On June 24th, the late Antronette K. Yancey, M.D., M.P.H., F.A.C.P.M. of Los Angeles–a professor in the department of health services and cofounder of the Kaiser Permanente Center for Health Equity at UCLA—will be honored with a $25,000 Champions of Health Professions Diversity Award from The California Wellness Foundation.
Dr. Yancey is being honored posthumously for her legacy as a trailblazer who taught and mentored graduate students from underrepresented minority populations in health-related studies. She is one of only three people statewide being honored with this distinguished award.
Most recognized for her program Instant Recess®, which addresses the nation’s obesity epidemic, as a professor, Dr. Yancey taught courses that included minority health and health disparities, and was an invited lecturer for more than 100 different presentations. She was tireless in her commitment to ensure that research findings would be translated to community programs and policy to transform lives. Dr. Yancey lost her battle with lung cancer on April 23, 2013; she was 55 years old.
Research funded by the Foundation confirms health worker shortages in several professions across California, particularly in primary care and allied health, as well as a lack of racial and ethnic diversity in the health workforce—underscoring the importance of Dr. Yancey’s work.
For more information: http://www.calwellness.org/leadership_recognition/champions_award/2013/
