Congressional Black Caucus Foundation
Health Equity Summit and Health Fair
Join the National Medical Association for a timely and important panel discussion on Men’s Health at 1:00 PM on Saturday, May 16, during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation’s Health Equity Summit in Newark, New Jersey. Registration is free and open to the public.
National Medical Association Breakout Session | 1:00 p.m. Eastern
Men’s Health: An Innovative, Intergenerational Approach to Cardiovascular Health, Obesity, Diabetes, Violence, and Stress Management
The National Medical Association presents a dynamic panel exploring men’s health through the intersecting challenges of cardiovascular disease, obesity, diabetes, violence, and stress. Grounded in a call to mobilize healthcare justice, this session highlights how structural inequities shape health across generations and communities. Panelists will showcase innovative, solution-driven, and community-centered strategies to advance prevention, reduce risk, build resilience, and support equitable outcomes. Empowering attendees to transform health outcomes with actionable approaches to support men in living fully, thriving, and leading across the lifespan.
Be sure to also visit the NMA table during the health fair portion of the event.
Session Participants
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Roger A. Mitchell Jr., M.D.
President, National Medical Association
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Trevor Dixon, M.D., RDMS
Attending Physician and Director of Emergency Ultrasound, Jacobi and North Central Bronx Health
Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine, Albert Einstein College of
Medicine -
Milton R. Mills, M.D.
Internal Medicine and Critical Care
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Owano Pennycooke, M.D.
Vascular and Endovascular Surgeon
Dr. Roger A. Mitchell Jr serves as the 126th President of the National Medical Association and is a board-certified forensic pathologist with two decades of professional experience. Over the course of his career, Dr. Mitchell has conducted and managed thousands of autopsies, demonstrating his extensive expertise in the field. Most recently, he was President of Howard University Hospital, where he oversaw significant transformation at one of the nation’s most historic academic safety-net hospitals. He also served as Chief Medical Officer of the HU Faculty Practice Plan, where he was responsible for supporting patient quality and safety policy initiatives.
Prior to his tenure at Howard University, Dr. Mitchell was the Chief Medical Examiner for Washington, DC from 2014 to 2021. He subsequently served as Interim Deputy Mayor for Public Safety and Justice. In these roles, Dr. Mitchell bridged the fields of medicine and law, serving as the Mass Fatality Manager for the Nation’s Capital during the COVID-19 pandemic and as Deputy Mayor during the events of the January 6th Insurrection.
Dr. Mitchell is an internationally recognized authority in the investigation, examination, and reporting of deaths in the custody of the criminal justice system. He has delivered nearly 200 scientific lectures and authored 17 peer-reviewed articles, including the 2025 National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report, Strengthening the U.S. Medicolegal Death Investigation System: Lessons from Deaths in Custody. Additionally, Dr. Mitchell has contributed two book chapters on violence and published two books. His most recent co-authored work, Death in Custody: How America Ignores the Truth and What We Can Do About It, is accompanied by the podcast Official Ignorance, which was nominated for a NAACP Image Award. His expertise has been featured on several prominent television programs such as Dateline with Lester Holt, PBS Frontline, Meet the Press, and Roland Martin.
Dr. Mitchell’s academic background includes studies at Howard University, Rutgers – New Jersey Medical School, and George Washington University Hospital. He completed his forensic pathology fellowship at the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner in New York City. Beyond his medical career, Dr. Mitchell is an ordained minister and elder at New Bethel Baptist Church in Washington, DC. He has been married for nearly 24 years and is the father of three children.
Dr. Trevor Dixon is an Attending Physician at Jacobi and North Central Bronx Health and Hospitals in New York, where he also serves as Director of Emergency Ultrasound. He holds the academic title of Assistant Professor of Emergency Medicine at the Albert Einstein College of Medicine. A Board-Certified Emergency Medicine physician, Dr. Dixon earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Diagnostic Ultrasound from SUNY Downstate and is a Registered Diagnostic Medical Sonographer (RDMS), with nearly 30 years of experience in diagnostic imaging.
Since 2007, Dr. Dixon has been devoted to improving healthcare in Jamaica. He organized the country’s first Emergency Ultrasound Conference at Kingston Public Hospital and later founded the Jamaicans Abroad Helping Jamaicans At Home (JAHJAH) Foundation, officially registered as a nonprofit in New Jersey in 2011 and in Jamaica in 2014. Under his visionary leadership, the foundation has enhanced infrastructure in public hospitals and schools and donated millions of dollars in medical, dental, and educational equipment. He also spearheaded the Jamaica Emergency Medical Services (JEMS) Negril First Responder Pilot Project, a community-based ambulance initiative. Each year, he leads a team of over 40 U.S.-based medical professionals to Jamaica for a one-week mission, during which he conducts a two-day Emergency Ultrasound and Critical Care Point of Care (P.O.C.U.S.) Workshop for public hospital physicians. His groundbreaking Jamaica Handheld Ultrasound Project (JHUP) a collaboration with the American Friends of Jamaica, Jacobi Medical Centre, and Jamaica’s public hospitals, has equipped Accident & Emergency and Maternal-Fetal Medicine departments with portable ultrasound devices and ongoing training to strengthen bedside diagnostic care.
