MS Roundtable Discussion
“Overcoming Health Disparities in Neurologic Disease: Building Bridges to Improve
Outcomes”
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Date: Sunday July 20, 2025.
Date: Sunday July 20, 2025.
Time: 11 am-1 pm CDT
Time: 11 am-1 pm CDT
Location: Hilton Chicago
720 South Michigan Avenue Illinois, Chicago 60605
Objectives
Objectives
The goal of this program is to discuss health disparities in Neurologic Disease from both physician and
patient perspectives. Discuss the importance of self-advocacy and how doctors can
partner with patients in shared decision making and education. The conversation will
also center around health equity and improving diversity in clinical research.
Rationales
Rationales
Rationale: As the MS population becomes more diverse in the US, the awareness of social
determinants of health and how they impact treatment is becoming more apparent. To ensure
better treatment outcomes, it is imperative that patients are empowered to participate in the
treatment plan process and that health care providers are aware of potential barriers and
challenges to care access in underrepresented groups.
Speakers
Speakers
Mitzi Joi Williams, MD, FAAN,
Founder & CEO of Joi Life Wellness Group
Mitzi Joi Williams is a Board-Certified Neurologist and Fellowship trained Multiple Sclerosis Specialist who serves as the Founder & CEO of the Joi Life Wellness Group Multiple Sclerosis Center in Smyrna, GA and Co Founder of the Joi Life Foundation. She is subject matter expert in Neurology, Multiple Sclerosis and Health Disparities.
Chantale Branson, MD, MSCR, FAAN
Chantale Branson, MD, MSCR, FAAN
Associate Professor of Neurology
Division Chief, Neurology
Program Director, Neurology
Movement & Sleep Medicine Specialist
Morehouse School of Medicine
Chantale Branson is a board-certified neurologist with fellowship training in movement disorders and sleep medicine. Her research interests include understanding and improving health disparities among African Americans (AA) with PD. She is the first movement disorders specialist at Morehouse School of Medicine, Atlanta, GA and developed the first movement disorders clinic at Grady Hospital, which is a safety net hospital in Atlanta, Georgia. Dr. Branson is the sub-site investigator for four clinical trials, providing research opportunities, including genetic testing through PDGeneration, understanding exercise and pharmaceuticals.
Kina Peppers, MD, FACOG
Kina Peppers, MD, FACOG
Dr. Kina Peppers is a board-certified Obstetrician-Gynecologist, speaker, and women's healthy lifestyle coach. She is also a retired Lieutenant Colonel with 24 years of service in the Army Medical Corps. Dr. Peppers is known for her expertise in women's health and her unique experience as both a physician and a patient who has navigated a chronic illness, Neuromyelitis Optica (NMOSD).
Sandra Elizabeth Ford, M.D., M.B.A., F.A.A.P.
Sandra Elizabeth Ford, M.D., M.B.A., F.A.A.P.
President and CEO of BFT Consulting, LLC
Sandra Elizabeth Ford, M.D., M.B.A., F.A.A.P. is the President and CEO of BFT Consulting, LLC, whose clients include KPMG, DeKalb County Government, and the US Virgin Island’s Office of Health Information Technology. A Board-Certified Pediatrician, she has served in executive leadership roles at the local, state, and Federal levels. In her most recent role as Special Advisor for Healthcare to DeKalb County CEO Michael Thurmond, she has led projects to increase Medicaid re-enrollment and improve healthcare delivery for DeKalb County Residents. In her most recent role as the Special Assistant to the President for Public Health and Science in the White House Domestic Policy Council, Dr. Ford’s portfolio included the Centers for Disease Control (CDC), the National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the Administration for Strategic Preparedness and Response (ASPR).
Jakai McEwen, DO
Jakai McEwen, DO
Neurologist, Joi Life Wellness Group, Smyrna, GA & Patient Advocate
Dr. Jakai Nolan McEwen is a board-certified neurologist and fellowship trained multiple sclerosis specialist with Joi Life Wellness Group in Smyrna, Georgia.
She earned her medical degree from the Georgia campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic
Medicine in Suwanee, Georgia, and her master’s in public health from Emory University. She
completed her neurology residency at Kettering Medical Center in Dayton, Ohio. Dr. Nolan
also completed a fellowship focused in MS, neuroimmunology, and spasticity management at
Riverside Methodist Hospital in Columbus, Ohio. While her curiosity regarding neurology stemmed
from a high school summer program, multiple sclerosis holds a special place in her life as she
was diagnosed with relapsing MS in September 2009. Her current interests include patient advocacy and social awareness of multiple sclerosis in the Black community.
Sponsors
Sponsors
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