Public Health in San Fernando
Public healthcare in San Fernando, California, does not receive the attention it deserves. For example, low-income children, seniors and undocumented immigrants do not have access to mental health services. The same groups are also vulnerable to chronic diseases such as diabetes and asthma. Reports by community organizations and hospitals in the area rate heart diseases, stroke, and cancer as the leading healthcare concerns, with those vulnerable groups being the hardest hit.
Teenage mothers also grapple with the same problems. However, for teenage mothers it is worse because they are at a high risk of dropping out of school, becoming dependent on welfare throughout their lives and living in abject poverty as compared to those who delay parenting. Again, it is highly likely for teenage mothers to be isolated and overwhelmed because they are not ready for the challenges of parenting. This puts the children born of teenage mothers at the risk of premature birth, poor health, school dropout, and neglect. Nevertheless, there are some non-governmental organizations (such as El Nido Family Centers) that realize the magnitude of the problem, and are fund some programs to assist teenage mothers in San Fernando.
For example, El Nido and San Fernando Valley Best Babies collaborate to reduce poor birth outcomes among teenagers. The two organizations also coordinate in-home counseling and social support for the teenage mothers. In some cases, El Nido goes further to ensure that there are care managers who seek the teen mothers, assess their unique situations, and connect them to healthcare institutions, educational institutions, and vocational training institutions that help both the mother and the child to thrive.
In the coming years, public health issues in San Fernando will require more federal and state intervention. Although non-governmental organizations are currently addressing teenage parenting issues, a lot of work still needs to be done on access of mental health services. Again, chronic health diseases will require government intervention to alleviate the suffering of seniors, veterans, and children from low-income households.
References
Abram, S. (2012, July 17). Inspections find problems at two San Fernando Valley nursing
homes . Retrieved September 16, 2013, from Dailynews.com :
http://www.dailynews.com/20120718/updated-inspections-find-problems-at-two-san
fernando-valley-nursing-homes
California Healthline. (2010, August 2). Report Identifies Health Needs, Challenges in San
Fernando Valley Region. Retrieved September 16, 2013, from
Californiahealthline.org: http://www.californiahealthline.org/articles/2010/8/2/report
identifies-health-needs-challenges-in-san-fernando-valley-region
El Nido Family Centers. (2013). Teen Parent and Infant Development. Retrieved September
16, 2013, from Elnidofamilycenters.org:
http://elnidofamilycenters.org/index.php/programs/teen-parent-and-infant
development/#.Ujcdb3-1sUI
