The Southeast Asian American Community Health and Wellness Listening Session to be held October 20, 2015 at the Elmwood Community Center, 1106 New Britain Ave., West Hartford, CT

September 29, 2015 (MMD Newswire) — The Southeast Asian American Health Coalition, made up of mutual assistance associations for the Cambodian, Lao and Vietnamese communities in Connecticut, announces a community engagement event on October 20, 2015 at the Elmwood Community Center in West Hartford from 10 am to noon. Registration is from 8:30 to 10am and there is ample free parking.

Attendees will have an opportunity to tell their stories and dialog with other stakeholders about the State’s Health Innovation Model (SIM). This process is part of the strategy of the SIM Consumer Advisory Board to engage all people in Connecticut to actively be a part of creating a health care system that meets the access needs of the people and is able to improve health outcomes while reducing the cost of health care.

The “Listening Session” will engage the Southeast Asian community in discussions of health and wellness with experts in Southeast Asian health, healthcare providers, insurers, and policymakers for the purpose of exploring how our state’s new health care system can improve outcomes and save money while ensuring that all stakeholders have their voices heard in the planning of the new model.

Dr. D. J. Ida, the Executive Director of the National Asian American and Pacific Islander Mental Health Association, will moderate the session. Dr. Ida is an expert on integrated trauma-informed health care and was the primary author of Integrated Care for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Communities: A Blueprint for Action, a white paper commissioned by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health.

Sambo Ly, the director of Refugee Interpreter Services for the Alameda County Health Services, will join Dr. Ida. Sambo is a former refugee and author of All I heard was my Sorrow published in 2015. Alameda County Health Services is the first health agency in the United States to use interactive videoconferencing to deliver interpreting services to their diverse population. Sambo will share the model with the group as well as oversee the interpreting services in four languages at the listening session. Experts in Southeast Asian American health – Drs. Megan Berthold, Tom Buckley and Julie Wagner from the UCONN Schools of Social Work, Pharmacy and Behavioral Sciences and Community Health – will provide data on Connecticut’s Southeast Asian population.

This event is jointly sponsored by the State of Connecticut’s Consumer Advisory Board for the State’s Health Innovation Plan, Southeast Asian American Health Coalition and sponsors from provider groups, local businesses, and state foundations.

For additional information please contact: Theanvy Kuoch Executive Director of Khmer Health Advocates Member of the Consumer Advisory Board for the State’s Health Innovation Plan

Contact: Theanvy Kuoch Khmer Health Advocates Inc. Phone: (860-561-3345 Fax: (860-561-3538

SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN HEALTH COALITION 1125 New Britain Ave West Hartford, Ct 06110

Press release source: SOUTHEAST ASIAN AMERICAN HEALTH COALITION