[Congressional Record Volume 162, Number 177 (Thursday, December 8, 2016)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E1658-E1659]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  TRIBUTE TO BRONX LEBANON HOSPITAL--MARTIN LUTHER KING, JR. DIASPORA 
                                 CLINIC

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. JOSE E. SERRANO

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                       Thursday, December 8, 2016

  Mr. SERRANO. Mr. Speaker, it is with great pleasure and admiration 
that I stand before you today to honor the Bronx Lebanon Hospital--
Martin Luther King, Jr. Center for their years of tireless work to 
improve the lives of our community, especially the African Diaspora.
  Prior to the Diaspora Clinic being opened June 12, 2012, the primary 
care staff at the Bronx Lebanon Hospital Center and the Dr. Martin 
Luther King, Jr. Health Centers found that many patients who speak 
minority languages ended up in emergency rooms. The Diaspora Clinic at 
the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Health Center on 1265 Franklin Avenue, 
Bronx, New York was first conceptualized to break down the myriad 
barriers between doctors and immigrant patients, and it was opened 
specifically for the growing African immigrant population in the Bronx. 
The Diaspora clinic focuses on providing culturally sensitive services, 
including health education, prevention, maternal/child health care, 
chronic disease, dental care, and HIV counseling. Thus far, the 
Diaspora clinic has had more than 15,000 visits to date.
  The Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Health Center has staff members who 
speak several of the African languages and dialects and very often they 
act as cultural ambassadors who help bridge the trust between the 
Diaspora patients and the medical system. The Clinic has reached out to 
the West African population by way of direct visits to mosques and 
churches; participated in their radio programs; and also organized and 
participated in numerous health fairs and community events because they 
wanted to emphasize the need for primary health care to this community. 
As recently as October 15, 2016, the Center hosted several Imams from 
Togo, Senegal, Ghana, Guinea and Gambia communities; a leading Ghanian 
pastor, Mr. Benjamin Boakye, the Gambian Ambassador to the United 
Nations, Dr. Mamadou Tangara, and more than two hundred and fifty 
adults and kids from the West African community participate in the 
second Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Diaspora Health Fair, and they were 
treated to giveaways, free screenings for blood pressure and diabetes.
  During the Diaspora clinic hours, the clinic has a social work 
assistant who is responsible for ensuring that the concrete services 
needs of these patients are met, and the social work assistant and the 
registrars also make sure that the unemployed, undocumented or 
temporary residents benefit from paying little or no cost via Charity 
Care. Many ``Diaspora'' patients now visit the clinic regularly for 
appointments with our Internists, but many of these patients have also 
been incorporated into the clinic's regular operating hours.
  Mr. Speaker, I respectfully ask that you and my other distinguished 
colleagues join me in honoring the Bronx Lebanon--Martin Luther King, 
Jr. Health Center for their consistently remarkable dedication to the 
health and wellness of our community, especially for the African 
community.

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