In this special episode, a ChicagoCHEC Fellows Alumnus -- Maxson Joseph -- talks with two high school students part of the UIC Champions Vaccination Cohort.

UIC Champions is a summer program with its goal of empowering Chicago youth to become community leaders, create pathways to health professions careers and advance health equity. More info at https://twitter.com/uic_champions

Join us at the upcoming event mentioned in the podcast!
 
Summer Youth Leadership Event: State of the Pandemic: What Youth and their Families Need to Know as Vaccine Eligibility Expands.

Scheduled for Saturday, June 5th from 11am-12pm CST, this event will feature Dr. Geraldine Luna, the Medical Director of the COVID-19 Initiative at the Chicago Department of Public Health and Dr. Melissa Simon, the Director of the Center for Health Equity Transformation. 

To register for this event, visit http://bit.ly/June5YLE.

Contact us at:
skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
skinnytreespodcast.com
@SkinnyTrees312 on Twitter

S2E11: Maxson Joseph talks with students from UIC Champions COVID-19 Vaccination Cohort

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with Dr. Rishi Agrawal, a pediatric hospitalist at La Rabida children's hospital - a partner of Lurie Children's Hospital. His research interests include health services research and advocacy for systems and policy improvement.

Topics include medicaid program in relation to pregnant women in Illinois.

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | Poor Medicaid Policies with Dr. Rishi Agrawal

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with Dr. Ashish Premkumar, a maternal-fetal medicine clinician/researcher at the John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County in Chicago, IL.  Topics include Adverse  Childhood Events (ACEs) and PTSD (Post Traumatic Stress Disorder) as it relates to pregnancy and birth outcomes.

Dr. Premkumar has a particular interest in merging social scientific theory with clinical education, practice, and research. He has pursued research focused on anthropological questions of risk, stigma, and inequity surrounding pregnancy, particularly among pregnant people with illicit substance use disorders. He also has performed work on racial and ethnic inequities in perinatal health outcomes, as well as the effects of sociopolitical and economic marginalization on adverse health outcomes during the peripartum period.

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | ACEs & PTSD in pregnancy with Dr. Ashish Premkumar

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with Dr. Carolyn Sufrin who is a medical anthropologist and obstetrician/gynecologist at Johns Hopkins School of Medicine.  She worked as a physician at the San Francisco jail from 2007-2013, where she started an onsite women's health specialty clinic.  Her work is dedicated to research, advocacy, and care for incarcerated women, especially at the intersection of health care and criminal justice system reform. 

Dr. Sufrin currently leads Advocacy and Research on Reproductive Wellness of Incarcerated People (ARRWIP). ARRWIP is a group of researchers examining the intersections of reproductive justice and the criminal legal system out of Johns Hopkins University. ARRWIP started with the Pregnancy in Prison Statistics (PIPS) Project: the first-ever systematic study of pregnancy outcomes from carceral institutions in the U.S. 

She is also author of the book JailCare: Finding the Safety Net for Women Behind Bars – published in 2017 that focuses on the experiences of incarcerated pregnant women as well as on the practices of the jail guards and health providers who care for them. Her book describes the contradictory ways that care and maternal identity emerge within a punitive space presumed to be devoid of care. 

RESOURCES:
•https://www.jailcare.org/

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | Pregnancy & Incarceration with Dr. Carolyn Sufrin

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with Dr. Kathryn (Katie) Schubert who is President and CEO of the Society for Women’s Health Research (SWHR), where she leads the organization’s efforts to promote research on sex as a biological variable and improve women’s health through science, policy and education.

RESOURCES:
- https://www.familyequality.org/resources/preparing-for-pregnancy-as-a-non-binary-person/
- https://www.acog.org/education-and-events/creog/curriculum-resources/additional-curricular-resources/transgender-health-care
- https://swhr.org/

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | Binary Gender Dynamics with Dr. Kathryn Schubert

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with Kelly Davis, MPA who is co-founder and Chief Equity Officer at KINSHIFT. KINSHIFT supports healthcare and public health transformation through evidence-based practices rooted in actionable principles of trauma-and-resilience-informed care and anti-racism. She's also the former Chief of Birth Equity Innovation at the National Birth Equity Collaborative (NBEC), which creates solutions to optimize Black maternal and infant health. 

