Cornell establishes Center for Health Equity

Tompkins Weekly Staff

 

Researcher’s at Cornell University’s Weill School of Medicine have established a new center to study why health outcomes vary among demographic groups. The new center will be working with local organizations to study the causes of health disparity among minority communities, and use their findings to develop new interventions that can overcome adverse health outcomes caused by imbalances.

“The Cornell Center for Health Equity is a perfect reflection of our land-grant mission to develop and disseminate knowledge for the public good,” said President Martha E. Pollack in a press release from the University last week. “It also aligns with our focus on leveraging the strengths of our upstate and downstate campuses through collaborations that yield high-impact research, educational opportunities and benefits for local, national and global communities.”

The center will take a look at disparities in areas such as heart disease, stroke and cancer outcomes among disadvantaged minority communities, both in urban areas like New York City, and more rural areas in the upstate region.

“As physicians, it is our responsibility to ensure that everyone – regardless of where they live, their backgrounds and economic status – has access to quality health care so that they can live full, productive and healthy lives,” said Dr. Augustine M.K. Choi, the Stephen and Suzanne Weiss Dean of Weill Cornell Medicine and provost for medical affairs of Cornell University in the release. “The Cornell Center for Health Equity is an important step in ending health care disparities that affect the most vulnerable among us.”