It's fascinating yet baffling how Diabetes unequally affects minorities, especially in the Hispanic population. The American Diabetes Association indicates that the disease is indeed more common in African Americans, Latinos, Native Americans, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders.
People are fighting to solve the disparity, and students in the University of Arizona's Public Health Department have actually started to make a dent.
"Defeating Diabetes Through Dance and Diet" was developed by Sunnyside School District's Challenger Middle School to promote awareness of Diabetes and help fight it for those whom already have it, through nutrition and exercise. Type-2 Diabetes was the more common form found among the students.
UA Masters student Ada Dieke took charge when she found out about the program.
"If there was any program that incorporated so many aspects that I’d like to include in my career, this was it," Dieke said in an article written for the UA's Center for Health Equality.
According to the Diabetes Association, "People with diabetes have to take extra care to make sure that their food is balanced with insulin and oral medications, and exercise to help manage their blood glucose levels."
Dieke joins with the students when they meet after school once a week and take hip-hop classes or have dietary lessons which involves cooking.
People with pre-diabetes have impaired fasting glucose (IFG), which increases the risk of developing type-2 diabetes. According to a study by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, in 2003-2006 among Americans over the age of 20, IFG was prevelant in 21.1 percent non-Hispanic African Americans, 25 percent for non-Hispanic Caucasians and 26.1 percent for Mexican Americans.
Looking at these statistics, among more, really makes me question why exactly these disparities exist, and what can we do to solve them?
Sunday, September 28, 2008
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Project Amor
It pleases me to know that the Hispanic heritage in Tucson is widely recognized, especially by non-profit health services.
Project Amor was founded about 40 years ago, by the father of a child with Down Syndrome. He was inspired after he realized what a struggle it was to find care and services for his kid, because no agency spoke Spanish.
The organization now only hires bilingual people, and according to Program Directly Shea-Lynn Tourney, out of the current 147 families involved in Project Amor, 53 percent are Spanish-speaking.
That's what makes the program unique, Tourney said.
Project Amor reaches out to children with developmental and often times cognitive disabilities, and provides services about once a week for an hour over a course of three to six months, or in some cases years until the child is ready to be discharged from the program. One child has been with the organization for nine years already.
Some of these services include coordinating case management duties, such as speech therapy, physical therapy and nutritional consulting. The staff members at Project Amor provide the early intervention services directly. The staff members are highly-trained in child development, and show parents strategies to help their children develop where needed, such as in muscle tone. All of this is done in the child's, "natural environment," whether it be their home or their day-care center.
"But it's not what happens when we're there that hour," Tourney said, "It's the hours in between." The staffers figure out what the parent's lifestyles are like, and create a plan for them to help their children without it interrupting their lives.
Project Amor holds events throughout the year to reward their families for active involvement in the program and with their children. This Saturday will be the United Way Days of Caring event, where volunteering companies will give bags of food to the families.
A lot of the parents like to come to the events to see the older children there as well.
"They like to see older kids and think, 'will mine be like that someday?'" said Tourney.
Project Amor was founded about 40 years ago, by the father of a child with Down Syndrome. He was inspired after he realized what a struggle it was to find care and services for his kid, because no agency spoke Spanish.
The organization now only hires bilingual people, and according to Program Directly Shea-Lynn Tourney, out of the current 147 families involved in Project Amor, 53 percent are Spanish-speaking.
That's what makes the program unique, Tourney said.
Project Amor reaches out to children with developmental and often times cognitive disabilities, and provides services about once a week for an hour over a course of three to six months, or in some cases years until the child is ready to be discharged from the program. One child has been with the organization for nine years already.
Some of these services include coordinating case management duties, such as speech therapy, physical therapy and nutritional consulting. The staff members at Project Amor provide the early intervention services directly. The staff members are highly-trained in child development, and show parents strategies to help their children develop where needed, such as in muscle tone. All of this is done in the child's, "natural environment," whether it be their home or their day-care center.
"But it's not what happens when we're there that hour," Tourney said, "It's the hours in between." The staffers figure out what the parent's lifestyles are like, and create a plan for them to help their children without it interrupting their lives.
