Episode 4

This week our host’s  Nikki Akparewa and Karim Assalaam are discussing with Dr. Cliff Takemoto.

As a pediatric hematologist provider at John Hopkins for two decades and now practicing at St. Jude’s Children Research Hospital, Dr. Cliff Takemoto speaks on his 25+ years of care and research involving blood disorders and the improvement of life for individuals with SCD.

Topics:

• Research and excitement on Gene Therapy

• Physician, patient, and caregiver relationships

• Individual SCD threshold

• Preventative therapies for Adulthood

• Disparity of funds

• Economics, availability, quality of life, and Curative Therapies

“Everybody who has had complications with SCD, it’s more than just the severe disease. There are other challenges that come along with that, and with every person, there is a different equation. We always have to remember to think about that person and LISTEN.”

Social Entrepreneurship is about creating social responsibility so that our collective actions benefit the whole of society by acknowledging how our individual stories and actions can create more equity and inclusion.