Celebrated physician, health advocate, and communicator Dr. Aliza Lifshitz, known for her groundbreaking efforts in promoting wellness within the Hispanic community, is the focus of a 60-minute posthumous documentary honoring her remarkable life and legacy. An original production of HITN-TV, Dra. Aliza: Un Legado de Vida y Salud which premiered on Sunday, Sept. 24, 2023 at 11 am EST/PDT.
During her decades-long career, Dra. Aliza, as the public affectionately called her, touched the lives of many across the United States and Latin America, becoming a household name and an influential voice in the Hispanic health and wellness space.
Presenting an intimate look at her life, on and off the screen, the documentary features interviews with Dra. Aliza’s family and friends, including her widower Carl Kravetz and her sister Viviana Lombrozo. Television and radio personalities such as Myrka Dellanos, Pedro Sevcec, Dra. Isabel Gómez Bassols and Jessica Maldonado also share their personal stories about their late friend and colleague.
“Working with Dra. Aliza as a health expert, was very easy. She knew the ins and outs of the television industry, and she also knew how to make scientific topics more accessible and comprehensible to her audiences,” said the documentary producer Laura Masnatta. In the documentary she shows Dra. Aliza as more than a subject-matter expert, the documentary highlights the genuine warmth and interest to brough to her on-air segments, and made difficult or taboo health topics more relatable to her Hispanic audiences. “She earned the love and admiration of the whole team for her vast medical knowledge, her kind smile, and her effortless talent for being both charming and extremely inspiring.”
Dra. Aliza received the Latino Spirit Award by the Latino Legislative Caucus and the Champions of Health Award by the National Medical Fellowships. She was also featured as part of Hispanic Business Magazine’s top 100 Hispanic Influentials and recognized as one of People en Español’s 25 Poderosas in their inaugural awards program honoring Latina powerhouses across a variety of fields. She was included in the Latinas: The Spirit of California exhibit at The California Museum for History, Women and the Arts and was a three-time recipient of the Dr. C. Everett Koop Media Award from the American Heart Association.
Beyond her on-air segments, radio and television programs, news columns, and books, Dra. Aliza was also active at the community and grassroots level, with leadership roles that exemplified her unwavering commitment to carrying out her mission. She was the four-time President of the California Hispanic-American Medical Association and served on the board of directors for the National Confederation of Hispanic Medical Associations (NCHMA). She was a Council member of the Los Angeles County Medical Association (LACMA) and served as vice president of the Los Angeles County Commission on HIV.
At the time of her passing, Dra. Aliza served as the Editorial Director of Vida y Salud, a health platform she co-founded, which has become an indispensable health resource reaching more than 8 million web visitors each year through its library of robust health and wellness content. A television show with the same name currently airs daily on HITN-TV, providing relatable and accessible health guidance to Hispanic viewers across the Americas.
“At HITN, we feel profoundly grateful and honored to have been trusted by Doctora Aliza to continue her work and life mission through her beloved Vida y Salud brand. HITN has widely expanded the property to include a pan-regional television program, a strong digital presence with millions of views per year, a number of dedicated social media feeds, live events in Hispanic neighborhoods across the country, and many more activities that promote a healthy lifestyle for the community she dedicated her life to serve,” said Guillermo Sierra, Head of Television and Digital Services for HITN.
Produced in association with Latin Heat
Edited by Judy J. Rotich and Newsdesk Manager