Prior to NBEC, Ms. Davis led a series of innovative initiatives for the NYC Health Department (DOHMH). During her tenure at DOHMH, Ms. Davis led healthy eating and active living initiatives and served as one of the founding members of the Center for Health Equity, where she conceptualized the Family Wellness Suites, community respite and healing spaces for parents and children. Ms. Davis also spearheaded planning, implementation and oversight of several special initiatives, including the City’s first HIV public awareness campaign totally focused on women and a maternal morbidity and mortality initiative supporting 14 maternity hospitals in a long-term institutional transformation process that addresses structural racism, bias, resilience, and trauma-informed care.

RESOURCES:
- Physician-patient racial concordance and disparities in birthing mortality for newborns. (2020)
https://www.pnas.org/content/pnas/117/35/21194.full.pdf

- Black Maternal Health Research Re-Envisioned: Best Practices for the Conduct of Research With, For, and By Black Mamas. https://harvardlpr.com/wp-content/uploads/sites/20/2020/11/BMMA-Research-Working-Group.pdf

- The Cycle to Respectful Care: A Qualitative Approach to the Creation of an Actionable Framework to Address Maternal Outcome Disparities. (2021)
https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/18/9/4933/htm

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | Birth Equity with Kelly Davis, MPA

In this limited series of episodes, we have conversations with a variety of experts and community leaders in the field of maternal and child health to discuss how to advance maternal health equity.

In this episode we spoke with CHET Director/Founder -- Dr. Melissa Simon. Melissa A. Simon, MD, MPH  is the George H. Gardner Professor of Clinical Gynecology, Vice Chair of Research in the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. She is also the Founder and Director of the Center for Health Equity Transformation and the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative.  She serves as the Robert H. Lurie Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Associate Director for Community Outreach and Engagement. She is an expert in implementation science, women’s health across the lifespan, minority health, community engagement and health equity. 

She has been recognized with numerous awards for her substantial contribution to excellence in health equity scholarship, women’s health and mentorship, including her recent election to the National Academy of Medicine and the Association of American Physicians.  She has received the Presidential Award in Excellence in Science Mathematics and Engineering Mentorship and is a Presidential Leadership Scholar. She is a former member of the US Preventive Services Task Force and serves on the NIH Office of Research in Women’s Health Advisory Committee.

For more information on maternal health projects, please visit: 
- https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/sites/chet/
- https://well-mama.org/

"Well Mama" Maternal Health Limited Series | Dr. Melissa Simon

Join us in this special episode featuring the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (CHEC) Fellows Program 2023 cohort. This program brings undergrad and postbac students together in preparation for careers in social, behavioral, and biomedical research and in health care.

They share with us their experiences with the CHEC Fellows program including highlights and “aha” moments and how it has enriched their career paths.

Interested in joining ChicagoCHEC program in 2024?
- Applications open in November apply here:
https://chicagochec.org/fellows/

Contact us at:
skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
skinnytreespodcast.com
@SkinnyTrees312 on Twitter

2023 ChicagoCHEC Fellows: Reflections on Experience

Join us in this special episode featuring the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (CHEC) Fellows Program 2024 cohort. This program brings undergrad and postbac students together in preparation for careers in social, behavioral, and biomedical research and in health care.

They share with us their experiences with the CHEC Fellows program including highlights, insightful moments and how it has enriched their career paths.

Interested in joining ChicagoCHEC program in 2024?
- Applications accepted thru February 5, 2025 apply here:
chicagochec.org/fellows/

Contact us at:
skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
skinnytreespodcast.com
@HealthEquityNU on Twitter/X

2024 ChicagoCHEC Fellows: Reflections on Experience

In this special episode, our guest co-hosts are Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (ChicagoCHEC) Fellows Program Alumni David Bastos (Northwestern University) and Vanessa Pineda (University of Illinois at Chicago) sit down with Dr. Joe Feinglass, Research Professor at Northwestern University on health services with over 30 years of experience in health policy, quality improvement, health disparities, medical informatics, patient safety, womens' health and social epidemiology research with 250+ peer reviewed publications.

Their conversation focuses on the history and current state of the United States healthcare system.

For more information about the ChicagoCHEC Fellows Program, please visit chicagochec.org/fellows (our next application deadline is February 5th, 2025).

NOTE: This interview was recorded in September 2024.

