The South Holland top wants to address health sources

Dozens of health care providers and advocates gathered Saturday to help women access medical services in a historically underserved part of the Chicago area during the Southland Women’s Health and Wellness Summit at South Suburban College.

The South Holland event, organized by the Six Intentional Servants, Cook County Health and the Cook County Physicians Association, was an opportunity to think and plan for major, ambitious healthcare development as well as a platform to inform residents about the existing resources.

The Six Intentional Servants are six area women working together to improve lives in the Southland region.

Group member and Cook County Commissioner Monica Gordon explained that the group hopes the event will become an annual tradition as health needs in the area are numerous, although the needs of women of color are often overlooked. She said she was pleased to see dozens of women turn out – an important first step in even addressing the issue of service availability.

“When I say I’m so optimistic, it’s because there are so many people focusing on these differences,” she said.

Gordon said many health problems that specifically affect women, such as menopause, are vaguely associated with other health problems, such as cognitive problems, but research is slow to connect and underfunded.

If there are relationships, they are not well known and most providers are unwilling or unable to address them, she said. Meanwhile, she said people in the area are also suffering from a very apparent lack of existing resources.

“I will say this: One of the problems on the South Side is that we don’t have a trauma center,” Gordon said. “If someone gets into a car accident, he or she should come all the way to Christ.”

Advocate Christ Medical Center is a level one trauma center located in Oak Lawn and also one of the busiest trauma centers in the area. Gordon said this lack of immediate, urgent care is wrong.

“It’s life expectancy based on your zip code and it’s not fair,” she said.

While the summit did not promise plans for a new trauma center, some basic services were offered to women, including a mammography van, outside which a line formed for free screenings. Even such a basic service is often too far or too expensive for local residents, says Gordon.

“That’s another issue of access,” she said. “Many people don’t have access to mammography, so we’re bringing mammography to the community.”

Even that basic access to health care was a welcome sight for some attendees. Pam Henning said she lived in the area and attended because she has several health issues and wanted to make sure she was aware of all the community resources she could access. For her, the morning was a learning experience.

“I’m very pleased,” she said, surrounded by information tables staffed by health care provider service groups. “This is all a lot of fun and very informative.”

The summit also brought out a number of political stars, including Cook County Board Chairman Toni Preckwinkle and Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton, both of whom stopped by to offer well wishes and opening remarks.

Preckwinkle said the health of the family depends on the health of the mother – or matriarch.

“It is important that we prioritize our own health because if we are not healthy, we cannot care for the people we love,” she said.

Preckwinkle said the county has some of the oldest free access points to health care in the area, and they are always looking to expand services, such as doula services — workers who do not provide direct health care but assist mothers through the birthing process. and act as their advocates. She said health care providers in the province have a long tradition of helping anyone who needs it.

“For nearly two centuries, we have provided care to virtually everyone who comes through our doors, regardless of their ability to pay, their race, their gender or their class, and we are very proud of that,” Preckwinkle said.

Stratton said it is up to healthcare providers and the government to listen to women, and said women need to stand up for themselves. The state is trying to encourage that relationship, she said.

“The bottom line is that in Illinois we trust women,” Stratton said. “We listen to women and advocate for women. And with partners like the Six International Servants and the women in this room, that will never change.”

Jesse Wright is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.