El Paso, Texas – Senator José Rodríguez, in partnership with Equality Texas, a statewide organization that works to secure full equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender Texans, will host two informational events in El Paso tomorrow, June 2: a workshop on transgender healthcare, and a community forum on issues facing the larger LGBTQ community, followed by a press conference the following day on Friday, June 3. 

LGBTQ Inclusive Healthcare: Understanding Dynamics in Transgender Health Care will be held Thursday, June 2 at 1:00 p.m. at the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso (5001 El Paso Dr. 79905), Medical Education Building Room 1100.  This free development workshop for healthcare professionals focuses on effective inclusion practices for LGBTQ patients.  The workshop will be led by Mr. Robert Salcido and Mr. Lou Weaver, Equality Texas’ Regional Field Coordinator and Transgender Programs Coordinator, respectively.  Licensed nurses, professional counselors, and social workers receive continuing professional education credit for completing the workshop.  Attendees must RSVP at the following link: http://goo.gl/forms/jIQNWj8AFi.

Conversations are Important: Holistic Views of Issues Facing the LGBTQ Community will be held Thursday, June 2 at 5:30 p.m. at the UTEP Health Sciences and Nursing Building (500 W. University Ave. 79902), Room 206.  This free and open to the public community forum trains attendees in how to have important conversations about LGBTQ people with their friends, co-workers, and neighbors.  The event will also be led by Equality Texas’ Mr. Robert Salcido and Mr. Lou Weaver.  Attendees must RSVP at the following link: http://goo.gl/forms/7cPple4x1x.

Following the trainings, at 1 p.m. on Friday, June 3, Sen. Rodríguez, El Paso County Judge Veronica Escobar, and Equality Texas will co-host a press conference to discuss their coalition-building efforts in the El Paso area, and issues facing the LGBTQ community leading up to the next Texas legislative session starting January 2017.

All events are sponsored by Equality Texas; the Office of Texas State Senator José Rodríguez; the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Global Health; Mano y Corazón Multicultural Health Care Solutions, an organization founded out of Sen. Rodríguez’s healthcare district advisory committee which hosts ongoing culturally-appropriate training for healthcare professionals; BorderRAC, an approved continuing education provider; The Purple Pages of El Paso; El Paso Sun City Pride; Texas Freedom Network; and Unite for Reproductive and Gender Equity.

What: LGBTQ Inclusive Healthcare: Understanding Dynamics in Transgender Health Care

When: 1:00 p.m. – 3:30 p.m., Thursday, June 2, 2016

Where: Texas Tech Health Sciences Center El Paso (Medical Education Building Rm. 1100, 5001 El Paso Dr. El Paso, Texas 79905)

RSVP: http://goo.gl/forms/jIQNWj8AFi

What: Conversations are Important: Holistic Views of Issues Facing the LGBTQ Community

When: 5:30 p.m. – 8:00 p.m., Thursday, June 2, 2016

Where: UTEP Health Sciences and Nursing Building Room 206 (500 W University Ave., El Paso, Texas 79902)RSVP: http://goo.gl/forms/7cPple4x1x

What: Press Conference

When: 1 p.m., Friday, June 3, 2016

Where: Office of Texas State Senator José Rodríguez (100 N Ochoa St. Suite A El Paso, TX 79901)

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José Rodríguez represents Texas Senate District 29, which includes the counties of El Paso, Hudspeth, Culberson, Jeff Davis, and Presidio. He represents both urban and rural constituencies, and more than 350 miles of the Texas-Mexico border. Senator Rodríguez currently serves as the Chairman of the Texas Senate Democratic Caucus, and is a member of the Senate Committees on Education; Health and Human Services; Veteran Affairs and Military Installations; Nominations; and Agriculture, Water, and Rural Affairs.