A soaring number of 40 or more Black Women Physicians serving in Northwest Indiana were honored at the 5th Annual Northwest Indiana Regional Health Fair/Scholarship and Awards Luncheon/Recognition Program, MEN AND WOMEN “CELEBRATING HEALTHY HEARTS.” This special program was presented to salute underrepresented women practitioners who have selected to render their services to populations in urban and medically underserved areas.
The event was convened on Saturday, March 16, 2019, from 10:00 a.m. – 12:30 p.m., at the beautiful Genesis Convention Center, Gary, IN. The co-sponsors are Black Women Physicians Institute(BWP), led by Rose Green Thomas, EdD, President and CEO; and Community HealthNet Health Centers, Inc., headed by Janet Seabrook, MD/MBA, Executive Director. Together they invited regional health and educational organizations, business leaders, civic groups and individuals, including students to join them for this phenomenal occasion.
The City of Gary, Galilee Missionary Baptist Church, State Representative Earl L. Harris, Jr., (District 2), National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (Gary/Hammond Branches) and many others became engaged as co-hosts and program sponsors, along with health and designer vendors.
Program speakers included Drs. Thomas and Seabrook; the guest speaker, Dr. Jessica Williams, Cardiologist, who is a Gary native and BWP National Role Model. Dr. Williams provided a presentation on heart health diseases and an overview of her work at Porter Regional Hospital in Valparaiso, IN, as well as Dr. Rueben Rutland, Gary Health Commissioner and Gary Mayor Karen Freeman-Wilson.
The annual Dr. Rose M. Green Academic Medicine Scholarship was highlighted with a call for applications by the deadline date, May 30.
Plans are underway to convene a summer retreat for Black Women Physicians. The speakers urged attendees to collect health literature from the American Heart Association, the Association of Black Cardiologists and like organizations to assist them, family and friends, in recognizing the effects of heart diseases, which is the #1 Killer among women and men.