Special Guest Hosts with Dr. Joe Feinglass on the U.S. Healthcare System

Join us as we celebrate Black History Month 2025 with our special guest Delores King, Founder/CEO of Livin' Through the Lenz -- a nonprofit that combines photo-based therapy and visual storytelling to aid healing.

https://www.livinthruthelenz.org/

Celebrating Black History Month: Delores King of Livin' Through the Lenz

Wrapping up our celebration of Black History Month (BHM) 2025, we are featuring a conversation with Dr. Paris Thomas, CEO of Equal Hope, as she shares her personal story and Equal Hope's mission to reduce women's healthcare disparities.

Equal Hope saves lives by tackling health inequities head-on by providing free breast and reproductive cancer services and resources to uninsured and underinsured people in need. Through research, quality assessment, advocacy, education, and patient navigation, Equal Hope takes a holistic approach to healthcare, working toward sustainable outcomes and true health equity.

https://equalhope.org/

Celebrating BHM 2025: Dr. Paris Thomas of Equal Hope

kimbra bell ep final

Dr. Kimbra Bell is a dynamic and accomplished physician with extensive experience in the medical field. She is an Assistant Professor of Clinical Medicine at Northwestern University Medical school and in 2021 was appointed as medical director of the new Northwestern Bronzeville Outpatient Care Center (open Fall 2025).

She is board certified in Internal Medicine and a fellow of the American College of Physicians.
Since 2000, she has successfully served as a staff member at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and has been recognized for her contributions throughout her tenure at Northwestern.

Dr. Bell joins us to talk about her journey and plans for the NM Bronzeville Outpatient Care Center.

Dr. Kimbra Bell Balark - Medical Director at Northwestern Medicine Bronzeville Outpatient Care Center

Episode 1 was created to set the scene for the content of Skinny Trees and the reoccurring themes we will discuss over the next 6 months of season 1. We interview Dr. Melissa Simon to better understand the landscape of health equity and to learn more about the varying terms of health disparities/inequality/inequities.

Intro Music:
Artist: Elizabeth Breen and Band
Album: Havin' Stuff and Bein' Pretty
Song Title: The Heat

5 in 5 Music:
Tone Jonez
www.tonejonez.com

Outro Music:
Tone Jonez
www.tonejonez.com

skinnytreesepisodeOctober31.2

SkinnyTreesEpisode1October31.2

EPISODE 2 | On ‘Breaking the Rules’ with one of Chicago’s most prominent Social Activists, Dr. Linda Rae Murray.

www.skinnytreespodcast.com

CHARGED. HAPPY. HOSTILE. ENRAGED. HOPEFUL. DISAPPOINTED.
How do you feel about the last month?
We have a new {future} President. We have a changing America.
On Episode 2, we dive a little deeper into this…

Dr. Murray is one of the largest personalities we will most likely ever to have grace Skinny Trees and is quick to have an unfiltered, real-talk, open conversation about things that are on her heart. A social activist, educator, clinician, and self-proclaimed revolutionary, Dr. Murray has spent her long career giving a voice to the medically undeserved.

Having graduated from UIC medical school, Dr. Murray started her medical career at Cook County Hospital, where she ultimately went on to become the Chief Medical Officer of Primary Care & Community Health. Throughout her career, she held high-level positions at community-based clinics throughout Chicago, such as Near North and Woodlawn Health Center, held an appointment as the Medical Director of the Manitoba Federation of Labour in Canada, and became the President of the American Public Health Association (APHA). Throughout it all, she has stood as a strong voice for patient care of the uninsured and underinsured, for students – specifically those of color, and for the justice of marginalized populations.

We sat down with Dr. Murray on a cold, Friday morning in her home to discuss her take on politics, education, healthcare, breaking the rules, and the overall changing climate of America.

We’d like to especially thank Da In Lee who interviewed students to get their reaction regarding the election- this was played in the intro of this podcast, to Kurt Swan Jr. for a student music submission (outro music) from Black Swan Productions, and to Tone Jonez.

