Dr. Jaleen Sims of Sims Foundation of HOPE and Livin’ Well with Dr. Jay to be Featured on Close Up Radio

FLOWOOD, MISSISSIPPI, UNITED STATES, May 16, 2024 /EINPresswire.com/ -- The biggest challenge facing women of color today is still racial inequality. “Women of color are dying 3 to 5 times more than other races related to maternal health. When we look at the data, their educational levels are the same, where they live is the same—it all boils down to racial bias in care,” explains Dr. Jaleen Sims, OB/GYN and co-founder of the Sims Foundation of H.O.P.E. “Pieces that are missing are twofold: self-advocacy and physicians listening with a willing and open ear. Sometimes women don’t understand that they are just as important in their care as their physicians. One of my sayings is that, I am the expert in medicine, but you are the expert in you. I don’t know you the way you know you. As your doctor, I need to know what you are experiencing. Then as the patient is disclosing her symptoms, we as physicians must listen and appropriately evaluate the patient. These can be life saving measures.”

To help educate all women about the importance of their voices in their healthcare, Dr. Sims recently began Livin’ Well with Dr. Jay on Instagram, Facebook, TikTok, and https://www.livinwellwithdrjay.com. “My goal for Livin’ Well is for it to become an educational hub for women’s health while also offering speaking and consulting services for community outreach, health event planning and physician services,” explains Dr. Sims. “In the future, I see Livin’ Well having a radio/TV show that highlights inspirational stories around women’s health.”

Jaleen and her husband, Ray, also founded Sims Foundation of H.O.P.E. (Health, Opportunity, Prosperity, and Empowerment) to enhance the lives of underserved people and communities through education, health/wellness information, career/personal development support, and life skills. They also host annual Community Baby Showers and Resource Fairs.

Their flagship program, Imagine You, helps enhance the personal development of middle and high school girls in underserved communities by teaching valuable life lessons. Held each year in various locations around the U.S., each conference offers classes in self-defense, health and wellness, bias (or stereotyping), career planning (including applying to college and mock interviews), and a community service project. As Dr. Sims explains, “We are proud that Imagine You has now served 794 girls, and Community Baby Showers have supported 370 moms and families.”

“Empowerment for girls and women all began for me in high school when I became head cheerleading coach. I was not just a coach to the young ladies, I became their second mama, their mentor, their confidant. It got to the point where parents were deferring party decisions to me. Interacting with them on an intimate level was quite rewarding. That’s how I learned what parenting is like—I found myself staying up late waiting for the girls to return,” shares Dr. Sims. Helping young women succeed is Dr. Sims’ life calling.

As a physician, the joy of bringing new life into this world is what gives her the greatest joy. “I love being a surgeon, working with my hands. Being an OB/GYN is the best of all worlds, you have clinic life, hospital life, and you have an operating room life. It’s sporadic and I never know what to expect. Babies come whenever they want, and no two days are the same. I praise God that He has allowed me to serve women and girls in this way.”

Dr. Sims is also a mother of a 5-year-old girl who is able to go with her mom almost everywhere she goes. “My daughter comes to conferences, career fairs, and teaching events. Recently I was asked to help teach high school students how to do PAP smears. My daughter came with me and wanted to participate so she did! I wanted her to have exposure, be around people of all ages, and learn how to communicate. For me, for her to learn what it’s like to be in my shoes is important.”

The greatest challenge Dr. Sims faces with the foundation is funding and assistance with administrative tasks. “We have a great slate of volunteers in Jackson, Wichita, and Dallas to help. But after running a program for so long, people tend to lose enthusiasm. I’m a full time OB/GYN, full-time mom, full-time wife, and I do everything for the foundation, including financial, renewals, taxes, everything. I oversee and attend each conference. It is a lot of work for one person. While the help I have is a blessing, being in charge of every single event can be challenging,” explains Dr. Sims. “All the foundation does is of no cost to participants. When we host conferences, we’re not just hosting conferences. All Imagine You participants receive a t-shirt, bag, water bottle, notebook, pen, branded bag with hygiene products, and an extra surprise gift. We not only love to teach the girls, but we also love to shower them with gifts!”

Regardless, the rewards far outweigh the challenges. Explains Dr. Sims, “A young lady who attended the conference for the first time as a 6th grader attended every single year to grade 12. That young woman is now on our board of directors and on our conference planning committee. At this year’s conference, she’s presenting our college prep class. And she is currently attending college in Houston and is planning to go to medical school! We have another past attendee who is on our conference planning committee and currently applying for medical school. She’s currently a 3rd year college student and I’m writing a letter of recommendation for her right now. As much as they give their time, I try to pour back into them as much as I can and answer questions they may have about the navigation of medicine and anything else they need.”

Dr. Sims realizes that, “It takes a village… the Sims Foundation of H.O.P.E. is honored to be a part of that village in the community. Every event, every organization, together, we can all be involved in the process that helps kids become productive members of society.”

Close Up Radio will feature Dr. Jaleen D. Sims in an interview with Jim Masters on Thursday, May 16th at 6pm Eastern

Listen to the show on BlogTalkRadio

If you have any questions for our guest, please call (347) 996-3389

For more information about Dr. Jaleen D. Sims, please visit http://livinwellwithdrjay.com and https://www.simsfoundationofhope.com

Lou Ceparano
Close Up Television & Radio
+1 631-850-3314
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