Latina/o/x Faculty Affinity Group | Emory School of Medicine

Mission

The Latina/o/x Faculty Affinity Group seeks to empower Latina/o/x faculty at Emory University School of Medicine to have a fulfilling and successful career by elevating our voices, sharing gained knowledge and skills, and making sure we are well represented in positions of leadership within the university. We strive to offer various activities related to:

Professional and leadership development
Networking
Recruitment and retention
Professional peer support
Culture and climate
Community engagement

Chairs

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Latinx Facts

Hispanic Heritage Month is an annual celebration of the history and culture of the U.S. Latinx and Hispanic communities. The event, which spans from September 15 to October 15, commemorates how those communities have influenced and contributed to American society at large.
The timing of Hispanic Heritage Month coincides with the Independence Day celebrations of several Latin American nations. September 15 was chosen as the kickoff because it coincides with the Independence Day celebrations of five Central American Nations – Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Cost Rica – who declared their independence from Spain on September 15, 1821.
Between 2010 and 2020, the Hispanic or Latino population grew by 23% and now totals 18.7% of the total U.S. population.
The term Hispanic or Latino (or the more recent term Latinx) refers to a person’s culture or origin – regardless of race. On the 2020 Census form, people were counted as Hispanic or Latino or Spanish if they could identify as having Mexican, Mexican American, Chicano, Puerto Rican, Cuban, or “another Hispanic, Latino, or Spanish origin.”

Member Profiles

Department of Medicine Valeria Cantos Lucio

In what ways has being part of the Latinx community influenced your professional life as it relates to your current role/responsibilities?

My Latina ethnic identity impacts all aspects of my professional life. In research, I am committed to increase PrEP uptake Latina/o/x groups, using culturally competent innovative strategies, and partnering with trusted local community-based organizations. At our clinical site, I strive to increase representation of Latina/o/x research participants, as well as optimizing our site’s capacity to provide culturally concordant services. When caring for Latina/o/x patients living with HIV at the Ponce de Leon Center, I connect with them through multiple common shared experiences and values, despite coming from different countries and backgrounds. We speak the same language, literally and figuratively. We talk about family, the constant pain of being separated from our loved ones, the struggle of HIV-related and gay-related stigma in our community, our love of soccer, all in that small exam room. I frequently tell my patients that, although it feels lonely out here, they can count on me to advocate for them, to guide them through the often-confusing healthcare system, and to be their teammate in achieving good physical and mental health. As the chair of the Latinx Faculty Affinity Group, my goal is to elevate the voices of all Latinx faculty members at the Emory School of Medicine so we can all achieve our optimal professional potential.

Tell us something about your Latinx culture and traditions you would want all SOM stakeholders to know.

In Ecuador, during Easter (“Semana Santa”) we celebrate it by eating a special type of soup called “fanesca”. It is made with 12 grains, each representing important Catholic characters, dried and salted cod, and a type of pumpkin. Making fanesca is not easy, as every grain needs to be peeled and cooked separately before adding it to the soup. Family members of all ages come together to peel the grains a day before the celebration. My favorite thing to do as a kid was to sit with my cousins at the kitchen table and make little empanadas, which are served with the soup.

How do you engage with the Latinx community outside of your professional life?

My entire family is from Ecuador and most of them still live there. As such, I maintain very strong connections to Ecuador through them. I have many different Whatsapp groups through which I am constantly updated on the latest “chisme”. In Atlanta, I have been able to create great connections with other Latinx people, most of which started through my work with local community-based organizations related to HIV prevention and COVID-19. Lately, I’ve been more intentional in trying to actively reach out to other Latinx families in my neighborhood, as we often share similar values and struggles (being away from family with small kids for example). Latinx music is something that helps me feel closer to my culture, no matter where I am.

Department of Medicine Paulina Rebolledo

In what ways has being part of the Latinx community influenced your professional life as it relates to your current role/responsibilities?

