Caption: Panel -Eric Von, Founder of Brain Brawn.com, Ernest Colburn, RN Patient Care Supervisor, Wheaton Franciscan, St Joseph Campus, Darryl Davidson, City of Milwaukee Men’s health Manager, Harry Lewis, LCSW Psychotherapist, Nena Stanley, MD, Adult (Internal) Medicine Wheaton Franciscan-ST. Joseph Campus, O”rell Williams, MD, (Internal) Medicine/Hospitalist Wheaton Franciscan Medical Group, George Koonce Jr., PhD, Former Professional Football Player
St. Joseph Campus and WJMR Jammin 98.3 held their Second Annual Men’s Health Night Saturday, JULY 26, 2014 at Marquette University Alumni Memorial Union.
Approximately 400 people were in attendance including an All Star lineup of national and local celebrities.
They all came together to inform and inspire the Milwaukee community about the importance of men’s health, specifically addressing preventable health problems and early detection among African American men.
Wheaton provided free health screenings to attendees.
“If men know better, they’ll do better,” said Eric Von, Founder of Brain Brawn & Body, a website dedicated to the health and wellness of African American men. Von served as MC for the evening.
He added, “Black men need to know that we experience disproportionately higher death rates in all the leading causes of death and we need to take action.”
Eric Ford, VP of Operations for Wheaton Franciscan Medical Group opened the event with a gracious welcome to the crowd.
Ford stated, “It’s important that men have a primary care doctor who they see at least one time per year.”
2nd photo (Left to right) Angela Adams, Director-Communications/PR Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, Theresa Jones, VP Diversity & inclusion Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, Tom Joyner, Ann Saqr, VP-Marketing Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, Melanie Cannon, VP-clinical Analytics & Public Reporting-Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare, Eric Ford, VP-Medical Group Operations-Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare
He added that nationally, 70% of men ages 18-44 just don’t go to the doctor and 10% of African American men do not have a primary care physician.
“Having a primary care physician can help address health conditions such as prostate cancer, obesity, colon cancer or heart disease that can be easily prevented and treated with early diagnosis,” said Ford.
Tom Joyner, Nationally syndicated radio personality, known as “The Hardest Working Man in Radio”, heard on Jammin 98.3, Monday through Friday during morning drive time, along with local comedian Marlin Hill brought fun and laughter to the event while reminding the men that health is nothing to joke about.
Former Professional Football Player, George Koonce Jr., PhD. delivered the keynote address.
A panel of Wheaton Franciscan Medical Group physicians and clinical experts discussed African American men’s health trends and behavioral health issues.
They also provided prevention and wellness advice.
The evening ended with a question and answer session – men talking to men – about the importance of addressing their health.