The air we breathe can be filled with invisible particles that affect our health, especially for those who are frequently outdoors and face hazardous conditions such as extreme heat, wildfire smoke, mold, dust, and chemicals. As these conditions increase in severity due to extreme weather events, there is an urgent need to strengthen community and occupational respiratory health education.
This webinar will present a series of free resources created by Migrant Clinicians Network, in collaboration with the Thoracic Foundation, designed to support health educators, community health workers (CHWs), and outreach workers in their educational efforts. We will discuss practical strategies, visual tools, and participatory activities to facilitate effective conversations with outdoor workers and impacted communities.
This webinar will be presented in Spanish with simultaneous translation into English.
Watch the Webinar Recording
At the end of this presentation, participants will be able to...
- Identify the major respiratory hazards associated with exposure to contaminated air in occupational and community settings, including dust, mold, smoke, chemicals, and extreme heat.
- Explore the use of free educational materials developed by MCN to support respiratory health education and prevention efforts.
- Strengthen capacities of promotores de salud, educators, and community workers to facilitate conversations about the impact of air on health, using visual resources and participatory activities.
- Promote accessible prevention and self-care strategies that can be implemented in workplaces and communities vulnerable to extreme weather events.
Presenters
Alma
Galván
MHC
Director of Community Engagement and Worker Training
Migrant Clinicians Network
lma Galvan: Alma Galván, MHC, is the Director of Community Engagement and Worker Training with MCN. Galván has over three decades of experience in public health work in the United States, Mexico, Puerto Rico, and Latin America. Throughout her career, she has addressed a wide range of topics, including community development, environmental and occupational health, disaster response, occupational health and safety, substance use and abuse prevention, and access to safe water and sanitation. Alma has a strong track record in creating educational materials and curricula tailored for people with limited English proficiency or low literacy levels. Galván has also provided technical assistance and training to promotores de salud, community health workers, health professionals, health educators, and clinicians. Galván has collaborated extensively with MCN partners, community-based organizations, health agencies, and state and local health departments always with a commitment to placing communities at the center of health promotion efforts.
Myrellis
Muñiz-Márquez
MPH
Program Manager, Puerto Rico
Migrant Clinicians Network
Myrellis Muñiz-Márquez (they/them, she/her, his/him) is a Program Manager at Migrant Clinicians Network, where they advocate for health promotion, equity, and justice in Puerto Rico. As a public health professional, their aim is to improve the quality and access to health services for underserved and minority populations, as well as help remedy emerging public health issues on the island. As program manager, they manage and develop projects that seek to meet the health needs of vulnerable communities in Puerto Rico, as well as meet the needs of the health personnel who serve them. They provide support through technical assistance, development of resources, facilitation of educational activities, implementation of research projects, and management and analysis of data, among others. Through their work, they build an extensive network composed of healthcare and public health professionals, researchers, organizations, and community-based groups. Muñiz-Márquez has worked with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), the Brystol Myers Squibb Foundation (BMSF), among others. They previously served as a Research Coordinator and Assistant in studies related to the effects of prenatal maternal stress caused by Hurricane Maria on children’s health and development, the environmental etiology of non-syndromic orofacial malformations, and community risk communication in vector-borne diseases. They graduated from the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus with a Master's degree in Public Health and obtained a Bachelor's degree in Biology from the University of Puerto Rico Humacao Campus.