Dr. Dixon’s exemplary work has earned him multiple accolades, including the Order of Distinction from the Governer General of Jamaica, one of the countries highest national honor for his outstanding contribution to healthcare in Jamaica, President’s Award of Excellence from the National Medical Association (August 2023), the Dr. Wes Curry Award in Social Justice from Vituity and the ACEP Executive Leadership Diversity Summit (October 2023), and special recognition from the American Board of Emergency Medicine during Black History Month (February 2024) for his impact in Emergency Medicine. He is also a two-time recipient of the prestigious Consul General of Jamaica’s Heritage Award, honoring his outstanding service and contributions to the Jamaican diaspora.
Born in Christiana, Manchester, Jamaica, Dr. Dixon attended Zorn Moravian Primary School before migrating to Brooklyn, New York, at the age of 10. Deeply connected to his roots, he continues to dedicate his life to charitable work and the advancement of healthcare for underserved communities in Jamaica and beyond.
Milton R. Mills, M.D., graduated from Stanford University School of Medicine in 1991. He completed his internship at the University of California, San Francisco, and his residency training at Georgetown University Hospital in Washington, D.C.
Dr. Mills previously volunteered as Associate Director of Preventive Medicine for the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine (PCRM), a North American organization dedicated to promoting improved health care, better and more appropriate nutrition, and higher standards in medical research. While working with PCRM, Dr. Mills served as lead plaintiff in a lawsuit seeking warning labels outlining health concerns associated with dairy consumption, and he organized and participated in a press conference that stopped the D.C. school district from embracing chocolate milk as an official beverage of D.C. public schools.
Most recently, Dr. Mills has worked as an internal medicine and critical care physician (intensivist) in the Washington, D.C., and Richmond, Virginia, areas. He has broad experience in internal medicine, critical care, HIV disease, and the relationship between nutrition and chronic disease, and is recognized for addressing the unique health care needs of all Americans, including minority populations and people living with HIV.
Focusing on science-based, peer-reviewed preventive medicine, Dr. Mills has examined environmental and societal influences affecting the health of African Americans and other racial/ethnic minorities, as well as the general population. He gave widely shared testimony before the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee, challenging recommendations he described as harmful to communities of color and raising concerns about the committee’s lack of minority representation.
Dr. Mills has lectured extensively and delivered research seminars across the United States and in Mexico, Canada, Ireland, and the United Kingdom on topics including the health impacts of meat and dairy consumption and the role of plant-based diets in meeting human dietary needs, supporting immune function, and influencing the course of HIV/AIDS. His papers on race and diet have appeared in the Journal of the National Medical Association, and his work is featured in the book Brotha Vegan. Dr. Mills has also appeared in films and documentaries including What the Health, The Invisible Vegan, Vegucated, A Prayer for Compassion, and They’re Trying to Kill Us.
Dr. Owano Pennycooke is a board-certified vascular and endovascular surgeon with more than 2 decades of experience specializing in complex arterial and venous disease, dialysis access surgery, limb preservation, and the management of chronic cardiovascular conditions. He currently practices at PACE CVI in Georgia and previously served as Medical Director of Associates in Vascular Care in Middletown, New Jersey. Dr. Pennycooke has also held vascular surgery positions within the Hackensack Meridian Health System, including Jersey Shore University Medical Center and Riverview Medical Center, as well as CentraState Medical Center in Freehold, New Jersey.
A graduate of Rutgers University and Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, Dr. Pennycooke completed his General Surgery residency at Cooper University Hospital in Camden, NJ, and Vascular Surgery fellowship at New Jersey Medical School in Newark, New Jersey. He is board-certified in both General Surgery and Vascular Surgery by the American Board of Surgery and is licensed in multiple states, including Georgia, New Jersey, and New York.
Dr. Pennycooke has been recognized by Newsweek Magazine as one of America’s Best Vascular Surgeons and has received numerous academic and professional honors throughout his career. His clinical and academic interests include diabetic limb preservation, dialysis access, and chronic disease management. He has authored and presented multiple research studies and lectures on vascular surgery, diabetic foot care, and vascular disease at regional and national meetings.
In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Pennycooke has remained committed to service and global health initiatives through International Healthcare Volunteers and other community-based programs that improve healthcare access and outcomes for underserved populations. He is honored to participate in the National Medical Association’s Congressional Black Caucus Foundation Health Equity Summit to discuss men’s health, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and chronic disease prevention.
