April 30, 2024
Arizona ranks 49th in nation for access to adult mental health care
PHOENIX – Mental Health America ranked Arizona 49th in the nation for adult mental health care. The national nonprofit determines rankings based on the prevalence of mental illness and the access to mental health care. Arizona’s 2023 ranking of 49 out of 51 is based on the state having a higher prevalence of mental illness and lower access to insurance and treatment. For Rachel Streiff, an organizer and member of Arizona Mad Moms, this ranking was no surprise. She and other family members, caregivers and friends of individuals with severe mental illness, have been advocating on their behalf for adequate psychiatric services and treatment for quite some time. “It (Arizona Mad Moms) really organized itself,” Streiff said. “The end result of not providing these long-term and acute levels of care is that families are feeling that heavy burden.” Streiff was granted legal guardianship over her 31-year-old friend, whom she identified only as Kelsey, in 2022, and has been supervising her medical needs since then. “She’s been in and out of the hospital for years, and she hasn't received effective long-term stabilization and treatment,” Streiff said. “Her illness is very complicated and it's beyond what current community treatment services are equipped to handle.” [caption id="attachment_231282" align="alignright" width="300"]
Rachel Streiff, an organizer and member of Arizona Mad Moms. (Photo courtesy of Rachel Streiff)[/caption]
Kelsey, who currently lives in a behavioral health residential facility, was assigned to Streiff’s care with her mother’s permission.
Streiff said that going to court to obtain a guardianship can be difficult and very expensive.
“Families that can't afford an attorney or can't afford to hire a private doctor don't have the ability to get that kind of order,” Streiff said.
“I took on her case because her parents were aging and her father recently passed away,” Streiff said. “She just didn't have anyone to advocate for her.”
Legal guardianship gives Streiff permission to attend doctor appointments and, by Arizona law, she must be included in all conversations regarding Kelsey’s medications.
“In those discussions, individuals with an SMI (severe mental illness) really can't communicate whether a medication is working or not,” Streiff said. “They may also have incorrect ideas about what's actually helpful.”
In January, Streiff said Kelsey was prescribed the incorrect dosage for medication given after her discharge from the hospital, which resulted in a seizure two days later.
“I verified the medications that were on the sheet leaving the hospital, but I did not verify what was actually filled in the prescriptions that arrived at her residential placement,” Streiff said. “How would the average person with a serious mental illness that didn't have a guardian even know that mistakes are being made in their treatment?”
An SMI is “a chronic and long term mental health condition that impacts a person’s ability to perform day-to-day activities or interactions,” according to the Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System.
SMIs are most commonly treated with psychotherapy and medications like antidepressants and mood stabilizers. Some people with SMIs need heavy supervision and some do not. Kelsey needs the level of supervision that happens in a residential facility, like the one she’s in now.
Streiff’s guardianship has enabled her to get Kelsey into a behavioral health residential facility (BHRF). “Having the means for her (Kelsey’s) family and friends to be able to do that is why she's doing well where she's at today,” Streiff said.
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Although she doesn’t need restraint, Kelsey does need full-time care and help with decision making. Strieff points out that there’s capacity in what are known as “voluntary” facilities, for individuals who are able to advocate for themselves, but there is a lack of resources for highly vulnerable individuals who need constant care, like Kelsey.
Acute locked facilities, like the Arizona Department of Health Services’ Arizona State Hospital in Phoenix, provide “the highest and most restrictive” level of care in the state, according to AZDHS. Patients who cannot be treated in a community facility or cannot receive care due to their criminal legal status are admitted. The Arizona State Hospital is able to hold 260 patients, with 117 beds at the Civil Hospital and 143 at the Forensic Hospital. As of April 28, 92% of the beds were occupied between both facilities.
As of 2019, there were 8,923 supportive housing and residential care beds in Arizona available for individuals with an SMI who qualify for Medicaid, but do not need the Arizona State Hospital's level of care.
To gain admission to a BHRF, patients must be diagnosed with a condition with symptoms and behaviors that make residential treatment necessary, including at least one serious functional or psychosocial impairment, a display of significant risk of harm, such as suicide or homicide and inability to remain safe within the patient’s current environment.
