Morning Yoga

Lauri Bruce is a 500 Hr Registered Yoga Teacher twice over. She also holds an 800 hr certification in Yoga Therapy. As a senior teacher at Evolve Yoga and Wellness, Lauri helps train new teachers and creates and teaches programs to help students deepen their self-awareness and take charge of their own healing. During this morning yoga session, Lauri will provide accommodations for those who may be in the office or have limited mobility. This yoga session will be accessible for all.

The Colors of COVID-19: From Vaccine Hesitancy to Vaccine Confidence

Stephen B. Thomas, PhD, is one of the nation’s leading scholars on addressing racial and ethnic health disparities. He is a professor of health policy and management in the School of Public Health and Director of the Maryland Center for Health Equity at the University of Maryland in College Park. In this presentation, Dr. Thomas will describe how the COVID-19 pandemic exposed the importance of building trust with community influencers to advance vaccine confidence. His work mobilizing barbers and stylists as community health workers will be highlighted as a scalable and sustainable model for the region and beyond.

Maryland Barbers & Stylists United for Health

Navy Efforts Regarding PFAS at the Naval Air Station Patuxent River and Webster Outlying Field

David Steckler, P.G. is a hydrogeologist and Navy Remedial Project Manager with 25 years’ experience in environmental restoration. Mr. Steckler has been working on issues pertaining to per‐ and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) since the Department of Defense became aware that these emerging chemicals of concern may be present at military installations. He is currently overseeing 16 PFAS remedial investigations (RIs) at NAS Patuxent River and two at Webster Field. This presentation will provide an overview of PFAS and detail the Navy’s basewide PFAS site inspections as well as future phases of their efforts.

Coping with the Ongoing Grief and Losses of the Pandemic

Alexander Chan, PhD, LMFT, is the mental and behavioral health specialist for University of Maryland Extension Family & Consumer Sciences (FCS) Program. He is also a Licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in Maryland and the District of Columbia. During this presentation, participants will understand the experience of grief as it relates to the losses of the pandemic. Participants will practice conversational strategies that they can apply to themselves and with consumers for facilitating the process of managing grief.

Physical Activity to Prevent and Treat Chronic Diseases

Sushant Ranadive, PhD, is an Assistant Professor of Kinesiology at the University of Maryland, College Park. Dr. Ranadive is an Occupational Therapist by background and then pursued a master’s degree and a PhD in exercise physiology. His research investigates different aspects of human physiology with a focus on aging, physiological differences within the heart and vascular system between men and women, and an emphasis on racial differences and health disparities. Dr. Ranadive’s presentation will focus on how you can use physical activity to prevent and treat chronic diseases.

5 Day Home Exercise Program
11 Week Walking Plan

ACE Interface:
Understanding N.E.A.R.

Matila S. Jones II, MS, is the Assistant Director of Community Engagement Services for The Family Tree where she cultivates community partnerships that center on the provision of education, resources, and other materials designed to promote awareness of the biology around adverse childhood experiences (ACEs), toxic stress, and community resilience. This presentation will focus on understanding Neuroscience, Epigenetics, Adverse Childhood Experiences, and Resilience (N.E.A.R.). Matila will discuss how N.E.A.R. supports widespread awareness of the science around ACEs, promotes understanding of the effects of toxic stress on both brain and body functioning, and empowers communities to improve health and well-being throughout society.

HSMP Updates

Lori Werrell, MPH, MCHES is the Regional Director, Population and Community Health for MedStar St. Mary’s Hospital (MSMH) and MedStar Southern Maryland Hospital Center (MSMHC). Lori assumed this expanded role in July of 2019, previously serving as the Director of Population and Community Health for MSMH since Oct 2010.Throughout her 30+ year career in healthcare, Lori has had the opportunity to be part of many grant funded community health improvement initiatives, serving as the program director of the Greater Lexington Park Health Enterprise Zone (2013-2017), and currently serving as the Co-Principal Investigator for the PreventionLink program.

AND

Meenakshi Brewster, MD, MPH, serves as the Health Officer for St. Mary’s County and as the Co-Chair of the Healthy St. Mary’s Partnership. As Health Officer, Dr. Brewster directs activities of the local health department and works with community partners to address population level health issues in St. Mary’s County. She is a public health trained physician, and board certified in the clinical specialties of Family Medicine and Sports Medicine. During this presentation, Dr. Brewster and Lori Werrell will provide an overview of HSMP and an update on the achievements and work of the action teams over the past year. They will also give an overview of the Community Health Assessment and Community Health Improvement Plan which were released as part of HSMP’s second formal community health improvement process which launched in 2020.