Month: March 2023

When it comes to detecting and treating heart disease, the healthcare system often tilts in favor of men.

“Heart disease is regularly undetected, misdiagnosed and undertreated in women,” said Dr. Courtney Jordan Baechler, MD, a preventive cardiologist at the Minneapolis Heart Institute and the medical director of health equity and promotion at the Minneapolis Heart Institute Foundation. “Part of the reason is that historically, clinical heart research mainly studied men. So detection, treatment and standards of care are often biased in their favor.”

For example, even though men and women generally have differing physiology, several heart disease tests are geared more toward the male anatomy, often leading to missed diagnosis in women.1

“For instance, angiograms are currently the gold standard of care in detecting obstruction of the main coronary arteries,” said Dr. Jordan Baechler. “But angiograms alone sometimes can’t see the smaller vessels and intracoronary imaging during angiogram or an MRI may be the best way to diagnose small vessel disease in women.”

Research is also finding that certain conditions specific to women impact their hearts, 2,3 and that symptoms of heart problems can be significantly different for women than men.4

But even doctors aren’t always aware of the differences, and the reasons lie in the data. Research has found that women patients are included in less than 40 percent of clinical studies.5

“The majority of the medical literature is based on evidence collected from just one part of the population—predominantly white males,” said Dr. Alan Cheng, chief medical officer of the Cardiac Rhythm Management operating unit at Medtronic. “The assumption has been that the information can be entirely extrapolated to the rest of the population, but we’re beginning to appreciate that’s not always the case.”

According to Dr. Cheng, Medtronic is diversifying the clinical research it does on its medical devices to be more inclusive. One such clinical study, involving heart valve replacement, is enrolling primarily women.

“The results from this trial will provide important clinical insight into a currently underrepresented patient population in TAVR literature,” said Dr. Jeffrey Popma, Vice President and Chief Medical Officer of the Coronary, Renal Denervation and Structural Heart operating unit at Medtronic. “As we generate new evidence, physicians will have better guidance on how to treat patient groups not included in prior clinical studies, and that will be better for all patients.”

“It’s very exciting to see healthcare looking at this issue through a more inclusive lens,” added Dr. Jordan Baechler. “We’re moving in the right direction. We need to quickly get to a place where the science standard reflects the populations that we’re serving.”

Did you know? Symptoms of heart attack can be different for women and men. Learn more.

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1 https://brighamhealthhub.org/heart-disease-7-differences-between-men-and-women/
2 http://secondscount.org/treatments/treatments-detail-2/risk-factor-modification-lifestyle-changes-women-c?gclid=Cj0KCQiA_bieBhDSARIsADU4zLesKePK8PDMv3-f-4s_SVPMNk1gI1S2EXo7yo9e1SaUREQtqkklF5AaAnWUEALw_wcB#.Y87G33bMJPY
3 https://brighamhealthhub.org/heart-disease-7-differences-between-men-and-women/
4 https://brighamhealthhub.org/heart-disease-7-differences-between-men-and-women/
5 https://newsroom.heart.org/news/women-still-underrepresented-in-clinical-research-science-and-medicine-that-could-save-them-from-their-no-1-killer

In celebration of Black History Month, we highlight an outstanding leader at Common Impact: Ola Dudu, Chief Operating Officer. Ola leads technology, finance, talent, and operations functions in service of Common Impact’s mission of creating stronger communities and a connected economy.

Ola describes equity as her professional north star. Driven by a passion for creating equitable spaces and opportunities for marginalized people, specifically Black and brown communities, Ola has dedicated much of her career to operational excellence in supporting those communities.

Black leaders don’t generate brilliant ideas only during Black History Month, so we can’t reduce efforts to a singular month. Supporting and amplifying the Black voice doesn’t end when the celebration ends. The work continues year-round, and leaders need resources and support to do that work.

You have a decade of experience creating and implementing operational excellence in the education and nonprofit sector. What inspired you to get into this work? Tell us about your path to leadership and your current role.

I came into operations somewhat by accident. When I went to business school in 2007, I knew I wanted to change my career path and move into nonprofit management, but I was still determining what that would look like. Growing up, the ideas I connected most with were the belief in education being a gateway to the world and wanting economic justice for the people in my country. During business school, I completed an internship in Malaysia that fueled my interest in economic justice. After business school, I joined a microfinance fund providing micro-loans to folks in my community. I loved the engagement with our clients and making some of their economic dreams a reality, but I didn’t love the other parts of the job. During that time, I had a friend involved in the charter world in NYC. He suggested I apply for an operations role at a few charter schools. That small suggestion launched my career to date. I got the operations bug when I joined an entrepreneurial team to open a new charter school in Brooklyn, NY. I loved the experience of building structures and systems that help education come alive. Creating something that impacts my community daily, focused on a cause I believe in, is what inspires me. That began in economic justice and moved to education over the last decade.

