Join the University of Alabama at Birmingham (UAB) for the 21st annual Health Disparities Research Symposium on April 3, 2025, at the Birmingham Jefferson Convention Complex (BJCC).
The symposium showcases student and faculty research on health disparities across a broad range of settings and contributing factors. Through posters and oral paper presentations, the symposium provides a unique opportunity for researchers at every stage to share their work and receive feedback from over 200 fellow scientists.
The theme of this year’s symposium is Optimizing Health Across the Life Course and will include a keynote presentation and panel discussion.
Keynote Address
UAB is honored to welcome Dr. David R. Williams, an internationally recognized authority on social influences on health and the author of more than 500 scientific papers. He is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine and the National Academy of Sciences, and a fellow of the Royal College of Psychiatrists in the UK. He has a been ranked as the Most Cited Black Scholar in the Social Sciences, worldwide, and as one of the World’s Most Influential Scientific Minds. He has received distinguished contribution awards from the American Sociological Association, the American Psychological Association and the New York Academy of Medicine. Dr. Williams has been involved in the development of health policy in the US and elsewhere.
Panel Discussion
This year’s symposium will include a panel discussion, “Lessons Learned: Optimizing Health at Home and Abroad,” featuring national health disparities expert John Ruffin, Ph.D., international public health expert Wagida Anwar, M.B.B.Ch, M.Sc., M.D. and keynote speaker David Williams, PhD. Together, they will explore solutions for improving health outcomes.
The panel, presented in partnership with the Mary Heersink Institute for Global Health, will be moderated by Alan Tita, M.D., Ph.D, director of the UAB Mary Heersink Institute on Global Health, and Ethlyn McQueen Gibson, DNP, MSN, RN-BC, Senior Research Consultant at Johns Hopkins University and President of the Southern Gerontological Society, who will offer insight into how we can shape the future of health research.
Panelists
Panelist | Wagida A. Anwar, M.B.B.Ch, M. Sc., M.D.
Dr. Anwar is an esteemed professor of public health at Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt and has led research initiatives on cancer risk, environmental health, and non-communicable disease prevention. With more than 100 international and national publications, and several international prizes and awards, she has played an important role in national and international efforts to improve public health policies and education on a global scale.
Panelist | John Ruffin, Ph.D.
Founding Director of the National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities and champion for the area of health disparities research and promoting scientists in the field of biomedical sciences. The hallmark of Dr. Ruffin’s career has been his success in institutionalizing minority health and health disparities research within the National Institute of Health (NIH) and the creation of a health disparities research enterprise with global reach.
Panelist & Keynote Speaker | Dr. David R. Williams
Dr. Williams is an author of more than 500 scientific papers and an internationally recognized authority on social influences on health. His research enhanced our understanding of the ways in which race, socioeconomic status, stress, racism, health behavior and religious involvement can affect health. The Everyday Discrimination Scale he developed is the most widely used measure of discrimination in health studies.
Co-Moderator | Alan Tita, M.D., Ph.D.
Dr. Tita is a global leader in maternal-fetal medicine and serves as the UAB Mary Heersink Endowed Chair of Global Health, Director of the Mary Heersink Institute of Global Health, and the Heersink School of Medicine Senior Associate Dean for Global Health and Women’s Health. He is also a consultant for the World Health Organization (WHO), NIH, and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). Dr. Tita’s leadership in clinical has shaped medical practices and global policies.
Co-Moderator | Ethlyn McQueen Gibson, DNP, MSN, RN-BC
Dr. McQueen-Gibson is a Senior Research Consultant at Johns Hopkins University and an adjunct professor at multiple institutions, focusing on Alzheimer’s research. Previously, she led the Center for Gerontology Excellence and Minority Aging at Hampton University. A U.S. Army Nurse Corps veteran with over 40 years in nursing, she is a Fellow in Applied Gerontology. Her NIH-funded research addresses cognitive decline, Alzheimer’s interventions, and health messaging. She serves on multiple boards, including as President of the Southern Gerontological Society.
Southern Gerontological Society
This year’s symposium is being held in collaboration with the Southern Gerontological Society’s (SGS) 46th Annual Meeting and Conference, Building Bridges: Collaborations and Communities in Aging, to be held April 3-6, 2025, at the BJCC.
For more information or to register to attend, visit www.uab.edu/medicine/mherc/news-events/research-symposium.