Hispanic American Champions Changing the Landscape of Health Equity

National Hispanic Heritage Month is celebrated every year from September 15 to October 15, highlighting the vast contributions and influence of Hispanic Americans to the history, culture, and achievements of our country. The Center for Community Health & Prevention is proud to spotlight Hispanic American champions making a positive difference in community-identified priority health issues and inequities impacting the Rochester and Finger Lakes region. These changemakers are just a handful of Hispanic American leaders moving the needle across our institution.

Telva Olivares, MD

Panama

Through her dedicated work in diversity, equity, inclusion and justice (DEIJ), especially around mental health, Telva Olivares, MD, is making a profound impact for the health of underserved communities. A professor of Clinical Psychiatry and Clinical Medicine at the University of Rochester Medical Center (URMC), Olivares is also the director of Lazos Fuertes, a mental health program for Latinos, within the Department of Psychiatry.

Olivares serves as the associate chair of Diversity, Inclusion, Culture and Equity (DICE) in the Department of Psychiatry and was recently appointed as the interim senior associate dean for Equity & Inclusion at the University of Rochester School of Medicine & Dentistry. She remains committed to developing services that improve healthcare disparities observed in some underserved complex populations, specifically the severely and persistent mentally ill (SPMI) and Latino populations, using evidence-based patient-centered preventive care practices.

Language equity is also an important piece of Olivares’ efforts. As the head of the Language Equity Taskforce, an initiative made possible with a dedicated team, she leads the charge in ensuring everyone, of any national origin, feels welcome and heard when receiving care. A needs assessment, review of best practices at other medical centers, and an evaluation of the laws and regulations that guide language access at our institution are all helping to create a language equity strategic multi-year plan that will address all aspects of language communication with patients at all points of contact.

“I love what I do,” shares Olivares. “Working with underrepresented communities and helping move our institution forward in providing equitable care has been a core value of my career. I can think of no better antidote to ‘burn out’ than loving what you do.”

Maria Gaitan

Nicaragua

An epidemiologist at URMC’s Center for Community Health & Prevention (CCHP), Maria Gaitan has worked for the University of Rochester for two decades. Her roles have ranged from being an office manager at an OBGYN office to working as a case manager with the Women’s Health Partnership, now the Cancer Services Program of the Finger Lakes Region. Her work in public health surveillance with the NYS Emerging Infections Program (EIP), housed at CCHP, started in 2010. The NYS EIP is part of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) national effort to provide population-based communicable disease data to identify disease patterns, evaluate vaccine programs, and to identify populations at risk.

Gaitan’s work at the Center focuses on surveillance for hospitalizations related to influenza (flu) in Monroe County and six surrounding counties of the Finger Lakes region as part of CDC’s Respiratory Virus Hospitalization Surveillance Network (RESP-NET). As the lead influenza surveillance officer, Gaitan is responsible for collecting data to characterize persons hospitalized with influenza, collaborating with local laboratory, hospital and nursing home infection prevention partners, and sharing data with CDC and the local clinical community.

In 2017, she was recognized with the “Outstanding Contribution to Infection Prevention” award by the Rochester Finger Lakes chapter of the Association for Professionals in Infection Control and Epidemiology. Gaitan’s commitment to public health and disease prevention continues to make a difference in the Rochester community, and beyond. The data provided by her and her team at the Center, especially during flu season, helps inform vaccine effectiveness, as well as other preventive measures related to respiratory diseases.

“Working on public health surveillance has been a rewarding experience,” shares Gaitan. “Having a medical background from my home country allows me to apply this knowledge and helps me appreciate the impact of the data collection and analysis process, as well as the reach it has when we share our findings with local and national health authorities. I will forever be grateful for the opportunity to be part of my amazing EIP family!”

Conner Lorenzo, MS, ATC, CSCS

Puerto Rico

Conner Lorenzo is the director of operations for Fitness Science, a research-based program from UR Medicine’s Orthopaedics & Physical Performance. A certified strength and conditioning specialist and board-certified athletic trainer, Lorenzo has performance/movement credentials in several areas, including USA weightlifting and functional movement systems. He started working with URMC in the Sport and Spine Rehabilitation division and transitioned to the Fitness Science team as a program coordinator in 2020, bringing his expertise and first-hand experience from both working in and playing professional sports. Lorenzo played baseball in the PECOS League and, following his master's program, worked with the Buffalo Bills.

