National Hispanic Health Foundation Scholarship Awards Gala Honors Scholars from Health Professional Schools and Outstanding Leaders for Health Reform for Latinos

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Nov 21, 2013, 02:29 ET

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 21, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Hispanic Health Foundation (NHHF), a 501c3 foundation of the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), hosts its third Los Angeles gala awards ceremony where 10 California and Western US students enrolled in health professional schools will be given scholarships to help finish school and become health providers.

The gala ceremony will be November 21, 2013, at JW Marriott Hotel LA LIVE, in Los Angeles, CA, from 6:30 p.m. to 11:30 p.m.

Also being honored are health reform leaders in the Health industry for their transformation of their organizations so that more Latinos will have access to healthcare:

Monica Lozano, CEO, ImpreMedia – for her outstanding leadership in Spanish media reaching millions of Latinos and informing them about Covered California, the new Affordable Care Act State Marketplace to purchase affordable health insurance, so needed by our communities.

Diana Bonta, PhD, RN – for her career in healthcare leadership as the California Department of Health Director, as a leader at Kaiser Permanente and most recently in philanthropy, where she is a Trustee of the Annie Casey Foundation, continuing to provide guidance at the highest levels to develop culturally competent programs for Latinos.

Castulo de la Rocha, CEO, AltaMed Health Services – for his leadership to expand a truly national model community health center to be able to provide hundreds of jobs and health care, mental health care, adult day care and family social services for thousands of Latinos and to provide our nation with the future framework for safety net programs.

Sandra Daley, MD, Assoiciate Chancellor and Diversity Officer, UC San Diego School of Medicine – for her career to inspire students and faculty to be the best doctors they can be and to develop the nation's new health reform workforce strategies, including President Obama's STEM Initiative, to continue to recruit underrepresented minority students to medical schools.

Juan Mondragon, Chef/Owner Juan's Restaurante – for his vision to share pre-Spanish Mexican recipes using the healthy foods of our ancestors to provide nutrition that honors Latino appreciation of healthy eating and lifestyle of celebration of health.

"We are thrilled because we are honoring leaders who are role models for these remarkable students," said Dr. Elena Rios, President and CEO of NHHF and NHMA. "By partnering with visionary sponsors, we are able to continue to help the next generation of health professional workforce. The United Health Foundation is the Presenting Sponsor and dedicated $160,000 to NHMA's Health Professional Student Scholarship Program nationally. ImpreMedia is the Gold Sponsor and has supported the Scholarship Program with $20,000. Cedars-Sinai Health System, David Geffen UCLA School of Medicine, Anthem Blue Cross, The California Healthcare Foundation and NovoNordisk are Silver Sponsors, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine and Science, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, are Bronze Sponsors, and The California Endowment, Voces Verdes of the National Resources Defense Council, the Annie Casey Foundation, Keck-USC School of Medicine and the Walt Disney Company are also sponsors.

"The truth is simple: health inequities cannot be addressed without creating many more providers that are culturally and linguistically skilled," said Dr. Rios. "The organizations that are sponsoring the NHHF Health Professional Student Scholarship Program get that fact and are true leaders in the industry by funding scholarships for these students that are extraordinary in both their schools and their communities."

This year's NHHF Health Professional Student Scholarships were awarded to outstanding students who have demonstrated academic excellence, leadership and a commitment to providing healthcare to the Hispanic community, the nation's largest minority group. The scholarship targets students were selected by the National Association of Hispanic Nurses, the Latino Caucus of the American Public Health Association, the Hispanic Dental Association, and the National Hispanic Medical Association. Since the scholarship program was launched in 2004, NHHF has awarded over 150 scholarships.

The 2013 scholarship award winners are:

Riana Cardenas, West Coast University School of Nursing, Class of 2015
Lesley Lara, University of California Irvine School of Medicine, Class of 2018
Patricia Lopez, University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston School of Dentistry, Class of 2016
Pedro Martinez, Loma Linda School of Public Health, Class of 2016
Jose Mendoza, University of Washington School of Dentistry, Class of 2017
Angie Millan, Western University Science School of Nursing, Class of 2015
Elia Salazar, UCLA Fielding School of Public Health, Class of 2015
Alex Santillan, USC Keck School of Medicine, Class of 2016
Andrea Santos, University of California San Francisco School of Dentistry, Class of 2016
Marisa Yanez, Charles R. Drew University of Medicine & Science, David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA, Class of 2017

ABOUT: NHHF is the 501(c)(3) arm of the National Hispanic Medical Association (NHMA), a nonprofit organization that represents 45,000 Hispanic physicians across the U.S. NHHF is affiliated with NYU's Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service and has its national headquarters at the New York Academy of Medicine. The mission of NHHF is to improve the health of Hispanics through research and educational activities. For more information, www.nhmafoundation.org.

SOURCE National Hispanic Health Foundation