The third Mini-Summit on Minority Health was health was held at the Hamlet Wind Watch (Hauppauge, NY)  on February 28th, 2008.

Summit Speakers:

	Richard N. Fine, MD  Dean, School of  Medicine       Stony Brook University Medical Center
	Humayun Chaudhry, DO, MS Health Commissioner Suffolk County Department of Health Services
	K. Aletha Maybank, MD, MPH Director, Office of Minority Health   Suffolk County Department of Health Services
	Aldustus  E. Jordan III, EdD Associate Dean, School of Medicine Stony Brook University Medical Center
	Melody S. Goodman, PhD Director, Center for Public Health & Health Policy Research Graduate Program in Public Health Stony Brook University
	Jewel Stafford, MSW Center for Public Health & Health Policy Research Graduate Program in Public Health Stony Brook University

 Ribbon Cutting and Cake Ceremony:

The Suffolk County Minority Health Action Coalition (SCMHAC) commemorated its official formation with a ribbon cutting ceremony. SCMHAC is a group of action oriented community members, key leaders and health professionals with a goal to develop a comprehensive sustainable action plan to improve health outcomes, and reduce the health disparities affecting minority and medically underserved populations in Suffolk County. The SCMHAC will provide the necessary framework to build alliances with diverse stakeholders, pool existing resources and empower minority communities to drive social change.

More about the Suffolk County Minority Health Action Coalition...

The purpose of the coalition is to capitalize on the strengths of minority and medically underserved communities to enhance existing social, political, and economic networks that will increase social capital and empower communities to become agents of social change.   If we are to succeed, a substantial amount of work needs to be done. We intend on utilizing culturally competent evidence-based models specific to the unique characteristics of each community. Community coalitions have been an effective approach to addressing community needs, providing direction to comprehensive community initiatives that address a broad array of social problems and increasing community capacity (Chavis, 2000).

The mission of the Suffolk County Minority Health Action Coalition is to examine and address the disproportionate burden of health disparities that impact racial/ethnic and medically underserved populations within our region.  Our coalition will serve as the facilitator, catalyst and organizational hub for collective social action in Suffolk County.

The major goals for the Minority Health Coalition are to:

• Unite key community stakeholders to improve health outcomes of Long Island residents by pooling member resources into one comprehensive community network
•  Increase social capital and empower communities of color to become agents of social change
• Inform local, state and national bodies about the expressed needs and concerns of minority communities in Suffolk County.
• Build the infrastructure for community-based participatory research that explores and addresses health concerns.  We will educate and train community members on the role of this effective approach in addressing community needs
• Develop culturally appropriate strategies to incorporate evidence-based research findings into effective, long-term, and sustainable programs and policies