Health Inequities — Denise Rodriguez

In 2022, the Colorado Equity Compass (CEC) awarded 20 organizations and community groups across Colorado $2,000 to share the stories of Colorado residents working to fight inequities related to the social determinants of health (SDOH), which determine an individual’s capacity for health, wellbeing and longevity.

This is a story product from CEC Awardee: Cesar Chavez Celebration of Mesa County. Dedicated in name and efforts to the work of civil rights leader and labor activist Cesar Chavez, the Cesar Chavez Celebration of Mesa County is an organization whose goal it is to assist farm workers and the overall community, diminishing the negative factors that can affect the SDOH. Denise Rodriguez is the advocacy director for the Freedom Institute, an organization that serves individuals and families who have been affected by poverty and incarceration, and she is a caregiver. Here, she discusses the frustration and stress of being a caregiver for her husband and her daughter who both have medical issues and how the SDOH directly impact her and her family.