A Baltimore Sun Commentary on the Role of Faith-Based Groups in Ending Health Care Disparities

Lisa Cooper, MD, MPH (left) and Reverend Debra Hickman (right) of Sisters Together and Reaching (STAR, Inc.)

On Monday, November 22, 2021 the Baltimore Sun published a guest commentary co-authored by Center Director Dr. Lisa Cooper, Rev. Mary Ka Kanahan of St. John United Church (SJU) in Columbia, Maryland, and Reverend Debra Hickman of Sisters Together and Reaching, Inc. (STAR), discussing the role of faith-based groups in ending health care disparities.

“Even before the pandemic, churches, mosques, temples and synagogues have long provided the practical and spiritual support to generations of people historically denied access to public health resources. They are able to earn the trust of disenfranchised communities that often have good reason to doubt medical institutions and government health programs. There’s no reason they can’t do the same to ease COVID vaccination fears and concerns.”

The article profiles several health-faith partnerships, including the successful partnership between the Johns Hopkins Center for Health Equity (JHCHE) and a local Baltimore faith-based nonprofit, Sisters Together and Reaching, Inc. (STAR) and a fruitful partnership between the Center, SJU, where Dr. Cooper is a member, and local schools. To read more about this partnership, you can access the full article at the link below.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

Baltimore, Community Academic PShips, Lisa CooperCHE Team