The Fitness Science program works with both individuals and groups, from those new to physical activity to elite athletes, creating a custom plan to meet their personal performance, fitness, and health goals. From helping athletes reach their fullest potential, to supporting adults in living an active lifestyle despite any chronic conditions, Fitness Science, and the work Lorenzo does, is making a significant impact on the health and wellness of our community.

“Working in this field has been a dream come true,” shares Lorenzo. “Improving peoples’ physical performance and well-being is something that will benefit them for their entire life. I do not take that impact lightly.”

Ramón Cruz, TTS

Dominican Republic

Ramón Cruz joined the Center for Community Health & Prevention’s clinical team as a lifestyle counselor and tobacco treatment specialist in the fall of 2023. Cruz co-facilitates the Center’s Commit to Quit! group program, a free six-week virtual program that provides education and support for individuals looking to cut back and/or quit smoking or vaping. The group setting offers participants the chance to learn from one another while sharing successes and challenges.

Cruz also works one-on-one with patients, supporting them in discovering new strategies that work for their personal goals and, ultimately, lead them to a smoke-free lifestyle. Cruz is bilingual, fluent in both Spanish and English, and proud to provide Spanish-speaking patients nicotine cessation support in their primary language.

“My Spanish-speaking patients often tell me they feel their values and identity are more understood given my background and upbringing as a first-generation American,” he shares. “It helps build trust.”

AnaPaula Cupertino, PhD

Brazil

AnaPaula (Paula) Cupertino, PhD, is a professor of Public Health Sciences and Oncology and the associate director of Community Outreach & Engagement at Wilmot Cancer Institute. A social behavioral scientist in cancer primary prevention, she has focused her research on health inequities and disparities in underserved and minority communities, primarily among Latinos and immigrants.

For the last four years, Cupertino has worked diligently to strengthen and expand Wilmot’s research and community partnerships across its 27-county catchment area in upstate New York. She is trilingual, fluent in English, Spanish, and Portuguese, and an expert in community-driven research in the Latino immigrant communities in the U.S., Puerto Rico, Mexico, and Brazil.

A highlight of her career is her community-based research to develop the Decidetexto, the first culturally and linguistically sensitive mobile smoking cessation intervention to overcome the multiple barriers to healthcare access and treatment faced by Latinos. About 34 percent (34.1) of the participants in the Decídetexto group self-reported smoking abstinence at six months compared to about 21 percent (20.6) of participants in the standard care group. Currently, Cupertino is a co- investigator of the second mobile smoking cessation randomized clinical trial study for Latinos. 

One of Cupertino’s passion projects is with the URMC Department of Surgery’s Transforming-Culture with Inclusion Diversity and Equity in Surgery (TIDES) program. Formed in 2022, TIDES focuses on creating positive and constructive experiences for underserved community members. Efforts have included equipping trainees, faculty, and staff with medical equity curriculum that offers intentional strategies fostering representation of the communities we serve, inclusivity in recruitment and retention, and the creation of the innovative Teen Anti-Violence Alliance (TAVA).

The TAVA program has paired 20 teens with medical professionals to explore healthcare fields, learn life-saving techniques like CPR, acquire clinical skills, work in medical stimulation, and more. TAVA, developed by EnCompass, the URMC Department of Surgery, and the Teen Health & Success Partnership program with the CCHP, also gives students opportunities to work on their college application, personal statement, and apply for a job with the University of Rochester. Most importantly, students co-create solutions to stop the alarming violence rates in our communities. Equipped with knowledge about structural racism, violence, health inequities, and anti-violence, scholars develop and execute a multi-media, anti-violence campaign.

Cupertino’s passion for community outreach and partnership, and dedication to her work in helping eliminate healthcare disparities faced by underrepresented minority communities has already made a tremendous impact and continues to pave the way for change.

“During Hispanic Heritage Month, I take the time to reflect on my own trajectory as a Latina for the past 27 years, my past and current Latino mentees, and my Latino community partners,” shares Cupertino. “It gives me energy to see Latino health as a URMC priority.”