Kelsey currently lives in a residential SMI clinic operated by Copa Health and Mercy Care, an Arizona nonprofit that provides services for people with disabilities, but Streiff said she is about to lose her space since she does not qualify for Medicaid and the state has limited funds. Her family’s income is too high to qualify for Medicaid but not high enough to afford private care.
“They (SMI patients) end up at home with their mother or their family who often don't have the resources to care for them, and it's a very difficult situation,” Streiff said. “So we have caregivers that are very heavily burdened and who are often in harm's way.”
Because Kelsey does not receive AHCCCS assistance, she was given a six-month maximum stay at her facility. Streiff said that although Kelsey is “thriving” at her BHRF’s level of care, the next option is Flex Care – a short-term program that combines treatment within an apartment setting.
“As soon as a member is placed anywhere, the discharge planning starts,” Streiff said in a text message. “This (Flex Care) is not supported at all for non-Medicaid or the state funds. So (it’s) not really an option. The family is researching a lot of potential discharge options including private pay. The clinic sent us some private pay options. Some of them were $25K per month which few families can afford."
Medicaid disparities
Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association, an advocacy organization, said a new law requiring AHCCCS to collect and analyze data on clinical outcomes for those with an SMI will help provide statistics for court-ordered evaluations. [caption id="attachment_231284" align="alignright" width="300"]
Will Humble, executive director of the Arizona Public Health Association, an advocacy organization. (Photo courtesy of Arizona Public Health Association)[/caption]
“Right now, there's not enough data available on the patients to make good decisions. About whether to go into court-ordered treatment,” Humble said. “So one of the weaknesses in our behavioral health system right now is that our state Medicaid agency is only capturing processed data, like ’Did this person with mental illness get assigned to an assertive community treatment team? Are they getting outpatient treatment encounters at day programs?’”
The bill, SB 1311, was signed by Gov. Katie Hobbs on April 16 and will require AHCCCS to create recommendations to improve the information gathered on the SMI community and give assistance to those who need mental health services, but do not qualify for court-ordered evaluations.
“What you really want to know is how often are persons with a serious mental illness getting arrested, going into emergency departments, having inpatient hospital stays, getting arrested and ending up homeless,” Humble said. “This is going to require AHCCCS and their managed care plans to collect much better outcome data so we can hold them more accountable for the public dollars.”
According to the National Alliance on Mental Health, the average cost of psychiatric care in a community hospital for an individual with a SMI can range anywhere from $3,616 to $8,509 for less than two weeks. As of April, more than 1.9 million Arizonans were enrolled in Medicaid, with the income limit for one person set at $1,670 per month.
Humble also said affordability extends beyond patient care in how it affects the number of employees at state facilities.
“The (workforce) shortage is worse in Arizona than it is in other states,” Humble said. “Like it or not, clinicians do follow the money. If a state has a reputation of bad reimbursement in the Medicaid system, over time, fewer and fewer clinicians will locate to that state.”
According to data from the University of Arizona reported in May 2023, the state needed between 142 and 233 full-time psychiatrist physicians to eliminate the current mental health care shortage.
[caption id="attachment_231283" align="alignright" width="300"]
Matt Jewett, director of health policy at the Children’s Action Alliance. (Photo courtesy of Matt Jewett)[/caption]
Matthew Moody, the president of the board of directors for Mental Health America of Arizona, said the state’s sober living fraud may have been a symptom of Arizona’s poor access to mental health services. The scam preyed on vulnerable individuals - particularly Native Americans - who were lured into residential facilities and encouraged to sign up for AHCCCS to pay for care that did not exist. Officials estimate that the state may have lost as much as $2 billion in payments to fraudulent providers before the scheme was shut down early last year.
“It was a complete failure of the system in Arizona to protect these people and to make sure that people get good care. I know that they're working very hard to find ways to fix that,” Moody said.
