stephen Glassman, Pennsylvania Human Relations Commission Chair, on behalf of the Hon. Edward G. Rendell, Governor of Pennsylvania
Thursday, March 15, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm
WORKSHOP: Developing Data for Advocacy, the Massachusetts Experience
Kerith Conron, Rebecca Fox, Stewart Landers, & Randy Sell
This workshop will focus on what data will grab a policy-maker's attention, as well as help identify where to find information about what is known to date about asking a question about sexual orientation on a large population health survey.
Randy Sell is an associate professor at the Drexel University School of Public Health.
Stewart Landers is an LGBT activist and researcher at John Snow, Inc. in Boston, MA
Kerith Conron is a doctoral candidate at the Harvard School of Public Health.
Friday, March 16, 3:15 pm – 4:15 pm
WORKSHOP: “Being Out Rocks!” … Well, It Depends Who You Talk To: Exploring the Experiences and Meaning of Coming Out Among Black Lesbians
Lisa Bowleg
Saturday, March 17, 12:30 pm – 2:00 pm
PLENARY SESSION: “The Body Politic: The Socio-political Health of our Communities”
Moderator: Joel Ginsberg, Executive Director, Gay and Lesbian Medical Association
Speakers:
George Ayala, Psy.D., Director of Education, AIDS Project Los Angeles (APLA)
Marla Gold, MD, Dean, Drexel School of Public Health
Lance Toma, LCSW, Executive Director, Asian and Pacific Islander Wellness Center
This plenary will examine how legal, political and physical health interact with one another, under the “umbrella” of LGBTI health.