As I reflect on my career to date, the common thread is my commitment to equity, which is why I was interested in Common Impact. When I read the website and spoke with the team, it was clear that we shared a commitment to social impact work and specifically to focusing that impact work on equity.

February is Black History Month, a time to celebrate and elevate Black strides and equity in all forms. In the spirit of our theme, “Black History. Black Futures,” what actions can corporate professionals, social entrepreneurs, or philanthropists take to support and amplify the work of Black-led organizations beyond Black History Month?

I think the most pivotal action is including and referring to Black conversations. The Black leaders doing the work are a part of their communities. They are on the ground daily and know the most urgent community needs. We must center their voices in conversations around equity in the Black community and amplify those voices and ideas. Black leaders don’t generate brilliant ideas only during Black History Month, so we can’t reduce efforts to a singular month. Supporting and amplifying the Black voice doesn’t end when the celebration of Black History Month ends. The work continues year-round, and leaders need resources and support to do that work.

Can you share any lessons from your leadership experience that you would like to pass on to current or aspiring nonprofit leaders?

Here are two pieces of advice for folks in leadership: The first is to rely on your team. You can’t do it alone. You need folks in your organization to contribute their talents to achieve success. They are working on the ground, so they have the most relevant experience. Seek and trust their input in your decision-making. Inclusive practices will take you far. Show up as your whole self, flaws and all. When you stop dedicating energy to keeping up a façade, you can transfer that energy fully to your goals.

Additionally, when you show up as your whole self, you allow your teams to do the same. When folks see you succeed or stumble, they are given permission to do the same. It will build invaluable trust and commitment to their mission and to you as a leader.

About Common Impact

Common Impact is a national nonprofit that works to build a society in which individuals and businesses invest their unique talents towards a shared purpose: strengthening the local communities in which we live and work. Founded in 2000, Common Impact has partnered with Fortune 500 companies and hundreds of the country’s leading nonprofit organizations to create transformational change through skills-based volunteering. Learn more about Common Impact’s services, impact, and clients.

BASKING RIDGE, N.J., March 2, 2023 /3BL Media/ – Verizon announced that a new grant funding opportunity for small businesses, totaling $500,000, is now available via Verizon Small Business Digital Ready. In partnership with partners Next Street and LISC, the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready online resource is designed to give small businesses the tools they need to thrive in today’s digital economy. Small businesses can access, for free, personalized learning through over 40 courses, mentorship, peer networking, 1:1 expert coaching and incentives such as grant funding.

“Small businesses are the backbone of our communities,” said Rose Stuckey Kirk, Chief Corporate Social Responsibility Officer at Verizon. “We developed the Verizon Small Business Digital Ready portal to give small businesses tools and resources that can help them succeed and, ultimately, help benefit their local economies.”

The Verizon Small Business Digital Ready portal was created with and for small businesses, with a specific focus on helping diverse and under-resourced business owners. Starting today, March 1, until May 12, 2023, small businesses can unlock the application for this round of grant funding by first registering on Verizon Small Business Digital Ready, available at www.verizon.com/smallbusinessdigitalready, and completing at least two of the following, in any combination: courses, live coaching or community events. Small businesses that complete the application will be eligible to receive a $10,000 grant.

“We had taken a Verizon Small Business Digital Ready course on social media and wanted to invest in digital marketing. And we were fortunate to receive a Verizon Small Business Digital Ready grant,” said Joe Alvarez, co-founder of iCareClean. “With the grant funds, we funded marketing projects and placed ads in online search results and on social media, all of which have significantly helped our sales efforts.”

Verizon Small Business Digital Ready includes courses designed to provide essential knowledge and tools, including topics such as developing a marketing strategy, marketing with influencers, creating a content calendar, and the basics of building your business website. The free portal also includes access to mentorship, providing small business owners with the opportunity to obtain ongoing advice and support from experienced professionals who can help them overcome business challenges. Spanish language course offerings, coaching from experts and community events are also available.

This initiative is part of Verizon’s goal to support 1M small businesses by 2030 with the resources to thrive in the digital economy as part of its responsible business plan, Citizen Verizon. Visit CitizenVerizon.com to learn more about the company’s responsible business efforts.

Tags:

Citizen Verizon, Verizon Small Business Digital Ready