Although youth mental health access in Arizona ranked 29th out of 51 on the MHA’s national list, adult mental health deeply affects the mental well-being of children whose parents lack necessary resources, according to Matt Jewett, director of health policy at the Children’s Action Alliance.
“Children's mental health is going to be affected by parents, especially (by) mother's mental health,” Jewett said. “Adverse childhood experiences … are extremely important. Arizona has a higher rate of children who have multiple adverse childhood experiences. That can be things like maternal depression, parents going to jail or domestic violence.”
Jewett said that despite these barriers in adult mental health care, children are receiving better care from services provided by their schools.
“One of the things that we have pushed for has been reimbursement by AHCCCS of services that are provided at schools,” Jewett said. “Children may get quality care at a health care provider … But not every young person has that. Sometimes the most convenient place is for them to get services in school.”
]]> April 30, 2024
Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market, Phoenix Bioscience Core promote health education at festival
PHOENIX – The Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market and the Phoenix Bioscience Core hosted the first Health & Wellness "Phoestival" with multiple guest speakers, a blood drive, cooking demonstrations and booths. The Phoenix Bioscience Core is a 30-acre life science innovation district in downtown Phoenix that serves as a center for bio research and education. It boasts the highest concentration of research scientists in the state, from TGen, Exact Sciences and Phoenix’s major health care systems – Phoenix Children’s Hospital, Banner Health, Dignity Health and Valleywise Health – and more. It is the only area where all three of Arizona’s public universities – University of Arizona, Northern Arizona University and Arizona State University – have medical campuses. [caption id="attachment_231262" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Chef Matthew Padilla, True Food Kitchen’s senior vice president of culinary, cooks stir fry at the Health & Wellness Phoestival in downtown Phoenix on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_231263" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Collin Thomas, a festival attendee, watches Dr. Shad Marvasti and chef Matthew Padilla’s cooking demonstration at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
The Phoenix Bioscience Core partnered with the farmers market to bridge a connection between research institutions and community members.
“There’s research and then there's what’s happening at ground level, and trying to get the interaction between researchers and the people who live here is what the Phoestival of Health is about,” said Sara Anderson, who coordinated the event for Phoenix Bioscience Core.
[caption id="attachment_231264" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Attendees purchase produce from Blue Sky Organic Farms at the Health & Wellness Phoestival in Phoenix on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_231265" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
University of Arizona Culinary Medicine students chop candied pecans for chef Matthew Padilla’s cooking demonstration at the Health & Wellness Phoestival in Phoenix on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Anderson said the goals for the festival were to be a resource for the community to live a healthier and more sustainable life and to provide a place where people could have conversations surrounding health, food and gardening.
“Health is not convenient, it’s not an easy process to stay healthy, but if you centralize it as a community focus, it gets a little easier,” Anderson said.
Chef Matthew Padilla, True Food Kitchen’s senior vice president of culinary, hosted a cooking demonstration with the UArizona Culinary Medicine Program using ingredients students chose from the farmers market.
[caption id="attachment_231266" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Chef Matthew Padilla, True Food Kitchen’s senior vice president of culinary, mixes a salad with ingredients from the Downtown Phoenix Farmers Market as Dr. Shad Marvasti explains the health benefits of different ingredients at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_231267" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
University of Arizona Culinary Medicine students chop up tomatoes for chef Matthew Padilla’s cooking demonstration at the Health & Wellness Phoestival in Phoenix on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
“We are surrounded by so much unhealthy food that is easily accessible. The American diet has evolved into one that is based on convenience, but part of the demonstration was to show you can make healthy foods out of convenience as well,” Padilla said.
[caption id="attachment_231268" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Carrots from Blue Sky Organic Farms for sale at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_231269" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Beets from Blue Sky Organic Farms for sale at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Dr. Shad Marvasti, founder of the UArizona Culinary Medicine Program, spoke alongside Padilla’s presentation to provide a medical perspective on healthy eating and to educate attendees on the health benefits of each ingredient.
“It’s a place where the community comes together, and for me, it makes sense to have all that, including demonstrations and Q&A sessions, so you can empower the public with all the tools they need to live a healthier and better life,” Marvasti said.