Intro:

Rage Donate
Trump and the Affordable Care Act (ACA)
The Illinois ACA Marketplace
Frustrations with the ACA
Uninsured individuals gaining healthcare coverage via the ACA
Benefits of the ACA – specifically for people of color
Medicaid Expansion
Chicago as a Sanctuary City: here, here & here 
 

Interview with Dr. Linda Rae Murray:

“Sometimes it pays to break the rules” – Dr. Murray
Fee for Service
Canada’s Healthcare System
Pipeline Programs
Under-funding education in IL
Dr. Steve Whitman: here & here
Project Brotherhood
Cook County Trauma Unit
Woodlawn Health Center
Black Reconstruction by W.E.B Du Bois: here & here
In the Shadow of the Poorhouse by Michael Katz
The Philadelphia Negro by W.E.B Du Bois: here & here
 

Outro:

ChicagoCHEC 2017 Summer Research Fellows Program
Kurt Swan Jr.
Tone Jonez – Song title: Freedom
 www.skinnytreespodcast.com

SkinnyTreesEpisode2

EPISODE 2: Breaking the Rules’ with One of Chicago’s Dr. Linda Rae Murray

In this episode, we sit down with Dr. Julie Morita, former Commissioner of the Chicago Department of Public Health and currently the Executive Vice President at the RWJF (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)"overseeing all programming, policy, research, and communications activities in support of its vision of building a Culture of Health in America in which everyone has a fair and just opportunity for health and well-being." 

In our interview, we discuss Dr. Morita's past accomplishments, her views on health equity and what motivated her to get into public health. We also touch upon e-cigarettes, vaccinations, Healthy Chicago 2.0, working with diverse stakeholders and what's next for Dr. Morita. 

Contact us: 
- skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
-twitter.com/skinnytrees312 

Links and mentions (in order of appearance): 
• West Side United westsideunited.org/ 
• Elevate Chicago www.elevatedchicago.org/ 
• Nurse Nancy Golden Books www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/85921…0375832628/ 
• RWJF (Robert Wood Johnson Foundation)www.rwjf.org/en/how-we-work/bui…ure-of-health.html 
• Flu Pandemic 2009 www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/…0_PandemicFlu.pdf 
• Ebola virus and coordinated response academic.oup.com/cid/article/61/10/1554/301627 
• Immunizations work - HPV vaccine campaign www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdp…et-hpv-vacci.html 
• Tobacco 21+ policy advocacy work www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/may…nerTestifies.html 
• Chicago Health Atlas www.chicagohealthatlas.org/ 
• Plan to End Homelessness www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/fss…homelessness.html 
• Jonathan Fielding former LA County health commissioner ph.ucla.edu/faculty/fielding 
• Seeing White Series podcast www.sceneonradio.org/ 
• Building Healthy Places Community Development buildhealthyplaces.org/principles-fo…-communities/ 
• Healthy Chicago 2.0 www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdp…althychicago.html  

Books/Podcast Recommendations: 
- Building Healthy Places Making the Case for linking community development and health www.buildhealthyplaces.org/resources/m…and-health/ 
- The Very Persistent Gappers of Frip by George Saunders www.georgesaundersbooks.com/the-very-pe…ers-of-frip 
- Freakonomics Radio Podcast freakonomics.com/ 
- Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver www.animalvegetablemiracle.com/book.htm 
- Decomposed Podcast with Jade Simmons podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/deco…ns/id1458565545 
- Sharp Objects by Gillian Flynn www.amazon.com/Sharp-Objects-Gil…ynn/dp/0307341550 
- Latino USA podcast by NPR www.npr.org/podcasts/510016/latino-usa

S2E2: Dr. Julie Morita fmr. Commissioner of Chicago Dept. of Public Health & Current EVP at RWJF

In this episode, we sat down with Dr. Clyde Yancy -- Vice Dean for Diversity & Inclusion and Chief of Cardiology in the Department of Medicine at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine (NUFSM).

In our discussion we covered the dangers of implicit bias in healthcare, addressing inequities in academic medical institutions, and how Dr. Yancy’s upbringing and experience has informed his research and practice.

