Community Advisory Board Discusses Re-Entry Issues

On Wednesday, April 14, 2010, the Community Advisory Board of Bronx Community Solutions gathered for its second meeting of the year.

The topic of discussion was health disparities in the reentry population. A presentation about services available at the Albert Einstein Transitional Health Clinic was delivered by Dr. Matt Anderson, and a lively discussion was facilitated by Pamela Valera, Ph.D., researcher at Albert Einstein College of Medicine. Outcomes of this discussion were the creation of a working group to address health disparities in the reentry population, plans to conduct a focus group with community members to explore barriers to obtaining health services, creating more meaningful collaborations with agencies and departments in the Bronx, and exploring ways to increase prevention and awareness by inviting educators to participate in the working group.

There were ten community advisory board members in attendance, representing The Simpson Street Development Association, the Bronx District Attorney’s Office, the Montefiore Clinic, Osborne Association, Promesa, The Patrol Borough Bronx Community Affairs Office, Bronx Lebanon Hospital, and the FDNY.

If you or your organization would like to be part of the working group, please contact Maria Almonte-Weston, Project Director of Bronx Community Solutions, at mariaa@courts.state.ny.us.