Connect 4 U coalition to meet Oct. 25

The Connect 4 U Coalition, a group comprised of more than 50 service agencies and community-based organizations, will hold a forum at the auditorium of the Niagara Falls Memorial Medical Center, at 3 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 25.

A press release noted, “The coalition was founded more than six-years ago by Memorial in an effort to support the development and implementation of actionable care coordination and care transition innovations.”

NFMMC Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer Sheila Kee said, “During the pandemic, the work of the coalition had to be put on hold. Now, we are back in the business of finding new ways to improve the delivery of services to the Niagara Community.”

Kee noted the Oct. 25 meeting agenda will focus on how social determinants of health have a major impact on people’s health, well-being and quality of life.

“Social determinants of health also contribute to wide health disparities and inequities,” she said. “For example, people who don’t have access to grocery stores with healthy foods are less likely to have good nutrition. That raises their risk of health conditions like heart disease, diabetes and obesity, and even lowers life expectancy.”

Presenters at the Oct. 25 Connect 4 U forum include Dr. Paul Shields, CEO and chief medical officer of the Great Lakes Integrated Network; Andrea Want, chief operating officer of the Value Network; and Nikki Kmicinski, executive director of the WNY Integrated Care Collaborative. For more information, contact Kee at 716-278-4301.