Sanofi Addresses Healthcare Disparities During Minority Health Awareness Month

Sanofi’s Diversity Employee Resource Group, ADVANCE (Alliance for DiVersificAtion, iNClusion, and Enrichment) celebrated its 1^st Anniversary, on April 22, 2014, and closed out “Minority Health Awareness Month,” by hosting an expert speaker panel during a program entitled, “Addressing and Providing Solutions to Healthcare Disparities”.

Featured speakers were:  Dr. Kenneth Olden, Director of the National Center for Environmental Assessment at the Environmental Protection, Dr. Pamela Riley, Assistant Vice President for Healthcare Delivery Reform at The Commonwealth Fund, Sanofi’s own, Dr. Melva Covington, a leader within the North American R&D Hub, and Sanofi’s own Sabrina Spitaletta, Associate Vice President of NA Corporate Social Responsibility, and officer of the Sanofi Foundation for North America.  The speakers highlighted environmental and socio-economic factors impacting healthcare disparities as well as many of the forward-thinking programs Sanofi is involved in to reduce healthcare disparities.

The panel was moderated by Sanofi’s Chief Patient Officer, Dr. Anne Beal, and the program was kicked off by the choir of Christ the King (CtK) Preparatory School of Newark, NJ, one of Sanofi’s corporate partners. Through Sanofi’s participation in CtK’s Corporate Internship Program, students from an urban setting with limited economic resources and educational options are able to receive a college preparatory education and develop marketable job skills that will assist them in preparing for their futures.  CtK boasts a 100% graduation and college placement rate!  

ADVANCE will continue to elevate cultural awareness in conjunction with traditional calendar-based cultural acknowledgements.  ADVANCE also provides programs that shine a light on healthcare issues that impact vulnerable populations and ways Sanofi can continue to meet the needs of these patients.