Why is the Rona doing the most, especially with the Black community? Let’s discuss the facts and what we can do moving forward.

Objectives

• COVID19 – Where are we now?: The facts and implications of COVID19 on the Black community
• Ways to combat the social health determinants as it pertains to some members of the Black community
• The keys to choosing and fostering a healthy and effective doctor/patient relationship
• Ways we can maintain hope during this challenging time

Presenters

Dr. Tamara Johnson, MD, FAAP

Dr. Johnson is a native of the Upstate in South Carolina. She is a board certified pediatrician and fellow of the American Academy of Pediatrics.  She is also a certified lactation counselor. After completing her undergraduate education at Duke University, she moved to Philadelphia where she worked with the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Autism as a research coordinator. She returned to South Carolina where she received her medical degree from the Medical University of South Carolina and completed her pediatric residency and chief residency at Greenville Health System.  In 2019, Dr. Johnson completed the Primary Care Training and Enhancement Fellowship through a collaborative effort with the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) and Edward Via College of Medicine (VCOM)-Carolinas Campus.

Dr. Johnson is currently practicing in Spartanburg, SC as a pediatrician.  Her interests include breastfeeding, newborn care, well child care, asthma, ADHD and patient education/community outreach.

Dr. Vedrine

Dr. Dominique Vedrine holds a masters degree in Marriage & Family Therapy from University of San Diego and has a PhD. in Couple & Family Therapy from Drexel University. Dr. Vedrine presently teaches undergraduate and graduate classes, respectively at USC Upstate and Converse college. Specifically, teaching courses in family psychology; developing family resilience; rethinking cultural competency and counseling the Black family. Her research interests include promoting resiliency in individuals and family systems; confronting and healing the wounds of systematic oppression in our society and understanding the concept of intersectionality.

She is a licensed Marriage & Family Therapist in the state of SC. She is also a member of the Speaking Down Barriers Squad wherein she serves as a facilitator for community gatherings and trainings. As a facilitator, she co-facilitate transformative dialogues & workshops in communities, organizations and institutions across the state of South Carolina and bordering states. Along with the speaking down Barriers team, she facilitates monthly dialogues that incorporate the power of story, spoken word poetry, and mindful, brave group facilitation, for the purpose of working together to create healing space across human difference set in the framework of anti-racism and social justice.

Dr. Vedrine is originally from Brooklyn, New York and lives in Simpsonville, SC with her mother and three children. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, reading, painting, shopping and her favorite hobby of all, eating delicious foods.