The Chicago School is dedicated to preparing change-makers to make a positive impact on their communities. One way we do this is by addressing health disparities through research and community partnerships.
Health disparities refer to the differences in health outcomes and healthcare access among various population groups, often shaped by social, economic, and environmental factors. These disparities disproportionately affect racial and ethnic minorities, low-income populations, rural residents, and other marginalized groups, leading to significant gaps in overall health.
We sat down with two instructors and a graduate student, who shared how The Chicago School is working to address these disparities.
- Nadia Rojas Jones, Ed.D., LMFT: Professor in the Marriage and Family Therapy Department and the associate director of Community Partnerships
- Rodney Harris, Ph.D., LCMHCS: Associate professor in the Counseling Education Department and director of the Virtual Clinical Training Center
- Jane Hirsch: Mental health therapist and doctoral candidate
Hear firsthand how The Chicago School students, faculty, and community partners are cultivating a more equitable healthcare landscape.
In your expertise, how do health disparities affect the entire community?
Dr. Jones: Health disparities can have a profound impact on overall health. In particular, the lack of services in mental health—coupled with a lack of cultural sensitivity in the healthcare system—can lead to severe illnesses and death.
Jane Hirsch: My community is predominantly Black and Latinx. There is a severe lack of access to medical help, mental health services, dentistry, and more. We tried to get a grant to open a satellite of our Virtual Clinic Training Center (VCTC), but the government grant system said that the community did not qualify. This experience showed me how a lack of access to federal funding can contribute to perpetuating these disparities.
How does The Chicago School reflect on health disparities in the curriculum?
Jane Hirsch: As a student, I’ve seen health disparities addressed within conversations about social justice and equity. It’s a big part of the curriculum at The Chicago School.
Dr. Harris: I integrate praxis—theory and practice—in my curriculum. It is imperative that multiculturalism and how it impacts learners is discussed throughout the curriculum. We create experiential learning opportunities through our live labs, our community counseling clinic, and advocacy projects.
Dr. Jones: We want to extend our learning beyond the classroom and make learning practical. We also want to impress on our learners the importance of advocacy—particularly for vulnerable populations.
In my Law and Ethics class, we address the importance of doing pro bono, scholarship, or sliding scale work to address health disparities, as well as supervising agencies and practices that lack these sensitivities. We directly impact health disparities during practicum when the students are all placed in low-income agencies, school-based settings, and practices.
What are some of The Chicago School’s local initiatives, organizations, and partnerships working to address health disparities?
Dr. Jones: The Chicago School makes a huge impact on healthcare in our communities, particularly via partnerships and admissions—and now through expanding with the school of medicine to address more topics.
Dr. Harris: My expertise is specifically on Black and Brown communities that are disproportionately impacted by physical and mental health disparities. We have partnered with various local businesses and community nonprofits (e.g., Village of CARE, Lit4 Wake, North Wake Regional Center, and Eastern Wake Regional Center) on various projects.
As a community leader at The Chicago School, what are you doing locally to address health disparities?
Jane Hirsch: With support from Dr. Foster, Dr. Harris, and Dr. Dickson, efforts are in place to try opening a VCTC satellite office for the community to engage in telehealth counseling. This helps improve access, affordability, and quality of care—particularly for marginalized and underserved populations.
Dr. Jones: I enjoy “walking the walk” with my students and not just talking about it. We provide service learning activities that are linked to our syllabus and outcomes. This allows students to engage in serving the community by providing quality socio-emotional support in their first years and quality mental health services in their last year while on practicum.
I develop partnerships and take them on walks such as the suicide awareness walk, so they can get immersed from the beginning in these issues. I also provide some fellowships for students to serve the community and mentoring through the Social Justice Leadership Academy.
Dr. Harris: I’m working with barbershops and other communal areas to cultivate “brave and safe spaces” that address disease disparities.
What are some examples of specific community projects in action?
Dr. Harris: There are several initiatives that have had a lasting impact on our community.
- Bringing preventative care to barbershops: On a quarterly basis, we bring nurses from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill to conduct blood pressure drives at 15 barbershops throughout my community. This engagement has monitored more than 500 men of all races who are invested in their heart health and allowed us to also address depression, anxiety, and stress.
- Bringing COVID-19 vaccinations to the elderly: On one project, we (The Virtual Clinical Training Center) assisted the elderly in registering for the COVID-19 vaccinations. We received data from the CDC that there was a low vaccination rate where we utilized office space with one of our community partners.
- Increasing vaccination within predominantly Black communities: We had a discussion with some of our learners and implemented a marketing campaign to contact Black fraternities and sororities and target churches in Wilson, North Caroline, to increase their vaccination numbers. We also had some of the participants call us so we could enroll them for their appointments, and we coordinated with the community partners to provide transportation. This was a successful intervention that saved lives and removed a technological barrier impacting one of our most vulnerable populations.
- Creating an open forum for dialogue: Within the barbershops and other community locations, we hosted “Ask the Doc,” a space where the public can ask doctors questions. We brought in psychiatrists, gynecologists, and pediatricians.
- Suicide prevention: Most importantly, we have addressed suicide as it has become a greater public health crisis. Our clinic coordinated the distribution of more than 750 gun locks within our community at barbershops and community functions throughout Raleigh, North Carolina. We have also placed Narcan in barbershops. These efforts help solidify the barbershop as a safe and brave space.
Ongoing Commitment to Health Equity
As the need for equitable healthcare access continues to grow, The Chicago School remains dedicated to addressing health disparities through innovation solutions, community partnerships, and hands-on learning. Faculty, students, and community leaders work collaboratively to break down barriers and offer culturally sensitive care, particularly to marginalized populations.
Explore our programs, and join us in making an impact.