Longitudinal Advocacy Project Tracks

2021 CARE Block participants
CARE Track
The Community Health and Advocacy Resident Education (CARE) Track is an elective two-year longitudinal experience, starting in the second year of residency. Since CARE Track started there have been 193 resident participants. CARE starts with a two-week “mini-MPH” block. CARE project areas are determined by each resident's interests.
Refugee Track
Many of our residents do projects with refugee agencies. For those interested in medical care for refugees, we have a template developed by a CARE resident for a refugee track that involves spending time in a local refugee clinic while doing a refugee related project. For more information please reach out to Dr. Andy Aligne.
Testimonials
CARE Projects
2021

Primary Prevention of Sexual Abuse
Dr. Jessica Riese is hoping to work with community partners to protect children from molestation.

Decreasing Inequities in Autism
Dr Anjili Vara would like to reduce the impact of systemic barriers on families of children with autism spectrum disorder by improving their access to necessary services.

Hydroponic Gardening
Dr. Jimmy Barry, Dr. Nneka Ogbutor, and Dr. Alina von Korff are partnering with community organizations to create indoor hydroponic garden projects that promote healthy eating.

Improving Doctor-Patient Communication for Rochester's Spanish speaking community
Dr. Monica Gonzalez-Loperena would like to give more families the option of seeing a Spanish-speaking doctor.

School-based Mental Health
Dr. Katie Dwyer is partnering with Wilson Magnet High School to provide train-the-trainer Biofeedback services to help youths cope with issues like anxiety.

Reach Out and Read
Drs. Lara McHan and Jordan Patterson are hoping to increase exposure to literacy for families by establishing the national program Reach Out and Read at Culver Medical Group.

Prevention of Colorectal Cancer
Dr. Tori Mattick would like to decrease this disparity of lower colorectal cancer screening rates in the local "Latinx" population which has much lower colorectal cancer screening rates than other groups.
2020

Improving Emotional Resilience in Youth
Dr. Erin Good would like to increase emotional resilience for her patients.

Addressing Breastfeeding Disparities
Dr. Jennifer Baxter is hoping to reduce racial, ethnic, and economic disparities in maternal and child health outcomes with regard to breastfeeding by working with local breastfeeding advocates and improving physician education on breastfeeding advice.

Building Kindergarten Readiness
Dr. Matthew Present is partnering with Rochester Education Foundation and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library to increase kindergarten readiness by providing every child in Rochester with books.

Flushing Out Obesity
Dr. Sophie O’Rourke is working with Cameron Community Ministries and School 54 to decrease obesity by improving water access for kids, and decreasing consumption of sugary beverages.

Aging Out of Foster Care
Dr. Terace Thomas would like to increase supports and help teenagers successfully age out of foster care.

College Access and Success
Dr. Lauren Palicki is using national models such as ScholarMatch and Matriculate to provide “coaching” for high-achieving low-SES RCSD students interested in college.

LGBTQ Health and Connection
Drs. Miranda Gathright and Quinn Watt are partnering with the Center
for Youth and Wilson Magnet High School to increase connection between LGBTQ youths by connecting them to the Trevor Project.

Helping Babies Breathe
Dr. Tala Altaji is working with the evidence based Helping Babies Breathe Program to decrease infant mortality in refugee camps overseas.
2019

LARC in Haiti
Dr. Michele Sainvil is working with global non-profits such as Avibela to reduce unintended pregnancy in Haiti among teens with type 1 diabetes. LARC Out Loud: Future Planning.

Empowering Women Globally and Locally
Dr. Peihsuan Tsai is working with Humans For Education to decrease stigma about sustainable menstrual hygiene products such as the menstrual cup for women in Kenya. Empowering Women One Menstrual Cup at a Time.

Decrease After-Hours Screen Time
Dr. David Alten would like to decrease screen time and increase the average nightly sleep duration for children in Rochester. Sleep: A Public Health Nightmare.

Children Making a Difference
Dr. Suzanne Ramazani is working with Cameron Community Ministries to increase children’s connection to their community with advocacy projects. Engaging Youth in Community Advocacy.