[caption id="attachment_231270" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Attendees watch Dr. Shad Marvasti and chef Matthew Padilla’s cooking demonstration at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_231271" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Chef Matthew Padilla, True Food Kitchen’s senior vice president of culinary, prepares fruits and vegetables for his cooking demonstration at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
“It really democratizes the required information to view food not just as something to satiate you when you're hungry but as something that could be looked at as medicine,” said Collin Thomas, a festival attendee.
The festival also hosted a blood drive.
“We have a lot of people who are health conscious and they are also altruistic, and this is like the ultimate mix, donating without knowing who it’s going to help,” said Mike Hashimoto, a volunteer with Vitalant, which ran the blood drive.
[caption id="attachment_231272" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Scarlett Spring, Phoenix Bioscience Core assistant executive director, donates blood at the Health & Wellness Phoestival on April 13, 2024. (Photo by Sam Ballesteros/Cronkite News)[/caption]
The farmers market and bioscience core plan to make the health festival an annual event.
For now, Saturday’s weekly farmers market at Fifth and McKinley streets is hosting monthly cooking demonstrations from the UArizona Culinary Medicine Program, blood drives every quarter and providing the opportunity to connect with local farmers.
]]> April 30, 2024
From robots to real connection: Arizona initiatives take on letter writing
]]>April 30, 2024
Blocked and loaded: GCU men’s volleyball on a roll as it prepares for Ohio State in NCAA Tournament
PHOENIX – Giant killers. For the second time in five years, the Grand Canyon men’s volleyball team knocked off the No. 1 team in the country. The Lopes now join seven other programs in Long Beach, California, for the NCAA Tournament that begins competition Tuesday, with the Lopes taking on Ohio State at 7:30 p.m. MST in the quarterfinals. “This matchup with Ohio State is going to be really, really good in terms of how comparable our teams are,” coach Matt Werle said. “With the win over UCLA and the experience of being (in the NCAA Tournament) last year, we don’t have to worry about freaking out over the lights and we can just go be us.” The thrilling and dramatic five-set win victory over the No. 1 ranked Bruins April 20 in the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation tournament propelled GCU into the NCAA Tournament. “We were just rolling at a good place," Werle said. “Our guys were confident and loose going into it.” The focus entering the conference tournament was “to go take it” and not rely on opponents' errors, Werle said. The Lopes did just that. They took care of business in the quarterfinals by sweeping seventh-seeded Concordia Irvine 3-0. Then the Lopes defeated fourth-seeded Stanford 3-1 in the semifinals the next night to set up a rematch against the defending national champions. After a night off, The Lopes and Bruins went back and forth, trading set wins before the Lopes prevailed for just their second ever victory over the top team in the country (they beat No. 1 BYU in 2021). The match was secured on a game-winning kill by sophomore middle blocker Cameron Thorne, who was instrumental in shutting down the MPSF Player of the year: UCLA middle blocker Merrick McHenry. “It was a great game all the way through. … It’s really hard to stop that type of guy,” Thorne said. “It was a huge challenge to stop him and we were able to slow him down.” Following the victory, the team enjoyed a week to rest and reset from a physically and mentally draining conference weekend. The X’s and O’s have been laid out by Werle, who was recently named MPSF Coach of the Year, on the best approach to beat the Buckeyes. “While we haven’t seen them yet this year, from what we know this team has a lot of the same players that were the team we played last year,” he said. “We are familiar with them and we know they are gonna be good.” The Buckeyes come into the first round contest against the Lopes winners after capturing the Midwestern Intercollegiate Volleyball Association championship over Lindenwood. The stakes are high for this GCU team, which looks to go further than last season’s trip and hopes to claim Saturday’s championship. But Werle has emphasized not putting too much pressure on the team. It was evident during practice as the players were enjoying laughs and listening to the 2010s’ best music. “We don’t want to stress the significance of the NCAA Tournament,” he said. “That might put a little more pressure and weight to it. We just got to go play volleyball.