Place Matters

From rural California to urban neighborhoods, where you live affects your health

Key topics in this category:

RECENT POSTS

May 24, 2012 | 1:45 PM | By

Perhaps the Most Vulnerable … Budget Cuts Hit Mentally Ill Especially Hard

(Lauren Whaley: CHCF Center for Health Reporting)

(Lauren Whaley: CHCF Center for Health Reporting)

In a series they’re calling “Mental Breakdown” the Modesto Bee collaborated with the Center for Health Reporting in a sobering look at how state and county cuts are devastating county mental health departments — by focusing close to home in the Central Valley’s Stanislaus County. Modesto is the county seat of Stanislaus.

Reporters describe people with mental illness who should be in state mental hospitals instead spend weeks in local jails, waiting for beds. Hospital emergency rooms have seen a dramatic increase in mentally ill patients. In all likelihood, counties across California are feeling the same impact.

But the series also speaks of hope. With the right treatment, even people with the most serious mental illnesses can do well — as this short video between father and daughter attests:

You can read more about Matt Freitas and the work he does in his clinic here.

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Policy, Mental Illness
May 23, 2012 | 1:21 PM | By

Powerful Videos in HIV Awareness Campaign

By Marnette Federis

"Then my 25th birthday came. I never thought I would make it this far," says Filipino-American Henry Ocampo in his video "Parachute."

"Then my 25th birthday came. I never thought I would make it this far," says Filipino-American Henry Ocampo in his video "Parachute."

While Asian-American and Pacific Islanders have very low rates of HIV infection — in the single digits — they had the highest rate of increase in new HIV infections between 2001 and 2008. While other ethnic groups had declining infection rates, Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders experienced a 4.4 percent increase.

What’s more alarming to many advocates is the low testing rates within the community. Less than one-third of Asian-Americans and less than half of Pacific Islanders have been tested for HIV. Experts estimate that many who have the virus delay getting tested. If they don’t get tested, they cannot be treated, potentially shortening their lives.

For many Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders, the topics of sex and sexually transmitted diseases are taboo.
One reason why people do not get tested is the fear and stigma that surrounds HIV. For many Asian-Americans and Pacific Islanders, the topics of sex and sexually transmitted diseases are taboo. The burden of shaming one’s family and misconceptions about the disease are high, according to Cecilia Chung, newly appointed San Francisco Health Commissioner and noted advocate for HIV awareness.

“They still have … stereotypes about people living with HIV,” said Chung. “There are surveys where people think that people with HIV should not work at restaurants. … That’s pretty significant.” In addition, advocates say Asian American and Pacific Islander communities have been overlooked in national HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, HIV/AIDS Awareness
May 22, 2012 | 11:19 AM | By

Bill Would Make Vaccine “Opt-Out” A Little Tougher

(Jeff J. Mitchell: Getty Images)

(Jeff J. Mitchell: Getty Images)

California is one of 20 states that allows parents to “opt out” of vaccines for their children simply by signing a form. It’s called a “personal belief exemption.” But AB 2109 would change that. The bill has cleared the Assembly and is starting its path through Senate committees.

If the bill becomes law, parents who wish to refuse vaccines would first need to receive counseling from a licensed health professional about the risks and benefits of skipping immunizations for their children.

Vaccination rates in California have been dropping in recent years, worrying public health officials. Ten infants died in a whooping cough outbreak in 2009.

“This is not about taking away the rights of parents to make decisions.”
“Democratic Assemblyman Richard Pan wrote the bill. He’s also a pediatrician and says parents’ decision not to vaccinate their own child puts others at risk too.

Very young children, infants may be too young to be immunized,” he told me in a recent interview. “People with cancer and on chemotherapy, people with HIV or AIDS … they cannot receive immunizations.”

Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Policy, Childhood Vaccines
May 16, 2012 | 3:02 PM | By

Richmond Voters Will Decide on “Soda Tax”

(Rex Sorgatz: Flickr)

(Rex Sorgatz: Flickr)

The people of Richmond will decide in November whether businesses should have to pay a fee for every ounce of sugar-sweetened drinks they sell. In other words, a soda tax is on the ballot November 6th. If voters approve the measure, Richmond would be the first city in California to impose such a fee.

“The city of Richmond has the opportunity to make history,” Harold Goldstein of the California Center for Public Health Advocacy told me today, adding that the campaign will be closely watched nationally. “Cities and states will be watching this across the country. … They too want to put a small tax on sugary drinks and use those funds to mitigate the harmful effects that all these sugary drinks are causing.”

