A Congressional Briefing on

How SES, Race and Ethnicity Effect Health Outcomes and What to Do About It: Research on Minority Health Disparities

Monday, June 26, 2000

12:00 - 2:00 (Lunch will be served)

2168 Rayburn House Office Building (The Gold Room)

Health disparities, the differences in health outcomes and access to health services between socioeconomic classes and racial and ethnic groups is well documented. Despite gains made over the past few decades by many minorities in terms of socioeconomic class, Blacks, Hispanics and American Indians still do not enjoy the same level of health and well-being as the majority population.

This briefing will address ways in which health outcomes can be improved for racial and ethnic minorities by including behavioral research in federal health research initiatives.

Behavior is at the root of six of ten of the leading causes of death nationwide and there is evidence to suggest that behavior plays an even bigger role for minority populations in determining health and longevity. Therefore, behaviorally based research and subsequent behaviorally based treatment programs must be part of any attempt to lesson the gap between health outcomes of majority and minority Americans.

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Speakers:

Norman B. Anderson, Ph.D. --- Dr. Anderson is a professor of health and social behavior at Harvard University's School of Public Health. He is the former Director of the Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research at the National Institutes of Health. Dr. Anderson will moderate the program.

Hector Myers, Ph.D. --- Dr. Myers is a professor in the Department of Psychology at UCLA. He will speak about the biobehavioral effects on health outcomes, especially the role that stress plays in how race and ethnicity "get under the skin" to affect health.

David R. Williams, Ph.D --- Dr. Williams is a professor of sociology and a senior research scientist at the Institute for Social Research at the University of Michigan. Dr. Williams also serves as a faculty associate in the African American Mental Health Research Center and the Center for AfroAmerican and African Studies also at Michigan. His primary research interest is in the determinants of socioeconomic and racial variations in health.

Jeanne Miranda, Ph.D --- Dr. Miranda is an Associate Professor of psychiatry at Georgetown University Medical Center. She will discuss the sociocultural aspects of psychotherapy. Dr. Miranda believes that it is critical that we learn more effective ways providing mental health care to minority groups. Research has shown that while barriers exist to minorities' access to mental health services, once they engage such services they have outcomes similar to white patients.

Sponsored by:

American Psychological Association

Consortium of Social Science Associations

Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues

National Association of Social Workers

Please RSVP to Eva Vega, (202) 336-6062 by Friday, June 23 at 3 pm.

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