Salud Para Niños

As part of his CORE training in 2002, Diego G. Chaves-Gnecco, MD, MPH, FAAP created the first pediatric bilingual-bicultural clinic in southwestern Pennsylvania. Since its creation, this clinic has expanded to the program Salud (Students, residents, fellows, faculty And Latinos United against health Disparities) Para Niños (Health for the Children). At Salud Para Niños, culturally and linguistically sensitive primary care for children and families is complemented with activities oriented toward prevention and empowering the community about its own health.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Chaves-Gnecco and Salud Para Niños, in partnership with community organizations like Casa San Jose, have been working in addressing the needs of the Latino community of southwestern Pennsylvania. Salud Para Niños with the UPMC Children’s Hospital of Pittsburgh Care Mobile offers weekly clinics at Casa San Jose for children without health insurance. During these visits families are screened for social determinants of health such as food insecurity. Families are provided and connected with different resources to address their needs. Chaves-Gnecco and Ricardo Arbulu-Guerra, MD, UPMC Infectious Disease specialist, gave a virtual presentation about COVID-19 with the support of UPMC and Casa San Jose, in Spanish for the Latino community of southwestern Pennsylvania.