Asian Journal- The Filipino-American Community Newspaper

HORIZONS FOR HEALTH

KalusuganCoalition, a relatively young organization, celebrated its second annual gala last week to honor individuals and an organization that have made exceptional contributions to advance the health and quality of life of Filipino-Americans living in the New York metropolitan area.

The three awardees—Dr. Kevin Nadal, Dr. Ramiro Cadag and the Asian & Pacific Islander Coalition on HIV/AIDS (APICHA)—were honored for their vision, courage, and commitment that has made New York a healthier place, not only for Filipino Americans but for all New Yorkers.

The organization was born in 2006, when a handful of community members and health workers came together to respond to health care gaps and to dream about a better, healthier future for Filipino-Americans living in the metro New York area. It was established by visionary leaders who believed in the guiding principles of accountability, communal compassion, health as a human right, respect, commitment, and the quality of life for all individuals.

"We envision a healthy, unified Filipino-American community whose rights and needs are met by a quality, holistic healthcare system. Today, we are proud that we have stayed true to that vision," said the coalition’s board chair, Noilyn Abesamis-Mendoza.

For 2010, the organization showed tremendous growth by starting two new projects: first, as a part of APA HEALIN’ collaborative where they are working to address access to healthy food and safe places to play and exercise for the Asian American community in NYC, and second, Project Kapasidad, a capacity building project for the organization’s members to receive technical assistance to board development, strategic planning and leadership development.

APICHA is an organization that has been serving the Asian and Pacific Islander community for over 21 years, starting in 1989 as an all-volunteer grassroots effort to address HIV/AIDS and is now evolving into a community-oriented medical home for low-income community members. Today, APICHA’s services are a lifeline for APIs, LGBT individuals, immigrants and all people from every community in New York.

Dr. Ramiro Cadag has held a private practice in internal medicine in Brooklyn since 1973, after finishing a a 3-yar residency at St. John’s Episcopal Hospital. He has coordinated several medical service projects in the Philippines, including medical-surgical missions to benefit indigent patients in his hometown of Bohol. His daughter Kara Cadag, a delivery room nurse at NYU Langone Medical Center and a Founding Member of Kalusugan Coalition, received her father’s award.

"I feel humbled to receive an award like this so early in my career. I don’t think that I do anything spectacular, I think that I am just doing work that needs to be done, particularly for our community," Dr. Nadal said, as he received his award.

A professor, psychologist, performer, activist and author, Nadal said that he felt humbled because he wondered how he has been quite lucky to have the opportunities that he had.

He grew up in a Filipino-American immigrant family in a very large Filipino-American community in California where education was very valued. Nadal related that he was just an average student who somehow made it to college, who somehow was lucky and fortunate enough to come across so many mentors who really pushed him and believed in him. He eventually received his doctorate and became the first in his family to do so.