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BWH is part of a new effort to give readers of a Boston weekly newspaper health news they can use in an effort to fight against racial and ethnic disparities in health care.
The Bay State Banner, in collaboration with BWH, MGH, Partners HealthCare, Mayor Thomas Menino, the Boston Public Health Commission and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, is producing Be Healthy, a year-long print and online campaign with information on health topics linked with racial disparities.
“I believe this initiative is an important step toward ensuring health literacy in a community that has a higher burden of illness than others do,” said JudyAnn Bigby, MD, BWH’s director of Community Health Programs, who joined BWH’s Selwyn Rogers, MD, co-director of Surgical Critical Care and division chief of Trauma, Burns and Surgical Critical Care, James J. Mongan, Partners president and CEO, Mayor Menino and The Bay State Banner publisher and staff to launch the new program this month.
Each month, The Bay State Banner will include the new Be Healthy section to address topics including men’s health, cardiovascular disease, women’s cancers, asthma, stroke and other preventable diseases. Be Healthy provides information on prevention, community screenings, Q&A with physicians and other information and advice to improve the health of Boston residents.
Melvin Miller, publisher and editor of The Bay State Banner, said “The goal of Be Healthy is to let our readers know that by being informed, active participants in their own health care, they can live healthier lives and reduce the risks of disease that are all too common in our community.”
The first Be Healthy appeared in the Sept. 14 edition of The Bay State Banner and focused on men’s health. The section included information on the importance of good primary care, preventing heart disease, upcoming health screenings and a prostate cancer risk assessment quiz.