Debate stretched more than four hours at last night’s City Council meeting to determine whether to put two related measures on the ballot. In addition to the penny-per-ounce business license fee, a second measure asks voters if they wish the money to be directed to obesity prevention programs. The measure is an advisory one. If voters approve the new fee, the money it generates goes into the general fund. Richmond’s finance director estimates the fee will generate from $4 million to $8 million for city coffers. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Policy, Soda Tax, Sugar-Sweetened Beverages
May 15, 2012 | 11:25 AM | By

More Than a Haircut — Get a Health Check Up Too

By Marnette Federis

Center Stage Salon Oakland's Lakeshore District hosted a health screening event for The Black Barbershop Program. (Photo: Marnette Federis)

Chris Holiday of Oakland has his blood pressure checked at Center Stage Salon in Oakland's Lakeshore District. The salon hosted a health screening as part of The Black Barbershop Program. (Photo: Marnette Federis)

Oakland’s Center Stage Salon was buzzing like any other busy Saturday morning last weekend. But salon clients weren’t there just to get haircuts. They also lined up to get their blood pressure and glucose levels checked.

It was all part of a nationwide effort — The Black Barbershop Program. The goal was to screen African American men for high blood pressure and diabetes by going to the place where you would easily find them – at the barbershop. The screenings are free and volunteers also gave out health information.

“I’d like to live a hundred years,” said James Fulbright, one of the hairstylists at the salon who was screened for high blood pressure and diabetes. “So I just try to keep myself healthy and I needed to be checked.”

According to program organizers, African American men suffer worse health outcomes compared to other racial groups. For starters, 40 percent of black men die prematurely from heart disease compared to 21 percent of white men.

Program organizers say African American men face a number of barriers and access issues when it comes to health including lack of affordable services, poor health education and insufficient services that cater to black men. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Community Health, Health Disparities
May 3, 2012 | 2:42 PM | By

Rural California Hospitals Slow to Digitize

By Eve Harris

Fall colors in Quincy. (Somesh Kumar: Flickr)

Fall colors in Quincy. (Somesh Kumar: Flickr)

High in the Sierra in the town of Quincy, doctors at Plumas District Hospital are using iPads in the clinic. Technicians and nurses are also getting better acquainted with their new electronic health records (EHR) system. This 25-bed hospital has gone digital.

Plumas District joins a digitizing trend at least partially sparked by financial incentives in the federal health care law. Plumas District CEO Doug Lafferty was recruited just nine months ago to get the EHR up and running. In a recent interview he said his adopted community is full of “wonderful people.”

But in contrast to his own prior experience in major, urban hospitals, Lafferty said most of the Plumas District staff have never worked anywhere else. Sure, the iPads are welcome, but when it comes to the nitty-gritty of implementing an electronic system of medical records, change can be painful. The culture of “consistency” leaves no doubt that he is “a change agent,” Lafferty said.

While Plumas District has been fortunate to have the capital and leadership to make this change, other California towns are not so lucky. A recent nationwide report confirmed the widely-held concern that small, nonteaching and rural hospitals are lagging behind their urban counterparts in adoption of electronic health records.

Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Money, Place Matters, Electronic Health Records, Rural Health
April 26, 2012 | 10:39 AM | By

Humboldt County – Amid Stunning Beauty, Sad Health Profile

By Richard Kipling, Center for Health Reporting

(Ben Ramirez: Flickr)

(Ben Ramirez: Flickr)

I don’t want to beat up on Humboldt County. I’ve driven through it a few times and it’s quintessential far northern California — beautiful, alluring, with Redwoods everywhere (the county motto is The Home of the Redwoods), a scenic coastline, pretty towns, friendly folk. The kind of place that sets an urban mind to wondering:  Could I live in this lush green paradise?

I’d like to spend more time there, for sure. But after a close look at the latest California Department of Public Health statistics, I might want to remain a visitor and not a resident. The county’s astounding beauty and apparent serenity disguise some truly disturbing health numbers.

The department recently released its County Health Status Profiles 2012, which provides a fascinating look at the leading causes of death for the years 2008-2010 for each of the state’s 58 counties. I just slalomed through 19 categories of death rates and Humboldt was a blinking neon sign. Let me take you on a tour. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Rural Health
April 23, 2012 | 11:25 AM | By

Tobacco Brands Target Black Teens, Study Finds

(Mahin: Flickr)

(Mahin: Flickr)

Tobacco companies may have corporate campaigns against under-age smoking, but how does that play out on the ground — especially in low-income or minority communities? California Watch reports today on state-funded research which found that tobacco marketing targets low-income and African American teens. As the percentage of African American students at a California high school went up, so did Newport brand promotions and menthol-related advertising at nearby stores, according to the report.

