Desmon and Derrick Lewis grew up in the Morris Heights neighborhood of the South Bronx. Together they founded The Bronx Community Foundation with endorsements from community leaders across the borough, business leaders, and local and state elected officials to address challenges facing the Bronx. 

Today, we are joined by Desmon Lewis, to discuss their efforts to date: at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic they launched the Bronx Community Relief Effort and raised $16 million dollars, " to support effective, on-the-ground operations that are focused on meeting the most essential needs of the Bronx community." Simultaneously, The Bronx Foundation has identified digital equity as a disparity that impacts many aspects of life for Bronxites.  

Background Disinvestment Deepens the Impact of COVID-19 and Racism in the Bronx, Editorial written by Desmon Lewis & Wes Caines of Bronx Defenders

You can learn more about the The Bronx Community Foundation, The Bronx Community Relief Effort, and Digital Equity at thebronx.org

This episode streams the New York City Student Run Free Clinic Conference's keynote address--Justice For All? Health Equity and The COVID-19 Pandemic--by Dr. Utibe R. Essien, MD, MPH. Dr. Essien's is a leading public health and health equity scholar, whose work provides important insight into understanding social disparities in healthcare and COVID-19 outcomes. 

Dr. Essien is an Assistant Professor of Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, School of Medicine, and Core Investigator at the Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System. 

This year's conference was hosted by Einstein Community Health Outreach (ECHO), Albert Einstein College of Medicine's Student Run Free Clinic, which is based at the Institute for Family Health at The Walton Family Health Center in the Bronx. 

Jarrett Murphy, the Executive Editor for City Limits joins The Healthy Bronx Podcast for its second episode. Jarrett's breadth of experience covering city politics, and social and economic issues in New York City for more than a decade provides valuable insight to help us understand city budget cuts, the major issues shaping Bronx district City Council races, and reporting on health in the Bronx. 

For more background:

https://citylimits.org/2020/09/14/early-moves-in-bronx-council-race-preview-what-21-could-look-like-all-over/

episode cover image adapted from City Limits

In the first episode we  learn about the NYC Department of Health’s community health work in the Bronx through speaking with one its leaders, Fernando Tirado. The breadth of Fernando’s work with community organizations throughout the borough gives a sweeping view of local public health efforts, providing a framework for future deeper, narrower dives on a range of topics that intersect with health and politics.

Fernando, Tirado is the Director of New Initiatives at the Bureau of Bronx Neighborhood Health Center for Health Equity and Community Wellness, of the New York City Department of Health.