International conference highlights South Asian Heart Health
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An international conference on South Asian cardiovascular health recently drew a crowd of roughly 300 healthcare professionals, policymakers and experts over the course of its three-day, hybrid format.
Sunita Dodani, MBBS, PhD, Founding Director of EVMS-Sentara Healthcare Analytics and Delivery Science Institute, Professor of Internal Medicine and a Fellow of the American Heart Association, was the lead organizer of the conference. She conceptualized the conference idea and developed the objectives, format, speaker lineup and conference program for “ Advancing South Asian Cardiovascular Health: Understanding Unique Risk Factors and Health Needs to Promote Shared Decision-Making,” held in New Brunswick, New Jersey.
Amanda Clarke, MS, HADSI’s Research and Community Outreach manager, was a member of the Conference Organizing Committee.
“This international conference brought together the voices of world-renowned experts in the field as well as patients and community members who live with heart disease in an effort to understand how collaborative decision-making can help improve heart health outcomes in South Asians in the United States,” Dr. Dodani says. “South Asians, among the fastest growing ethnic groups in the U.S., show high rates of heart disease, as compared to other populations. There is not enough research to examine their unique risks and develop effective ways to manage and care for their disease.”
In addition to serving as lead organizer, Dr. Dodani was the Chair of the Conference Scientific Committee and Co-Chair of the Conference Organizing Committee, along with Naveen Mehrotra, MD, CEO of the Shri Nidhi Krishna (SKN) Foundation of New Jersey.
Salim Yusuf, MD, D. Phil, Past President of the World Heart Federation, and Raj Bhopal, MD, former Chairman and Leader of the 19th World Congress of Epidemiology were the keynote speakers for the event. Both are highly regarded international experts in cardiovascular disease prevention and epidemiology. In addition, Donald Lloyd-Jones, MD, Immediate-Past President of the American Heart Association was one of the special guest speakers.
New Jersey State Senator Vin Gopal, U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone (N.J.-6) and U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (Wash.-7) also participated in the conference.
“It was invigorating to hear policymakers, cardiovascular health experts and healthcare professionals from around the world reaffirm their commitment to improving health outcomes for the South Asian community,” says Dr. Dodani, noting that a number of EVMS providers attended the event virtually.
The conference was organized through a partnership among the SKN Foundation, Rutgers University and St. Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick and supported by dozens of other sponsors and collaborating healthcare and medical education partners, including EVMS.