I was born and raised in Mexico City and moved to the United States after medical school to pursue my dreams of becoming an Infectious Disease academic physician. My heritage and identity as a Latina are deeply connected to all aspects of my professional life as a doctor, researcher, and educator. I strive to create relationships with my patients based on compassion, warmth, ability to find mutual connections and get to know who they are in the context of their families and community. Latin culture deeply values close-knit families and the pride that comes from traditions being passed on from one generation to the other. The stories of my patients and those of the Latin/Hispanic community directly motivate my pursuit of health equity and increasing representation of racial/ethnic populations in ID-related clinical trials. More than ever, it is important to have physician scientists that reflect the communities we serve and develop relevant research questions that will help advance our communities' health.

I am also profoundly empowered by seeing other Latinx students/trainees, colleagues and mentors work towards achieving their goals while uplifting each other. Seeing members of our community excel professionally and be recognized for their contributions to medicine and science shows future Latinx generations that it is possible.

Tell us something about your Latinx culture and traditions you would want all SOM stakeholders to know.

Our culture celebrates life through food, music/dancing and large social gatherings that can last for hours and can occur for no particular reason. One of my favorite traditions growing up in Mexico City was setting up colorful altars during “Dia de los Muertos” to celebrate the lives of loved ones who have died but continue to impact our lives through stories, photographs, personal ornaments, and delicious treats/foods.

How do you engage with the Latinx community outside of your professional life?

Over the past few years, I have developed strong friendships with other Latinx faculty and staff at Emory and through volunteer work with Latinx community-based organizations. Through these connections, I can have a “piece of home” in my everyday life.

Department of Medicine Annelys Roque Gardner

I emigrated from Cuba on a raft with my family when I was seven years old. My experience as a Latina immigrant has shaped every aspect of my life. Education was a pathway for me to expand my family’s opportunities as well as my own. My love of medicine was shaped by spending my childhood translating for various family members at doctors’ visits and highlighted in my mind the importance of medical providers that share cultural and language concordance with the populations they treat. Today, as an Infectious Diseases physician, I have a passion for caring for those that are underserved with a special emphasis on Latinos living with and at risk of HIV. When I walk into a room with a Spanish speaking patient and they realize we share a common language, I can instantly see them relax and breathe a sigh of relief. This “magia” (magic) leads to a better patient experience and for immense fulfillment for me as a provider. 

Wallace H. Coulter Department of Biomedical Engineering German Corredor Prada

I’m originally from Bogotá, Colombia, and grew up in a close-knit, working-class family with my parents and brother. My parents taught us the values of hard work, transparency, and helping others.

I earned my BS, MS, and PhD in Computer Engineering from Universidad Nacional de Colombia, a top public university in Latin America. After my PhD, I did a postdoc at Case Western Reserve University, focusing on AI and image processing to develop tools for predicting diagnosis, prognosis, and treatment responses for diseases like cancer. This experience highlighted the potential of technology to assist people in need, particularly in low-income countries like those in Latin America, where access to certain treatments and technologies is often limited due to high costs.

Currently, I work in the Biomedical Engineering Department at Emory University’s School of Medicine. I’m part of the Empathetic AI for Health Institute, which aims to use AI to transform healthcare. Our projects focus on creating equitable prognostic and predictive models, addressing biases in health AI data. I aim to build a collaboration network with Latin America to develop tools for this population. We have an active research collaboration in Peru and hope to expand further.

I’m proud of my Colombian heritage and enjoy sharing our traditions and cooking traditional “arepas” at social events.

Department of Medicine; Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences Kellie Clearo

I hold a faculty position in the Department of Medicine and the Department of Psychiatry. Additionally, I am the program director for the Combined Internal Medicine and Psychiatry Residency Program.

My Latino background is my family is from Puerto Rico. My mother grew up in Cidra, Puerto Rico with no running water or electricity in a family of eleven children. All eleven children were all born at home with my great grandmother serving as an untrained midwife. My mother sewed tobacco leaves since the age of 4 to help with family income. Her family later moved to New York with hopes of better job opportunities. My father is from New York and grew up in poverty in a family of ten children with his mother having a 3rd grade education. My parents met in NY and had to quit high school due to pregnancy, married at age sixteen and had four children by the age of nineteen. Despite financial difficulties, my parents instilled in us to work hard and pursue education to better our socioeconomic status. Proudly, my siblings and I are all college educated.

