Scholarships Available for Bilingual, Bicultural Students Pursuing Car

CYPRESS, Calif., March 23 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Seventy $2,000 scholarships are available for Spanish-speaking, bicultural high-school students who want to pursue careers in the health care industry.

The scholarships, funded by the PacifiCare Foundation, the philanthropic arm of PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. , are offered on behalf of PacifiCare's Latino Health Scholars program designed to educate and encourage Hispanic and Latino students to pursue career opportunities in health care.

High-school seniors with a minimum grade point average (GPA) of 3.0 and who are fluent in Spanish and English are eligible. Applicants must show proof of acceptance into a university, community college or an accredited technical college and must be enrolled in an approved health care program at the time they receive the scholarship. Applications are due June 30, 2005, and are available online at PacifiCare en Espanol, http://www.pacificarelatino.com/, and PacifiCare Health Systems' Web site, http://www.pacificare.com/.

"According to the Office of Minority Health, there is a nationwide shortage of bilingual and bicultural professionals in the health care field, leaving many Latinos without access to culturally and linguistically appropriate care," said Russell Bennett, PacifiCare's vice president of Latino Health Solutions. "For example, in the nursing field, a recent policy report by the Online Journal of Issues in Nursing states that the proportion of Latino nursing students continues to lag behind the number of Latinos in the population. Studies also show that patients respond better when care instructions are delivered in their own language and their cultural background is taken into account."

For 2005, PacifiCare has expanded its Latino Health Scholars program to include -- in addition to the seventy (70) $2,000 scholarships -- two PacifiCare Freedom Awards in the amount of $25,000 each for the two most deserving and qualified applicants. Announced in February, the PacifiCare Freedom Award was established to recognize individuals and organizations that have demonstrated tremendous sacrifice and commitment to make a positive difference in their communities.

The award was inspired by the heroic actions of U.S. Marine Sgt. Rafael Peralta who was killed last November by enemy action in Iraq. Fighting in Falluja alongside his fellow marines, Peralta, wounded by gunshots, reached out for a grenade that was hurled by an insurgent and cradled it to his body to protect others from the blast. His heroism saved the lives of five Marines.

"This year, we would like to dedicate the inaugural PacifiCare Freedom Award on behalf of Sgt. Peralta and all of the men and women of the armed forces who have given their lives to promote freedom and liberty throughout the world," said Howard Phanstiel, PacifiCare's chairman and chief executive officer. "Through the Latino Health Scholars program, we are looking for students who share the kinds of qualities exemplified by Sgt. Peralta, and who demonstrate the values we cherish at PacifiCare to make people's lives better."

PacifiCare will announce the scholarships at the National Hispanic Medical Association's (NHMA) ninth annual conference, "Medical Practice for the 21st Century: Enhancing Quality Care and Health Literacy," March 31-April 3 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Downtown Los Angeles. Established in Washington, D.C., in 1994, the NMHA is a bilingual, bicultural organization that represents 36,000 licensed Hispanic physicians in the United States. The mission of the organization is to improve the health of Latinos and other underserved populations by expanding access to quality health care and increasing opportunities in medical education, cultural competence and research for Latinos. More information on the NHMA is available online at http://www.nhmamd.org/.

"We applaud PacifiCare's commitment to help pave the way for the next generation of Hispanic health care professionals," said Elena Rios, M.D., president and CEO of NHMA. "We believe the Latino Health Scholars program can inspire these students to succeed in school and pursue rewarding, fulfilling health care careers that will make a positive impact in their communities."

"We are encouraging our scholarship recipients to utilize their bilingual and bicultural skills and health care education by 'giving back' to their communities once they graduate," Bennett added. "It is this spirit of giving that is reflected in PacifiCare's theme, 'Caring is good. Doing something is better.' We are doing our part in the community by enlisting the help of many of our employees who have volunteered to serve as ambassadors by visiting the high schools and assisting students interested in a career in health care."

Last September, PacifiCare awarded 50 scholarships to students pursuing diverse health care careers such as Nursing, Biology, Psychology and Molecular Genetics.

PacifiCare Health Systems is one of the nation's largest consumer health organizations with more than 3 million health plan members and approximately 10 million specialty plan members nationwide. PacifiCare offers individuals, employers and Medicare beneficiaries a variety of consumer-driven health care and life insurance products. Currently, more than 99 percent of PacifiCare's commercial health plan members are enrolled in plans that have received Excellent Accreditation by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA). PacifiCare's specialty operations include behavioral health, dental and vision, and complete pharmacy benefit management through its wholly owned subsidiary, Prescription Solutions. More information on PacifiCare Health Systems is available at http://www.pacificare.com/.

"Caring is Good. Doing Something is Better." is a service mark of PacifiCare Health Systems Inc.