Project Amor holds events throughout the year to reward their families for active involvement in the program and with their children. This Saturday will be the United Way Days of Caring event, where volunteering companies will give bags of food to the families.
A lot of the parents like to come to the events to see the older children there as well.
"They like to see older kids and think, 'will mine be like that someday?'" said Tourney.
Thursday, September 11, 2008
ICE Will Always be COLD!!
Straying from the topic for one post, I would like to discuss an experience I had the other day while working at the Pima County Jail, that really got me thinking about border issues.
A 19-year-old man was booked in for a class-1 misdemeanor of refusing to give his truthful name. I called him up (by the name on the booking sheet) to join me for a chat, and noticed that with a completely empty criminal record, he was eligible for release at that time. The boy had large, innocent brown eyes and a baby face that practically made me melt. He wore a black t-shirt, a pair of 80s style looking basketball shoes, and loose fitting jeans that hung attractively from his waste. I couldn't stop looking into his eyes.
When asking his social security number, he indicated he did not have one, and with a childish, nervous giggle subseqently informed he was an illegal immigrant. He indicated he has lived on and off with his mom in Tucson for 15 years, and had been there most recently for six months, after coming back from a deportation.
I asked him if he would go to court if he were to be released right then, and he reported, "No, I am going to get deported."
According to a court clerk, during any judicial proceeding at the Pima County Justice Court, all immigration issues are left at the door, and it is not enforced nor checked up on in any manner. I let my new friend know this, and assured him he would be OK if he went to court to take care of this charge, and would actually be on better terms with the government and the Immigration and Naturalization Service for going and not letting a warrant issue for his arrest.
He stared back at me, shaking, and told me he would attend. For one of the few times in my "release history" per se, I truly, truly believed him.
So we filled out paperwork, I set him a court date, and told him everthing would be OK. Though I wasn't quite positive I was allowed to post-release an illegal immigrant, I figured he had stable housing here with his mother and if he was going to get deported, it would happen eventually released right now or not. He was so greatful, repeatedly thanked me and sat back down.
Right as he took a seat in the intake pit, an INS agent came to the edge of the pit and the room went silent. The inmates stared as the officer called two names, and my defendant was one of them. I saw his face turn white, as he gave the officer his name... and the agent went to the booking unit to possibly place an Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold on him.
If the hold went through, the boy would be shipped back to Mexico within the evening. My co-workers and I were all pretty sure that would be case.
While I finished my shift, the kid sat on the cold, concrete benches with his head buried in his hands. He occasionally glared up at me with a look that said, "How could this happen?"
I felt so bad, his mom was expecting him home that night (we had called her earlier to let her know what was going on). Who knew when they'd see each other again.
It was an upsetting experience, and I can't seem to get it off my mind. At the same time though, I have a feeling he'll find his way back here, soon enough.
A 19-year-old man was booked in for a class-1 misdemeanor of refusing to give his truthful name. I called him up (by the name on the booking sheet) to join me for a chat, and noticed that with a completely empty criminal record, he was eligible for release at that time. The boy had large, innocent brown eyes and a baby face that practically made me melt. He wore a black t-shirt, a pair of 80s style looking basketball shoes, and loose fitting jeans that hung attractively from his waste. I couldn't stop looking into his eyes.
When asking his social security number, he indicated he did not have one, and with a childish, nervous giggle subseqently informed he was an illegal immigrant. He indicated he has lived on and off with his mom in Tucson for 15 years, and had been there most recently for six months, after coming back from a deportation.
I asked him if he would go to court if he were to be released right then, and he reported, "No, I am going to get deported."
According to a court clerk, during any judicial proceeding at the Pima County Justice Court, all immigration issues are left at the door, and it is not enforced nor checked up on in any manner. I let my new friend know this, and assured him he would be OK if he went to court to take care of this charge, and would actually be on better terms with the government and the Immigration and Naturalization Service for going and not letting a warrant issue for his arrest.
He stared back at me, shaking, and told me he would attend. For one of the few times in my "release history" per se, I truly, truly believed him.