“ The team spent a recent practice finding the intensity that won it the MSPF title. Helping the Lopes find their groove was senior Camden Gianni, who led the team in kills all three games. “The tournament was quite a bit of a grind,” Gianni said. “So just being able to get our legs under us, and even today, it was a little more competitive of a practice. It was tough to get some guys going, but we have some business to take care of in Long Beach.” Tuesday’s game at Walter Pyramid will be the final game of the day and is available to watch on NCAA.com. The winner will play host Long Beach State or Belmont Abbey in the semifinals. ]]>April 30, 2024
Advierten de los peligros al cruzar la frontera entre Arizona y Sonora
TUCSON – Agentes de la patrulla fronteriza, representantes de organizaciones de rescate y cónsules de México, Ecuador y Guatemala recientemente discutieron los peligros a los que se enfrentan los migrantes cuando cruzan la frontera. Su mensaje fue directo: No lo hagan. Los peligros que los migrantes experimentan en su travesía para llegar a Estados Unidos comienzan antes de que lleguen a la zona fronteriza de México. Salen de sus países de origen –en busca de una mejor vida– por la pobreza, hambre y violencia que experimentan. Los migrantes realizan sus viajes en autobuses, en avión y a pie. Atraviesan selvas como el Darién en Panamá, caminan por desiertos como el de Sonora y escalan montañas como la de Otay en California. Tardan varios días, semanas y a veces hasta meses antes de llegar a su destino. Algunos otros mueren en el camino. Pero una vez en México, se encuentran con un peligro distinto a cualquier otro que la naturaleza pueda presentar: las redes criminales transnacionales de tráfico. "A estas organizaciones de contrabando no les importa ni les interesa en absoluto tu bienestar, tu sustento, el de tu familia o tu interés financiero”, dijo Ray Reed, agente especial adjunto a cargo de las Investigaciones de Seguridad Nacional en Arizona. “Lo único que les importa es que seas un producto, un número y una fuente de ingresos".Los peligros a manos de organizaciones criminales de tráfico
[caption id="attachment_231219" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Embajador Juan Pablo Valdivieso del Consulado General de Ecuador en Phoenix, habla durante la conferencia de seguridad para migrantes el 28 de marzo de 2024 en la base militar de Tucson. (Foto de Adriana Gonzalez-Chavez/Cronkite Noticias)[/caption]
La falta de medios legales, seguros y regulares de migración orilla a los migrantes a recurrir a los “coyotes” –como son coloquialmente conocidos– quienes se aprovechan de esta vulnerabilidad para ofrecer un servicio a cambio de beneficios monetarios, de acuerdo con un reporte de la Oficina de las Naciones Unidas contra la Droga y el Delito.
A diferencia de décadas pasadas, los coyotes usualmente trabajan para organizaciones criminales transnacionales que operan redes de tráfico irregular de humanos, armas y sustancias ilícitas, de acuerdo con un reporte del Instituto de Investigaciones Geográficas de la Universidad Nacional de Luján.
El tráfico de seres humanos –la provisión de transporte o de un documento fraudulento para entrar en un país– se ha convertido en un negocio lucrativo para las organizaciones criminales transnacionales.
Esta cercanía a redes de criminales vuelve a los migrantes vulnerables a experimentar abusos como la violencia física y el abuso sexual.
Mientras que la violencia física es usada como táctica para intimidar y castigar, el abuso sexual ocurre en su mayoría a las mujeres como forma de represalia y de pago por el servicio, de acuerdo con un reporte de la Oficina de las Naciones Unidas contra la Droga y el Delito.
Una vez pagada la cuota, los migrantes son llevados por los coyotes a lugares remotos para cruzar la frontera. Hecho así para alejarse de zonas que están bajo la constante supervisión de agentes de la patrulla fronteriza o que son inaccesibles por el muro –que abarca 706 millas de las 1,954 millas que conforman la línea fronteriza entre Estados Unidos y México.
Los migrantes son entonces guiados por los coyotes hacia el desierto de Sonora –uno más de los peligros a los que se tienen que enfrentar en su viaje migratorio.
