Press Conference: Somali Community "No Confidence" for MN Commissioner of Health

MINNEAPOLIS - July 22, 2013 - PRLog -- On Friday, July 26 at 3:30 p.m. – member of the Twin Cities Somali community will gather at Sabathani Community Center located at 310 East 38th Street in the first floor auditorium to hold a press conference to announce a vote of “no confidence” for Minnesota’s commissioner of health Mr. Edward Ehlinger, MD, MSPH

The Isuroon Project is organizing the press conference. Isuroon: A Minnesota nonprofit organization located in Minneapolis provides health education and advocacy to promote health equity and literacy for the local Somali community. They also help Somali women build and maintain self-sufficiency and live healthier lives.

Isuroon’s executive director Ms. Fartun Weli states: “The inequality of access to health services, culturally competent and compassionate care, and the high rates of poverty in the Somali community are particularly timely issues. According to the 2010 study entitled Disparities and Barriers to Utilization among Minnesota Health Care Program Enrollees, 40% of Somali women do not know where they can get their health questions answered and 20% do not know where to go for health care. Furthermore, 61% of Somali households and 70% of Somali female-headed households live in poverty. Other significant obstacles include language lack of understand Somali culture and religion and tailored programs to address their specific needs.”

“This has gone on for too long,” says Weli. She invites concerned community members from all walks of life to join Minnesota’s Somali community for this important press conference that will address in detail the steps needed by the Somali community before they can become comfortable with local, state and federal run health initiatives that miss the mark.

Fartun Weli has a Masters of Public Health (Community Health Ed). She has certificate of Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP). MAPP is a community- driven strategic planning process for improving community health. She also has 14 years of Healthcare System.

About Isuroon:
Isuroon is a culturally appropriate education, communication, and advocacy organization for Somali women and health care providers. Founded in 2010, the agency operates on the principle that Somali culture emphasizes different values about medicine, health, and illness than Western medical traditions.

See more at: http://www.isuroon.org/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_8tIdhs5B0