Category Archives: Junior League of Nashville

2021 Junior League of Nashville Paragon Award Recipient

Posted in Diversity Equity & Inclusion, Gratitude, Inspiration, Junior League of Nashville, Leadership, Success, Uncategorized by

2021 Junior League of Nashville Paragon Award Recipient for Outstanding Active Member of the Year

I’m so very honored to have been chosen as one of the 2021 Junior League of Nashville Paragon Award Recipients!

There are 3 categories of this honor given each year and the award I’ve received is the “Outstanding Active Member of the Year” Award. This annual award is presented to the Junior League of Nashville member who best exemplifies the purpose of JLN and is committed to promoting volunteerism and improving the community through effective action & leadership of trained volunteers.

This is icing on the cake to end a great League year, even in the midst of a global pandemic! The Junior League of Nashville is near and dear to my heart and I’m committed to the dual mission of serving the community and developing the leadership potential of women. I’m more than honored to be a recipient!

Dr. Carmen April

Dr. Carmen April is an entrepreneur and community leader recognized as a 2021 Junior League of Nashville Outstanding Active of the Year Paragon Award recipient, 2020 Nashville Business Journal Women of Influence Award Recipient, Nashville Emerging Leader (NELA) Award Winner, a Nashville Business Journal Top 40 Under Forty Award Recipient, is a Graduate of the New Leaders Council Institute – Nashville Chapter, Young Leaders Council (YLC) Leadership Institute and is a Nashville Power Moves Award Winner. She is a Podiatrist and Owner of The Foot And Ankle Healthcare Center, PC in the Nashville area. She served as one of the chairs of the Inaugural RiseUp! Women’s Summit presented by Junior League of Nashville in 2021. She is a Reiki Master, a Law of Attraction Practitioner, and an advocate for the power of positive thinking! Dr. April is available for speaking engagements on Leadership & Life Leadership for College Students and Young Professionals and is the creator of the “Design Your Story” Women’s Empowerment Series.

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Racism is a Social Determinant of Health

Posted in Diversity Equity & Inclusion, Junior League of Nashville, Self Care by

Racism is a Social Determinant of Health

Junior League Of Nashville Racial Disparities Panel
2021 Junior League of Nashville Health Disparities in the African American Community Panel: Dr. Carmen April (Upper Left) | Dr Herve Damas (Upper Right) | Mr Kwane Drabo (Lower Left) | Dr. Renee Williams (Lower Right)

I enjoyed moderating a great panel discussion last evening on the topic of Health Disparities in the African American Community, for Junior League of Nashville. In my opening remarks, I shared a little bit about exactly what social determinants of health are.

There are very real and structural reasons for these disparities and these reasons have absolutely nothing to do with some sort of genetic or physiologic inferiority. The concept of race is, in fact, a made-up construct with no biological or physiological basis. It’s a social construct created to divide and conquer. The disparities are a result of factors such as geography, where African-Americans live and play, lifestyle factors, education, access to healthcare, economic stability, and a distrust of the healthcare system by some in the African-American community. And racism….

Racism, not race, is a major social determinant of health.

How can we affect change? Social Determinants of Health are responsible for 80-90% of health outcomes while clinical care only accounts for 10-20% of health outcomes! Knowing this, it’s appropriate to say that financial resources, proper funding, and physical resources (and as was mentioned in the chat box during the discussion – “Where the money resides!!”) invested into long-term programs that address food desserts, inequities in education, poverty, and safety issues that disproportionately affect minority neighborhoods can make a huge difference and result in meaningful impact.

I’m proud that we, as a League, held this panel discussion to breakdown the issues surrounding Health Disparities and ways to positively affect change ♥️

To Dig Deeper into Health disparities & Social Determinants of Health, check out the following resources:

Structural Racism: The Root Cause of the Social Determinants of Health from Harvard Law: https://blog.petrieflom.law.harvard.edu/2020/09/22/structural-racism-social-determinant-of-health/

Racism as a Social Determinant of Health Inequities from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation: https://healthequity.globalpolicysolutions.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/RacismasSDOH.pdf

Social Determinants of Equity & Social Determinants of Health from the Department of Health and Human Services (96 page PDF) : https://minorityhealth.hhs.gov/Assets/pdf/Checked/1/CamaraJones.pdf

Dr. Carmen April
Dr. Carmen April is an entrepreneur and community leader recognized as a Nashville Business Journal 2020 Women of Influence Award Recipient, Nashville Emerging Leader (NELA) Award Winner, a Nashville Business Journal Top 40 Under Forty Award Recipient, is a Graduate of the New Leaders Council Institute – Nashville Chapter, Young Leaders Council (YLC) Leadership Institute and is a Nashville Power Moves Award Winner. She is a Podiatrist and Owner of The Foot And Ankle Healthcare Center, PC in the Nashville area. She served as one of the chairs of the Inaugural RiseUp! Women’s Summit presented by Junior League of Nashville in 2021. She is a Reiki Master, a Law of Attraction Practitioner, and an advocate for the power of positive thinking! Dr. April is available for speaking engagements on Leadership & Life Leadership for College Students and Young Professionals and is the creator of the “Design Your Story” Women’s Empowerment Series.

RiseUp! Women’s Summit: Presented by Junior League of Nashville

Posted in Branding, Inspiration, Junior League of Nashville, Leadership, Motivation, Networking, Success, Uncategorized by

RiseUp! Women's Summit
Dr Carmen April Washington & Kristy Vanderford Brink
RiseUp! Women’s Summit Co-Chairs, Dr. Carmen April-Washington (R) & Kristy Vanderford-Brink (L)

I’m so pleased to announce the launch of the RiseUp! Women’s Summit: Presented by Junior League of Nashville! As one of the 2 chairs for this inaugural event, I am more than excited that registration is now LIVE, our speaker list is available and the schedule is set for Saturday January 30th, 2021!

This summit is sure to be a power-packed day of inspiring panels, workshops, and presentations designed to encourage and motivate women to kick off their 2021 with a renewed sense of purpose and direction.

We have an amazing line-up of professional women who will interact with us on a variety of topics ranging from wealth creation & managing our personal finances to personal & professional development. We’re weaving a lot of “sweet” surprises into the day and can’t wait for all of you to experience them!

Always remember: Your life is an occasion, Rise up to it!

RiseUp! Women's Summit

www.jlnWomensSummit.com

Dr. Carmen April

Dr. Carmen April is an entrepreneur and community leader recognized as a Nashville Business Journal 2020 Women of Influence Award Recipient, Nashville Emerging Leader (NELA) Award Winner, a Nashville Business Journal Top 40 Under Forty Award Recipient, is a Graduate of the New Leaders Council Institute – Nashville Chapter, Young Leaders Council (YLC) Leadership Institute and is a Nashville Power Moves Award Winner. She is a Podiatrist and Owner of The Foot And Ankle Healthcare Center, PC in the Nashville area. She is a Reiki Master, a Law of Attraction Practitioner, and an advocate for the power of positive thinking! Dr. April is available for speaking engagements on Leadership & Life Leadership for College Students and Young Professionals and is the creator of the “Design Your Story” Women’s Empowerment Series.