Each year, the Alabama Department of Mental Health joins statewide and national organizations to promote National Mental Health Month, which is observed in May. Throughout the month, various advocacy organizations will host events statewide, and ADMH will present its 7th annual Capitol Showcase Consumer Art Exhibition. The art show was moved to May this year to coincide with National Mental Health Month.

Hundreds of consumers around the state with mental illnesses, intellectual disabilities, and/or substance use disorders will showcase their artwork throughout the month at the Capitol. The art show is an excellent opportunity to promote consumer dignity and gain more understanding of the individuals ADMH serves. This exhibit is about more than just the artists’ work.

The Health Disparities Institute for Research and Education (HDIRE) at Tuskegee University will host a health disparities symposium entitled, “Fostering Community and Academic Partnerships to Eliminate Health Disparities in Minority and Underserved Populations,” on April 12-13, at the Kellogg Hotel and Conference Center at Tuskegee University.

The two-day conference will attempt to bridge the gap between academic and local communities regarding health information and its application and translation for consumers and health care practitioners. It will be a time for panel discussions on health care disparities in chronic diseases, healthy lifestyle activities, healthy nutritional meals and networking opportunities. Sessions are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m.

Judith C. Rodriguez, chair and professor in the department of Nutrition and Dietetics in the Brooks College of Health at the University of North Florida, is the keynote speaker for the Alabama Cooperative Extension System’s 11th Annual Diabetes and Obesity Conference April 22-24 in Montgomery.

Rodriguez will address the issue of childhood obesity, which is of major concern to parents and health-care providers. Rodriguez received a doctorate from the department of Anthropology at Rutgers University, a Bachelor of Science and Master of Arts in nutrition from New York University, and completed an internship in dietetics at Beth Israel Hospital in Boston.

Read more here.

For additional information or to register, click here.

Source:  Alabama Cooperative Extension System Newsline