So we filled out paperwork, I set him a court date, and told him everthing would be OK. Though I wasn't quite positive I was allowed to post-release an illegal immigrant, I figured he had stable housing here with his mother and if he was going to get deported, it would happen eventually released right now or not. He was so greatful, repeatedly thanked me and sat back down.
Right as he took a seat in the intake pit, an INS agent came to the edge of the pit and the room went silent. The inmates stared as the officer called two names, and my defendant was one of them. I saw his face turn white, as he gave the officer his name... and the agent went to the booking unit to possibly place an Immigration and Customs Enforcement hold on him.
If the hold went through, the boy would be shipped back to Mexico within the evening. My co-workers and I were all pretty sure that would be case.
While I finished my shift, the kid sat on the cold, concrete benches with his head buried in his hands. He occasionally glared up at me with a look that said, "How could this happen?"
I felt so bad, his mom was expecting him home that night (we had called her earlier to let her know what was going on). Who knew when they'd see each other again.
It was an upsetting experience, and I can't seem to get it off my mind. At the same time though, I have a feeling he'll find his way back here, soon enough.
Saturday, September 6, 2008
While playing with the idea of the Nogales Unified School District's opportunities for sex-education among its elementary, middle and high schools... I predicted that the classes were very limited to whom they were offered, and what was in the curriculum. An NUSD liaison informed me that there actually is no sex-ed available to the students in the district, yet the idea was considered a while back.
Though sex-ed can be a hot topic among parents, religiously and politcally charged citizens, looking at the rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases along the border makes me wonder if a sex-ed-free campus is a good one.
Additionally, I am happy to say that there is a multitude of organizations that focus on the issues noted above, and target the border's youth. According to a report by the Arizona Department of Health Services and U.S. Mexico Border Health Commission, the following are just a few of these programs:
Summer Youth Institute-Mariposa Community Health Center- An eight-week program that trains Nogales teens to become health facilitators in areas of physical activity, nutrition, HIV, tobacco and injury protection.
Healthy Baby Training-March of Dimes-Training sessions for those working in border communities or with Hispanic populations to inform pregnant women and teens on healthy birth outcomes.
Patagonia School Nurse Project: Provides education to the students and families at Patagonia School on how to obtain health care. Not only this, but the project offers information on how to receive immunizations, prevent injuries and infectious diseases, and promotes maternal, infant and children's health.
The increasing concern for the youth's health along the border should be put at ease, as there are more and more options to solve some of the common problems. I know that when it comes to sex-ed, people have differing opinions that can be proven right or wrong. As long as more people come together to provide the proper education on the issues, and the citizens are aware of these opportunities, we can't complain too much.
Though sex-ed can be a hot topic among parents, religiously and politcally charged citizens, looking at the rates of teenage pregnancy and sexually transmitted diseases along the border makes me wonder if a sex-ed-free campus is a good one.
Additionally, I am happy to say that there is a multitude of organizations that focus on the issues noted above, and target the border's youth. According to a report by the Arizona Department of Health Services and U.S. Mexico Border Health Commission, the following are just a few of these programs:
Summer Youth Institute-Mariposa Community Health Center- An eight-week program that trains Nogales teens to become health facilitators in areas of physical activity, nutrition, HIV, tobacco and injury protection.
Healthy Baby Training-March of Dimes-Training sessions for those working in border communities or with Hispanic populations to inform pregnant women and teens on healthy birth outcomes.
Patagonia School Nurse Project: Provides education to the students and families at Patagonia School on how to obtain health care. Not only this, but the project offers information on how to receive immunizations, prevent injuries and infectious diseases, and promotes maternal, infant and children's health.
The increasing concern for the youth's health along the border should be put at ease, as there are more and more options to solve some of the common problems. I know that when it comes to sex-ed, people have differing opinions that can be proven right or wrong. As long as more people come together to provide the proper education on the issues, and the citizens are aware of these opportunities, we can't complain too much.
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
An Introduction
Health on the Line will cover topics and issues involving public health in border communities. Not only will I touch on controversial matters, such as sex-ed in public schools and high rates of disorders and illnesses, but I will explore what the people in these cities are doing to improve the overall health and well-being of their citizens, and what people outside the border can do as well.
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