CDC director to attend medical meetings in Mississippi

<p>The director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta will be in Mississippi on Monday to talk about diabetes and heart-related problems affecting blacks.</p><p>Dr. Julie Gerberding will visit the Jackson Medical Mall on Monday before leaving for Stoneville and a symposium sponsored by the Delta Health Alliance.</p><p>Topics will include controlling infections diseases, coronary diseases and agromedicine.</p><p>Gerberding's visit comes at the invitation of U.S. Sen. Thad Cochran, R-Miss., and representatives of the Delta Health Alliance.</p><p>"Mississippi's health care providers will receive advice from Dr. Gerberding about how to best use the experience available from the Centers for Disease Control," Cochran said in a prepared statement.</p><p>Cochran and others invited Gerberding to "see first hand what's being done at the state level to address these problems," said Tom Skinner, a spokesman for the CDC.</p><p>Skinner said he expects Gerberding will use her visit to "talk about obesity and the impact obesity has on health here in the United States."</p><p>"We want her to see the collaborative effort we have going on in the Delta," said Cass Pennington, DHA executive director.</p><p>Pennington hopes an alliance can be forged between the CDC and his organization "to support our efforts."</p><p>The DHA, chartered in December 2001, is a partnership between Delta State University, Mississippi State University, the University of Mississippi Medical Center, Mississippi Valley State University and the Delta Council to provide health care, research and education programs to residents of the Delta.</p>