Join us for a VIRTUAL forum led by medical professionals as they discuss the implications of COVID-19 and its impact on the black community.

PART 2 – Virtual REAL TALK – COVID-19 & its Impact on the Black Community

THIS EVENT IS SPONSORED BY:

• The Mary L. Thomas Award for Civic Leadership and Community Change

• The Spartanburg County Foundation

• Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System

The rapid spread of COVID-19 has created a new normal globally, nationally, at the state-level, and in the community of Spartanburg County, S.C. Our community is faced with new challenges, such as social distancing, employee layoffs, and greater need for assistance. The racial inequities brought to light in the Spartanburg Racial Equity Index Report are also amplified by this pandemic.

DHEC stats report that the virus has disproportionately affected black citizens across the state. As of April 14, DHEC was reporting that, despite making up only 27 percent of the population, African Americans accounted for 41 percent of the state’s COVID-19 cases. Meanwhile, 56 percent of South Carolina’s coronavirus deaths had been African Americans.

Join us for an open forum led by medical professionals as they discuss the implications of COVID-19 and its impact on the black community. This REAL TALK forum will extend over three sessions, with different thought leaders, each highlighting specific health related fields including physical, mental, and spiritual health and well-being.

In this second session, our team of panelists will be discussing COVID-19 and its impact on the black community’s physical health., as well as answer questions submitted by the community.

MEET OUR PANELISTS:

MODERATOR: Reverend Stacey Mills – Assistant Vice Chancellor for Regional Engagement and Executive Director of the Greenville Campus for the University of South Carolina Upstate

Stacey Mills, ’03 USC Upstate Alumnus, enjoyed his stay at the University so much that he returned in 2009 as the assistant director of student life. In 2015, he became interim executive director of USC Upstate’s Greenville Campus. The following year, he officially took over the role, which combines working with the community and leading efforts to provide quality programs for the region’s needs. Mills was recently appointed to the Greenville Health Authority Board of Trustees and named South Regional Trustee for the National Board for the Urban League. He also serves as chairman of the Urban League’s board.

Stacey Mills, a vehicle to community development, economic partnerships, and development, is the Senior Pastor at Mountain View Baptist Church in Downtown Greenville, South Carolina where he has served for the past 22 years. The third pastor in the 110-year history of Mountain View, Mills is a bridge-builder within his multi-generational and multi-ethnic congregation.

Marlon Hunter – President & Chief Executive Officer, ReGenesis Healthcare

Marlon Hunter has more than twenty-five years of combined experience in public health, healthcare, occupational safety, and environmental health. He has a Bachelor’s of Science in Environmental Health and a Masters of Arts in Organizational Management.

Marlon Hunter served with DeKalb County Board of Health in Decatur Georgia, Carolina’s Health Care System in Charlotte, North Carolina, Florida Department of Health in Tallahassee, and most recently as Public Health Director at Forsyth County Department of Public Health in Winston Salem, North Carolina. Mr. Hunter is now serving as President and Chief Executive Officer with ReGenesis Health Care in Spartanburg SC.

Octavia Amaechi, MD, FAAFP

Dr. Amaechi is a Faculty Physician at Regional’s Family Medicine Residency Program and is Family Medicine Chair for the healthcare system. She enthusiastically teaches and mentors medical students and physicians with a commitment to excellent, equitable patient and community care. A board member of the County Medical Society and Chair of Spartanburg Women in Medicine, Dr. Amaechi advocates for the needs of Spartanburg.

Juana S. Slade, CDM, CCF – Chief Diversity Officer and Director of Diversity and Language Services

Juana Spears Slade is chief diversity officer and director of language services with AnMed Health, South Carolina’s largest private, not-for-profit health system and one of the first acute care health systems in the State to dedicate full-time resources to strategic diversity management. Under her leadership AnMed Health has developed a comprehensive, integrated diversity and inclusion strategy in support of the organization’s increasingly diverse patient population and workforce.

Dr. Matthew Delfino – ReGenesis Health Care

Dr. Delfino has served as Chief Medical Officer for ReGenesis Health Care since 2015 after serving as a staff physician beginning in 2013. Dr. Delfino earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology from the University of Maryland in 2000; his MBA in Healthcare Policy and Management from Brandeis University in Waltham, Massachusetts, in 2004; his MD from Tulane University School of Medicine in 2010; and completed his Family Medicine Residency at LSU Health Sciences Center in 2013.

Dr. Kofi Appiah – Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System

Dr. Appiah currently works as an adult nephrologist at Spartanburg Nephrology Associates and has been in medical practice since 1993. He is a graduate of University of Ghana Medical School, University of Massachusetts (Master in Public Health) and is a graduate of The Business of Nephrology Practice at Duke University. Dr. Appiah currently serves as the Vice-Chair for the Department of Medicine at Spartanburg Medical Center and is an Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM).

Sabrina Richardson – Intrinsic Therapy LLC

Helping individuals, couples, families, and organizations recover is Sabrina’s passion. Since passing the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy State License Exam, Sabrina dedicates time and energy serving individuals, couples, and families adjusting to life’s difficulties. Sabrina has a specific focus in relational conflicts, emotional disturbances, and disordered eating. As a therapist, her approach centers on thoughts (language of the mind) and emotions (language of the body) that determine behaviors and impact the choices we make.

Sabrina is a member of the American Association of Marriage and Family Therapists (AAMFT). She is certified through Project Best of MUSC as a Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapist. Currently, she is pursuing certification as an Eating Disorders Specialist.