In terms of values, I appreciate having been born in the U.S. and afforded educational opportunities as a first-generation high school graduate from a low-income family. I hope to inspire others from similar background. For my career path, I attended undergraduate school at the University of Florida where I majored in Pharmacy and graduated with Honors. I worked as a pharmacist for three years then attended medical school at the University of Washington. After medical school, I completed a five-year residency in Internal Medicine and Psychiatry at Duke University and joined Emory faculty in 2005.

One of my most impactful and proudest accomplishments is starting the Combined Internal Medicine and Psychiatry Residency Program at Emory in 2007 with an ongoing commitment to providing both mental and physical healthcare for the underserved.

Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics Laura Ramirez-Caban

My mother, sisters, and I moved from Puerto Rico to the US when I was 10 years old. We learned many hard lessons surrounding culture, language, and “fitting in.” 

Despite these obstacles, I was driven to pursue a career in medicine. Once in medical school, I found myself struggling to incorporate my identify into the world of medicine--aware that I may not fit the mold of a traditional physician. Then I found my first Latino mentor who taught me the importance of bringing my culture and identify to medicine. In his eyes, it was essential in providing healthcare to our community. 

Today, with the shared views of Dr. De la Cadena, I strive to bring the latest medical and surgical techniques to historically underserved communities while upholding my beautiful culture. My hope is to inspire the next generation of providers through mentorship and example. Currently I serve as a mentor to medical students, residents, and fellows from all backgrounds and continually encourage their journeys in medicine while upholding their unique qualities.

Department of Family and Preventive Medicine Mirtha Y. Aguilar Alvarado

Born and raised in La Paz, Bolivia, I have dedicated my career to serving those in need, especially in rural and underserved communities. I believe that physicians play a crucial role in both treating diseases and promoting overall health.

I earned my medical degree from Universidad Mayor de San Andrés in La Paz and completed a master’s in public health at Nur University in La Paz. My residency training at Saints Mary and Elizabeth Medical Center in Chicago included serving as Chief Resident. I became board-certified as a family physician in 2014 and completed a fellowship in Women’s Health at McNeal Hospital in Berwyn, Illinois. Before joining Emory in June 2019 as an Assistant Professor, I served as Core Faculty at Gwinnett Medical Center and held Clinical Assistant Professor roles at the University of Augusta/Medical College of Georgia and Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine.

I am currently the Associate Program Director of the Family Medicine Residency Program and a member of the Medical Council at Dunwoody Family Medicine Clinic, focusing on teaching and developing new family physicians. Additionally, I volunteer in the Latin community in Georgia, providing COVID-19 immunizations, preventive care, and mentoring minority medical students.

As a Bolivian, I cherish our family-centered culture and rich ancestry, celebrating our diverse heritage through traditional dances like caporales and diablada.

Department of Anesthesiology Nerlyne Jimenez

¡Hola!  I am Nely, a proud Dominican-American born in New York City and raised in South Florida. My childhood was a melting pot of Latinos from all over Latin America and the Caribbean. I learned quickly as a child and college student that being Latino was not homogenous in any sense. Our food, music, culture, and the way we speak is so diverse and beautiful.  During my formative years in college, I became involved with the community as a volunteer with organizations that helped migrant farm workers. This work transitioned to providing services to Latinos in need of health care services during medical school.  

Professionally, my proudest work has been mentoring and educating the next generation of physicians and anesthesiologists. Through EMPACT (Engage, Mentor, Prepare, Advocate for, Cultivate, and Teach URiM medical students) and the Latino Medical Student Association (LMSA), I have developed some of the most meaningful mentoring relationships that I believe will last a lifetime. I am a firm believer that my life and work have a solid foundation due to the support of my family, friends, mentors, and mentees. Gracias!