While the study reviewed all cigarette advertising, it focused specifically on Newport and Marlboro which researchers say are two of the most popular brands with under-age smokers.

From California Watch:

“There is a systematic targeting (of disadvantaged communities) by the tobacco industry, which is an extraordinary public health problem,” said Lisa Henriksen of the Stanford Prevention Research Center, who presented the research at a legislative briefing in Sacramento last week. “The addition of menthol to cigarettes makes it easier to smoke and more difficult to quit.”

The University of Michigan’s Robert Lipton also presented research at the briefing showing that in the Los Angeles area, communities that tended to be dense, poor and minority had greater rates of underage tobacco sales. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters
April 20, 2012 | 10:00 AM | By

Teaching Hmong Shamans Western Medicine

A Hmong shaman blesses a pregnant woman during a traditional healing ceremony.

A Hmong shaman blesses a pregnant woman so that she will have a safe birth. (Photo: Shuka Kalantari)

A Hmong shaman dressed in an ornate red and pink costume is standing in a crowded living room in Winton, a small Central Valley town near Merced. She sways back and forth rhythmically as she shakes small ceremonial bells over a young pregnant woman. The woman sits quietly, with a rope lightly tied around her stomach. Her rope connects to another rope — wrapped around the belly of a newly slaughtered pig that lays on a sheet of plastic on the living room floor. For the next two hours, the shaman chants prayers to the spirit world, offering the slaughtered pig as a sacrifice in exchange for a healthy birth. Throughout the ceremony, the shaman’s husband burns pieces of paper money as offerings to the spirits.

Afterward, the pregnant woman and her family prepare for a feast. May Yang, the shaman, explains that this ceremony is the Hmong version of prenatal care. “This ceremony was to help the mother and baby,” Yang said through a translator.

“The shaman they can see spirits, whereas the doctor use CT, x-ray, and microscope to see disease or illness.”
More specifically, to help their souls separate. Yang explained that the slaughtered pig was an offering to the spirits so that they would assist in the birthing process. It’s part of their customs. Traditionally, in Laos, the Hmong were always more likely to visit a shaman than a doctor when they were sick or needed prenatal care. So when Hmong refugees began resettling to the Central Valley after the CIA’s Secret War in Laos, they didn’t go to the doctor.

The Hmong traditionally believe that if the body is sick, the soul is sick. So to heal the body, you must first heal the soul. Additionally, many Hmong were distrustful of western practices when they first arrived to the U.S., so they refused to get treated in hospitals, unless it was a crisis. That led to the Hmong filling up emergency rooms at local hospitals — and it left doctors struggling to understand how to treat them.

Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, You're the Boss, hmong, Merced, Shamans
April 20, 2012 | 9:30 AM | By

Report: Fewer Unhealthy Air Days in California

By Bernice Yeung, California Watch

California logged fewer unhealthy air days in 2011 than a decade ago, giving hope that air quality is improving. (Getty Images)

California air pollution reached unhealthy levels less often in 2011 than a decade ago, according to a report released this week by a state association of regional air district officers.

Compared with 2000, there were about 74 percent fewer days of “unhealthy air” statewide last year, data from the report [PDF] showed. Air quality can range from “good” to “very unhealthy,” and it is calculated based on local monitoring of four air pollutants regulated by the federal Clean Air Act.

The report found that ozone pollution has decreased statewide between 1980 and 2011; there have been smaller and more limited reductions in particulate matter emissions during the same time frame.

Dr. John Balmes, a professor of medicine at UC San Francisco, said California is “ahead of the pack with regard to air quality and greenhouse gas control.” He said any reductions in ozone and particulate emissions could have positive effects on public health because these pollutants have been associated with cardiovascular or respiratory disease health risks.

The new report acknowledged that “despite significant improvements, air quality remains a major source of public health concern in large metropolitan areas throughout California,” especially in the San Joaquin Valley and the southern coast area surrounding Los Angeles. California has 35 regional air districts, which regulate businesses and industrial facilities. Continue reading →

FILED UNDER: Place Matters, Policy, Air Quality, California