Board of Directors

VIVIANA MARTINEZ-BIANCHI MD, FAAFP

  • Family doctor

  • Co-founder of LATIN-19

  • Advisor to the NC DHHS on latina community health

  • Interested in global and community health equity, advocacy, social justice and accountability

Gabriela Maradiaga

GABRIELA MARADIAGA PANAYOTTI, MD

  • Primary care pediatrician proudly serving a diverse community in Durham, NC

  • Retired, co-founder of LATIN-19

  • Experienced leader and clinician with interest in breastfeeding, nutrition, childhood obesity, and advocacy for immigrant families

  • Works to improve communication of medical information to families through writing and social media

Rosa Gonzalez-Guarda

ROSA M. GONZALEZ-GUARDA, PHD, MPH, RN, CPH, FAA

  • Nurse scientist dedicated to promoting health equity among Latinx communities in the U.S. through addressing social and structural determinants of health in this population

  • Uses community-engaged participatory approaches to develop, test, and disseminate culturally tailored and strengths-based health promotion programs addressing acculturation stress, resilience, and co-occurring mental and physical health conditions among Latinx communities, especially first-generation immigrants

  • Long history of working prevention of intimate partner and community violence, HIV, substance abuse, and mental health through research, practice, and policy

  • Leader in nurturing the next generation of scholars and clinicians equipped to promote health equity and social justice, especially those from underrepresented and minoritized backgrounds

IRENE FELSMAN, DNP, MPH, RN,C-GH

  • Nurse-educator and researcher with expertise in global and community/public health

  • Focused on using community engaged methods for the development of culturally aligned interventions to improve health and access to care for marginalized women and children and families in diverse settings, including refugees and Latinx immigrants

PABLO FRIEDMANN

  • Director, Multilingual Resource Center, Durham Public Schools

  • Member-at-large on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Hispanic/Latino Affairs

ANDREA THOUMI, MPP MSc

  • Health policy researcher aiming to reduce health inequities by generating and translating evidence to change policy and clinical practice while centering community perspectives in my research and scholarship

  • Uses community-engaged methods to study structural determinants of health using a disease-agnostic approach due to well-established influence these determinants have on multiple health outcomes during the lifespan

Support Team

SHARON MUNOZ, HEALTH LITERACY PROGRAM COORDINATOR

Passionate, bilingual, community-driven coordinator with 20 plus years healthcare experience; former Certified Spanish Medical Interpreter for Duke University Health System and Duke Regional Hospital

  • Creator of material (videos, pictures, and pamphlets) in Spanish and English to reach la comunidad Latina and other populations that have been historically marginalized in Durham, testing the effectiveness of key messaging.

  • Organizer of in person and virtual community-based events focused on the dissemination of health information

  • Previously helped coordinate one of the COVID-19 vaccine sites in Durham in 2021.

  • Enthusiastic about creating direct, clear, and concise experiences using her bilingual and medical skills in any environment such as hospitals, clinics, government, or private sector departments.