For more information on NUFSM’s Office of Diversity and Inclusion please visit https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/diversity/

For more information on the Center for Health Equity Transformation please visit us at:
https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/sites/chet/

Books recommended by Dr. Clyde Yancy:

Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking by Malcolm Gladwell
https://www.hachettebookgroup.com/titles/malcolm-gladwell/blink/9780316010665/

Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World—and Why Things Are Better Than You Think by Hans Rosling , Anna Rosling Rönnlund , et al.
https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250107817

Contact Us:
https://twitter.com/skinnytrees312
https://skinnytreespodcast.com/
Skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com

Outro music provided by:
- https://soundcloud.com/jbpositivemusic

S2E4: Straight Talk about Biases in Healthcare with Dr. Clyde Yancy

Join us as we talk about the inequities surrounding gun violence with our Strategic Operations Director Samantha Alonis as she leads the discussion with Noam Ostrander (DePaul University) and Terry Williams (UIC) from the Chicago Gun Violence Research Collaborative, with special guest Valerie Burgest from the Illinois Chapter of Moms Demand Action. We cover how gun violence affects quality of life for everyone, community-driven research framework, and policies and programs aimed at preventing gun violence.

CONTACT US:
- skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
- twitter.com/skinnytrees312

Resources:
• https://heyjackass.com/ - statistics on gun violence
• https://www.cgvrc.org/ - Chicago Gun Violence Research Collaborative
• https://momsdemandaction.org/ - Moms Demand Action 
• http://www.thinkoutsidedablock.org/#about
• https://ragenglewood.org/ - Resident Association of Greater Englewood (Chicago)
• https://www.teamworkenglewood.org/index.php
• UIC Police PACE program - https://police.uic.edu/about-us/administrative-support-division/pace/
• Good Kids Mad City - https://www.facebook.com/GKMC2018/
• Chicago Survivors - https://chicagosurvivors.org/
• WTTW's First Hand Gun Violence - https://interactive.wttw.com/firsthand/gun-violence

Guests' Recommendations:

Natalie Moore book - The South Side https://us.macmillan.com/books/9781250118332

Eric Thomas - Motivational Speaker
https://etinspires.com/home

DISCLAIMER:
The personal and professional opinions and views of Terry Williams during this podcast do not represent the views and opinions of the University of Illinois Systems or the University of Illinois at Chicago Police Department. Terry Williams' views and opinions are independent.

S2E5: Preventing Gun Violence in Chicago ft. Noam Ostrander, Terry Williams & Valerie Burgest

In this episode we sit with Dr. Fernando De Maio and Dr. Raj Shah. Together they are co-directors of the Center for Community Health Equity -- a collaboration between DePaul and Rush University -- founded in 2015. They are also co-editors of “Community Health Equity: A Chicago Reader” -- released in April 2019. We discuss the book as a framework to understand the arc of the public health story in Chicago. We also cover topics such as structural violence, racism, and how to conduct more useful and accessible research for underserved communities here in Chicago.

CONTACT US: 
– skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com 
– twitter.com/skinnytrees312 

RESOURCES AND MENTIONS: 
- Center for Community Health Equity: https://healthequitychicago.org/
- Interviews with key researchers: https://healthequitychicago.org/our-work/voices-of-health-equity/  
- Community Health Equity: A Chicago Reader: https://www.press.uchicago.edu/ucp/books/book/chicago/C/bo36366389.html
- Teachers’ Guide: https://healthequitychicago.org/get-involved/chicago-reader%20-teaching-guide/
- The Virginia Commonwealth University Mapping Life Expectancy Project:
- https://societyhealth.vcu.edu/work/the-projects/mapping-life-expectancy.html 
- The Alliance for Health Equity: https://allhealthequity.org/ 
- West Side United: https://westsideunited.org/ 
- WHO = World Health Organization; https://www.who.int/
- Health Equity Social Justice Conference (Summer 2020 date TBD)
- Chicago Department of Public Health; https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/cdph.html

Guests’ Recommendations: 
From Dr. Fernando De Maio, DePaul University 
- Any book by Dr. Paul Farmer: https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/6684.Paul_Farmer 

From Dr. Raj Shah, Rush:
- How to be an Anti-Racist by Ibram X. Kendi, https://www.ibramxkendi.com/books-1 

Interested in research opportunities at CHET? 
– Visit https://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/sites/chet/education/index.html 

Outro music provided by: 
-JB Positive Music: @jbpositivemusic

S2E6: “Community Health Equity: A Chicago Reader” with Raj Shah, MD & Fernando De Maio, PhD

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

Each mini episode will focus on a different community in Chicago to find out how they are coping with these difficult times. This episode features our colleagues, Maggie Nava and Edgardo Ramirez interviewing Dolores Castañeda. 

Dolores is a longtime community health advocate and a research assistant at the University of Illinois at Chicago’s Center for Healthy Work. She is investigating the way precarious work affects black and brown communities and their health.

