Media Advisory: Where We Live Affects Our Health and Offers an Approach To Address Health Inequities

Dr. Shannon Zenk, Director of the National Institute of Nursing Research to speak

For Immediate Release:
Tuesday, November 17, 2020

WHAT:

The National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), part of the National Institutes of Health, presents the 2020 Stephen E. Straus Distinguished Lecture in the Science of Complementary Therapies: “All Health Is Not Created Equal: Where You Live Matters” by Shannon N. Zenk, Ph.D., M.P.H., R.N., F.A.A.N., Director of the National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR).

Social and economic factors, such as where a person lives, have powerful influences on people’s health. This applies to things such as access to healthy food, housing conditions, and availability of green space. Such factors affect risk of exposure and susceptibility to many diseases and conditions, including COVID-19, as well as a number of other health, functioning, and quality-of-life outcomes and risks.

Dr. Zenk will bring a unique perspective as a registered nurse and a leading population health scientist. In her presentation, she will explore the science behind social determinants of health and demonstrate how vital effective integrative or multilevel approaches are when addressing health and health inequities. She will also share how to better understand what affects people’s health and drives health disparities, and ultimately how to develop effective interventions to improve public health and eliminate inequities.

NCCIH’s annual Stephen E. Straus Distinguished Lecture in the Science of Complementary Therapies honors the founding director of NCCIH, Stephen E. Straus. M.D. (1946–2007) and features leading figures in science and medicine. The series is supported by the Foundation for the National Institutes of Health with a generous gift from Bernard and Barbro Osher.

WHEN:

“All Health Is Not Created Equal: Where You Live Matters”

Wednesday, December 9, 2020
Noon–1 p.m. ET

MEDIA:

For members of the media interested in covering the lecture, please contact the NCCIH press office at 301-496-7790 or nccihpress@mail.nih.gov

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About the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH):
NCCIH’s mission is to define, through rigorous scientific investigation, the usefulness and safety of complementary and integrative health approaches and their roles in improving health and health care. For additional information, call NCCIH’s Clearinghouse toll free at 1-888-644-6226. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook , and YouTube.

About the National Institutes of Health (NIH): NIH, the nation’s medical research agency, includes 27 Institutes and Centers and is a component of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. NIH is the primary federal agency conducting and supporting basic, clinical, and translational medical research, and is investigating the causes, treatments, and cures for both common and rare diseases. For more information about NIH and its programs, visit www.nih.gov.