Director, Mt. Sinai Adolescent Health Center

When Dr. Angela Diaz came to Mt. Sinai Adolescent Health Center for counseling at age 16, the odds were against her succeeding in life, let alone graduating high school. At 12, she landed in the South Bronx as an undocumented immigrant from the Dominican Republic who spoke no English. She became a victim of sexual assault and this, coupled with an earlier physical trauma, led to a deep and debilitating depression.

Dr. Diaz credits the Mt. Sinai Adolescent Health Center for changing her life. Today, with a medical degree from Columbia University College of Physicians and Surgeons and a Master's in Public Health from Harvard University, she is the Director of the Adolescent Health Center, the largest center of its kind in the county. Since she took charge in 1988, the program has tripled in size and its budget has grown from $4M to $10M. Each year, the center helps 15,000 adolescents by providing much-needed comprehensive physical and mental health services. Among the center's patients, 75 percent are uninsured, 99 percent are low income and a large percentage comes from immigrant families.

A nationally and internationally recognized leader in health care, Dr. Diaz is devoted to helping the most vulnerable teens. Under her leadership, the Mt. Sinai Adolescent Health Center has developed programs to address eating disorders, pregnancy and HIV prevention, violence prevention and treatment, trauma and sexual abuse, and many other areas. Always breaking new ground, the center is currently developing a learning disorder clinic.

Dr. Diaz has shaped and saved the lives of tens of thousands of adolescents in New York City. Through her health advocacy and policy work in the United States and abroad, she has an impact on the lives and health of young people worldwide.