BALTIMORE, MD (May 26, 2016)– With a heat index of 84 degrees and unhealthy air quality expected today, Baltimore City Health Commissioner Dr. Leana Wen is urging caution for Baltimore City residents, especially members of “sensitive groups.”
Just a few months after Dr. Leana Wen took over as Baltimore’s health commissioner, the Freddie Gray riots drew renewed national attention to the city’s struggling neighborhoods and public health challenges including opioid addiction, gun violence and disparities in life expectancy across different zip codes.
Charles Quamina sat in the spotlight on a dark stage with his long, blown-out locks falling over his shoulders and told the story of how he believes he contracted
Baltimore City Health Comisisoner Dr. Leana Wen today delivered the address at the 2016 Commencement of Notre Dame of Maryland University (NDMU) at the Royal Farms Arena. NDMU President Marylou Yam presided over the ceremony.
One day in 1997, a man woke up in the ER after experiencing a heroin overdose. He was scared and homeless, unsure of how to access services to manage his addiction. Soon after this experience, the man encountered “the nicest people in the world” at a Baltimore City Health Department Needle Exchange Van. The peer recovery staff built a relationship with this man based on shared experiences and successfully encouraged him to go into—and stick with—a treatment program that worked for him.
