🔥 Dr. Helen Arteaga Landaverde- is a Force for Health Equity & Leadership! 🔥
As an immigrant child she learned first hand how not having health care or resources affected her family watching as her father died from leukemia, coincidentally at Elmhurst Hospital. She took that tragedy and worked for 11 years to build the first clinic in Elmhurst, Plaza del Sol Family Health Center starting with just 38 patients in 2009 and ending up serving over 39,000 in 2021.
🥰 She believes that being "patient first" is the top priority and the trust that her patients and community have in her have not only lead to her breaking barriers—but shattering them.
🚀 She is first woman of color and first Latina to lead the hospital (in over 100 years!), and has transformed Elmhurst into one of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Regional Hospitals, leading in clinical excellence, equity, and patient care.
🏆 Under her leadership:
đź’™ Elmhurst became the first hospital in NYS to achieve Health Equity Gold standard certification
🚀 Recognized as one of only 53 hospitals nationwide for equitable access
đź’ˇ Secured major funding for renovations, patient care improvements, and frontline worker wellness programs
Beyond the hospital walls, Helen has spent her career fighting for healthcare access and mentoring the next generation of Latina leaders. From founding Plaza del Sol Family Health Center to receiving the Joan H. Tisch Community Health Prize, she’s proving that healthcare is not just about treatment—it’s about transformation.