Find more resources on COVID-19 on the City of Chicago's website:
www.chicago.gov/city/en/sites/covid-19/home.html

Contact us at:
-skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
-twitter.com/skinnytrees312

Mini-Ep02: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Dolores Castaneda, Little Village

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

Each mini episode will focus on a different community in Chicago to find out how they are coping with these difficult times. This episode features our colleague, Araceli Estrada interviewing Renee Flores, she is a registered nurse and a Home Telehealth Care Coordinator at the Department of Veterans Affairs.

Mini-Ep03: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Renee Flores, RN, BSN Dept of Veterans Affairs

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

Each mini episode will focus on a different community in Chicago to find out how they are coping with these difficult times. This episode features our colleague, Ivy Leung interviewing Dr. Marcus Wong. He is an emergency medicine resident at University of Illinois in Chicago, currently rotating at Advocate Lutheran Hospital located in Park Ridge.

Mini-Ep04: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Marcus Wong, MD

This episode was recorded on April 9th, 2020. 

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

This episode features our co-host, Rabih Dahdouh, interviewing Fred Raz, a registered nurse at University of Illinois in Chicago Hospital Health Sciences System. He is currently supporting our city’s efforts to combat coronavirus by administering COVID-19 drive-thru tests.

Mini-Ep05: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Fred Raz, RN

This episode was recorded on April 20th, 2020.

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

This episode features our co-host, Ivy Leung, interviewing Grace Chan, a long-time community activist and the executive director of the Coalition for Better Chinese American Community.
 
Resources Mentioned in this Episode:
*CBCAC Website and Hotline
https://cbcacchicago.org/

*Bridgeport mutual aid system
https://www.facebook.com/GBMAChicago/

*Asian American Advancing Justice: Reporting Hotline 
https://www.advancingjustice-aajc.org/covid19

Mini-Ep06: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Grace Chan

Note: This episode was recorded on March 12, 2020, just days before the Governor of Illinois instituted a stay-at-home order due to the coronavirus outbreak.

In this episode we connected with Kimberly Soenen (short bio below) to discuss the importance of language in health and her ongoing art exhibit "SOME PEOPLE" (Every)Body. The ongoing project examines the ethics, people, processes, and systems that constitute the maintenance of, and barriers to, health for human beings. With this exhibition, the group of high performing contributing artists, photographers, essayists and physicians are asking the seminal question of our time: How do people define "health insurance," "healthcare,” “Public Health” and "health?”

Contact:  
https://www.somepeopleeverybody.com/
@SomePeopleEveryBody
https://www.instagram.com/somepeopleeverybody/
KimberlyJSoenen@Gmail.com

Episode photo caption: Youth. Paul Michael at the Dunes. 
Photo by Kimberly J. Soenen.

Outro Music Credits:
Original Music by Wilson Tanner Smith on piano - “Freddie" (2013)

S2E07: “SOME PEOPLE” (Every)Body. Art, Health & Language with Kimberly J. Soenen

This episode was recorded on May 4, 2020.

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing social distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

This episode features our co-host, Rabih Dahdouh, interviewing Dr. Garth Walker, MD, MPH who is an emergency medicine attending physician at the Jesse Brown Veteran Affairs Hospital. Dr. Walker is post-doctoral trainee at our Center for Health Equity Transformation working with the Northwestern Medicine Emergency Department and Northwestern Buehler Center for Health Policy and Economics investigating social determinants of health in firearm injury recidivism and healthcare disparities related to opioid mortalities. 

Dr. Walker is also co-founder, chief medical officer and head of innovation for Clinify Inc. A tech platform that utilizes social determinant of health indicators to improve patient engagement, healthcare outcomes and reduce healthcare cost for vulnerable populations. More info here: https://www.clinifyhealth.com/

Mini-Ep07: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Garth Walker, MD, MPH

NOTE: This episode was recorded in October 2019.

The SkinnyTrees podcast team took a field trip to an urban farm on Chicago’s south side. Founded in 2017, the Urban Growers Collective (UGC) aims to address the inequities and structural racism that exist in the food system and in underserved communities. Their vision is to use urban agriculture to cultivate pathways to freedom through food and healing. Their goal is to build economic opportunity for Chicago’s youth; reduce food insecurity, and increase access to affordable fresh produce and healthy food. UGC operates eight urban farms on 11-acers of land predominantly located on Chicago’s South Side.

