The Health Initiative is excited to announce that Dr. Jason Schneider will accept the Health Initiative’s annual “Healing Angel” award at the October 3rd Garden Party. Dr. Schneider is an Assistant Professor at Emory University’s School of Medicine and also works in the Division of General Medicine at Grady Memorial Hospital. Originally from Baton Rouge, Dr. Schneider attended NYU Medical School before moving to Atlanta for his residency at Emory. Dr. Schneider is the immediate past president of the Gay and Lesbian Medical Association (GLMA), the world’s first and largest association of LGBT healthcare professionals. Dr. Schneider is also a founding member of the American Medical Association’s Advisory Committee on GLBT Issues.
Dr. Schneider’s work with GLMA provided him with what he now calls the “opportunity to implement positive changes in the wake of a horrific tragedy” after a highly publicized incident involving the visitation rights of a same-sex partner at Jackson Memorial Hospital in Miami, FL. The hospital allegedly denied Janice Langbehn access to her dying partner for over 8 hours. In the wake of the tragedy, a coalition of LGBT organizations including GLMA, under the leadership of Dr. Schneider, helped Jackson Memorial identify and implement policies that would protect same-sex patients and families, including non-discrimination and visitation policies that updated the definition of family to include same-sex partners.
Dr. Schneider points out that the Jackson Memorial Hospital case highlighted a need for advocacy at the institutional level to improve the health of LGBT individuals: “it only takes one person with bias or discrimination to impact the health outcome of a patient, but the situation at Jackson ended up being a force for good.” Dr. Schneider’s GLMA presidency included many other milestones, including a new partnership with HRC to create a Healthcare Equality Index that encourages health institutions to voluntarily assess their own inclusiveness to staff and patients.
In terms of local impact, Dr. Schneider has been a friend and supporter of the Health Initiative for many years, and looks forward to working with the Health Initiative to implement more LGBT-competency training at Atlanta-area hospitals. Dr. Schneider has high praise for the Health Initiative: “I’ve always relied on the Health Initiative as the most comprehensive repository for LGBT-friendly providers in Georgia. ALHI provides resources for the everyday health needs of lesbians in a way that is safe and inclusive. And having the Health Fund to connect LGBT individuals with providers and to help them navigate the system is critical. I am very excited about ALHI’s interest in serving the entire community.”
A most deserving recipient of this year’s “Healing Angel” award, Dr. Schneider is appreciative of the recognition but nowhere near slowing down in his personal and professional quest to improve the healthcare experience and the overall health of the LGBT community. We are incredibly thankful for all that Dr. Schneider has done for our community, and fortunate to have him as a devoted and visionary partner in the current and future programming of the Health Initiative.
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