Alexandra Cossio Duque, a clinical and community research coordinator from Colombia, has travelled the world to study how to overcome social and geographic barriers to healthcare access. Today, she is working in her home country to strengthen the capacity of health systems to treat leishmaniasis, a neglected tropical disease that is endemic to rural areas of Colombia.

Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death in the US, claiming one in four lives. Social factors such as living conditions, education and diet play a key role in determining a person’s heart health, which means cardiovascular disease typically hits vulnerable communities the hardest. Our three-year Closing the Gap initiative with the Jefferson Collaborative for Health Equity (established by Jefferson Health and Thomas Jefferson University) focuses on addressing the upstream social determinants of heart health in five vulnerable neighborhoods in Philadelphia with high rates of stroke and adverse outcomes related to heart disease.