Maria Nahuatlato is a Senior Patient Advocate at Cornell Scott-Hill Health Center (New Haven, Connecticut). Maria advocates on behalf of the health center’s diverse patients, helping them understand and navigate care, connecting them with services, providing resources, and serving as a bridge between the community and the healthcare system. She also helps uninsured patients apply for coverage and engages in community outreach. A community resident and bi-lingual first generation American, Nahuatlato explained how her first-hand experience drew her to the community health center program.
“As a first-generation Mexican American daughter of immigrant parents, I grew up understanding how difficult it was to navigate the healthcare system as a minority. And those experiences really shaped my desire to want to work in a community health center where I can help individuals that look like me or come from similar backgrounds, help get the care and treatment that they deserve.”
Nahuatlato described how immigrants often don’t know what is available to them, and how language barriers create additional barriers to access. This fueled her desire to advocate for and support communities that might not be prepared to advocate for themselves.
She emphasized that Cornell Scott–Hill Health Center’s mission is about whole-person and community-based care.
“Our mission here at Cornell Scott is to improve the health and wellbeing of our community. So again, we offer not just patient advocacy, we offer a variety of different services. And I really do try to emphasize to a patient where, when I see that they don't have a primary care [provider], the importance of having a primary care, the importance of staying up to date with their health. And again, giving them those resources, whether it's housing, shelter, you name it, it's important to know these resources are available to you, especially when you don't know at any given moment whether you might need it or not.”
Helping those who might not otherwise have access to quality healthcare is a privilege, Nahuatlato said. Ultimately, Maria explained, her work at Cornell Scott is rooted in three core values: “community, service, and compassion.”
This story was published in 2026.
