Originally written by Victor Puac-Polanco, Year 2 Pilot PI Awardee and Assistant Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management at SUNY Downstate Medical Center.
“In 2025 the Health Administration Section (HAS) of the American Public Health Association and the Journal of Public Health Management and Practice (JPHMP) selected our team’s abstract as the 2025 Research to Practice Award Winner. This award recognizes outstanding research that has been successfully translated into real-world administrative practice. As awardees, we were invited to submit an article to JPHMP and were formally recognized at the 2025 APHA Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C., during the HAS Awards Social.
Title: Site-Based Differences in Patient-Reported Health Equity Experiences Across Central Brooklyn Using the Brooklyn Health Equity Index (BKHI),
Summary of the Abstract: This study examined how patient-reported healthcare experiences differ between U.S.-born and foreign-born adults using the Brooklyn Health Equity Index (BKHI), a community-developed tool that measures trust, communication, empathy, and experiences of discrimination in healthcare. Among 1,357 patients surveyed in Central Brooklyn, overall BKHI scores did not differ significantly by nativity. However, foreign-born patients reported significantly lower scores on the discrimination and inequity domain, suggesting higher perceived mistreatment or systemic bias. These findings highlight the importance of integrating BKHI into routine quality assessments to identify inequities and advance health system improvement.”
Congrats to Dr. Pauc-Polanco and Team!