More info at: https://blockclubchicago.org/2020/08/07/32-million-auburn-gresham-urban-farm-coming-to-life-after-state-grants-last-2-million-to-project/

Guests:
Malcolm Evans, Production Manager
https://urbangrowerscollective.org/team/malcolmevans/

CONTACT US: 
– skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com 
– twitter.com/skinnytrees312 

Outro music provided by: 
-JB Positive Music: @jbpositivemusic

S2E08: Urban Growers Collective | Food Access & Justice in Chicago

NOTE: This episode was recorded on January 9th, 2020.

Our guest for this special episode during Hispanic Heritage Month is José López – a prominent community leader and Executive Director of The Puerto Rican Cultural Center in Chicago, which he co-founded in 1973. He has written extensively on the political and social reality of Puerto Ricans in the United States while serving as an adjunct instructor at Northeastern Illinois University, Columbia College and the University of Illinois at Chicago.

Your host for this episode is Maggie Nava – a longtime community advocate from our Center for Health Equity Transformation - who currently serves as Site Director for the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative at Northwestern University.

Featured Guest:
- José López, more info and bio available here:
https://www.chicagomag.com/Chicago-Magazine/November-2014/Jose-Lopez-Humboldt-Park/

CONTACT US:
– skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
– twitter.com/skinnytrees312

Outro music:
- "Coco" performed Live at WFMU on Transpacific Sound Paradise with Rob Weisberg, 10/26/2015 by Radio Jarocho and Zenen Zeferino Huervo is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 License.

S2E09: José López on Humboldt Park, Puerto Rican Culture & Identity in Chicago

This episode was recorded on May 11, 2020.

Thank you for joining us on SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All. We like many of our fellow Chicagoans, are staying home and practicing physical distancing to flatten the curve. We are here to present a mini-series: COVID-19 in our Chicago communities.

This episode features our co-host Araceli Estrada interviewing Greg Trotter, Senior Public Relations Manager, the spokesperson for the Greater Chicago Food Depository. He was a food business reporter for the Chicago Tribute where he often wrote stories about SNAP benefits and inequities in access to food. He strongly believes that no one should go hungry!

Chicago Greater Food Depository Find Food Map: https://www.chicagosfoodbank.org/find-food/
Donate to the Chicago Greater Food Depository: https://secure2.convio.net/gcfd/site/Donation2?8743.donation=form1&df_id=8743&mfc_pref=T

Mini-Ep08: COVID-19 in Chicago Communities | Greg Trotter from the Greater Chicago Food Depository

Join us in this special episode featuring the Chicago Cancer Health Equity Collaborative (CHEC) Fellows Program 2020 cohort. This program brings undergrad and postbac students together in preparation for careers in social, behavioral, and biomedical research and in health care. 

They share with us their experiences with the CHEC Fellows during a pandemic and ongoing social unrest, program highlights and “aha” moments from summer 2020 and how it has enriched their career paths.

Interested in joining ChicagoCHEC program in 2021?
- Applications NOW open until March 1st, 2021: 
https://chicagochec.org/opportunities/education-training-programs/research-fellows/

- Find out more at https://chicagochec.org

Background music from FreeMusicArchive.org licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0:
- We Are Stardust by Ketsa
- Mountain Flowers by Siddhartha Corsus
- Ode to Awareness by Siddhartha Corsus
- Gazing by Andy G. Cohen
- maria durch ein dornwald ging by Dee Yan-Key
- Floating in Clouds by Lobo Loco
- Drift Release by Ketsa
- Bye Bye by Crowander
- Slow Rising by Ketsa
- Empire of Light by Siddhartha Corsus
- New Soul by Ketsa
- Flash by Yung Kartz
- Confused by Maikaih Beats

Contact us at:
skinnytreespodcast@gmail.com
skinnytreespodcast.com
@SkinnyTrees312 on Twitter

S2E10: Reflections on CHEC Fellows Program 2020

SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All – is a podcast from the Simon Research Lab at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine hearing voices from the research and community world with a focus on health equity. Conversations and interviews will discuss the importance of achieving health equity, highlighting health disparities, and exploring innovative ways to improve health for all.

SkinnyTrees: Lift Health for All

Popular tracks