Las ásperas condiciones del desierto Sonora
[caption id="attachment_231222" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
John R. Modlin, agente jefe del sector de Tucson de la patrulla fronteriza estadounidense, habla durante la conferencia de seguridad para migrantes el 28 de marzo de 2024 en la base militar de Tucson. (Foto de Adriana Gonzalez-Chavez/Cronkite Noticias)[/caption]
A pesar de las duras condiciones que presenta el desierto de Sonora –el lugar más caliente en toda la tierra, de acuerdo con la NASA– con temperaturas que alcanzan los 80.8 grados centígrados en el verano, el sector sigue siendo el más concurrido por migrantes cruzando la frontera ilegalmente.
"El viaje de un migrante es siempre arriesgado. El mero volumen de personas que cruzan magnifica estos riesgos. Cada vida corre más peligro que nunca", declaró John R. Modlin, agente jefe del sector de Tucson de la patrulla fronteriza. "Desde cada adulto que intenta evadir a nuestros agentes hasta los niños que son llevados por sus familias a este despiadado entorno de sol, calor y otros extremos del desierto".
De acuerdo con cifras de la Oficina de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza de Estados Unidos (CBP, por sus siglas en inglés), se han reportado más de 342,000 encuentros de migrantes en el sector fronterizo de Tucson en el año fiscal 2024.
Los migrantes recorren algunas de las 262 millas que abarca el sector Tucson sin acceso a agua, a comida o a un techo que son indispensables en su supervivencia bajo el extremo calor que experimentan caminando por el desolado desierto de Sonora.
[caption id="attachment_231220" align="alignright" width="300"]
Jose Muriente, el subdirector de operaciones aéreas y marítimas de la Oficina de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza habla durante la conferencia de seguridad para migrantes el 28 de marzo de 2024 en la base militar de Tucson. (Foto de Adriana Gonzalez-Chavez/Cronkite Noticias)[/caption]
“El desierto no perdona. La temperatura no perdona. No pueden tomar ese tipo de riesgos”, dijo el embajador Juan Pablo Valdivieso del Consulado General de Ecuador en Phoenix, Arizona. “Si lo toman, por favor, no se olviden, hay mecanismos de apoyo que les pueden solventar a superar una circunstancia en la cual la vida esté en peligro”.
En caso de encontrarse en una emergencia, los agentes de la patrulla fronteriza les urgen a los migrantes a llamar al 911 para que puedan ser localizados y un equipo de rescate pueda auxiliarlos.
Entre tres o cinco rescatistas asisten cada llamado. Así es que se preparan con la información que los migrantes proveen para llegar a su locación en camioneta o helicóptero, proveerles primeros auxilios, asistirlos médicamente y estabilizar sus heridas, de acuerdo José Muriente, el subdirector de operaciones aéreas y marítimas de la Oficina de Aduanas y Protección Fronteriza.
A pesar de los esfuerzos que hacen los rescatistas para proveer ayuda humanitaria a los migrantes, la realidad es que no pueden salvarlos a todos.
Las altas temperaturas –que siguen incrementando cada año por el calentamiento global –, los relieves montañosos y los animales salvajes– entre estos jabalíes, coyotes y el lobo Mexicano – que presenta el desierto de Sonora disminuyen las probabilidades de supervivencia de los migrantes que hacen este viaje, de acuerdo a Modlin.
De acuerdo con cifras de la Oficina del Médico Forense del Condado Pima, los restos de al menos 3,356 personas indocumentadas se han encontrado desde 1990 en el desierto de Sonora. En la última década, se han rescatado más de 100 restos de personas al año.
Incluso después de sobrevivir las condiciones del desierto y los abusos a manos de redes criminales transnacionales, los migrantes no tienen asegurado que puedan quedarse en Estados Unidos ya que cruzar la frontera sin documentos es un delito que los convierte en personas inadmisibles al país, de acuerdo al Servicio de Ciudadanía e Inmigración de Estados Unidos.
Recursos para migrantes
[caption id="attachment_231221" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Representante del consulado mexicano en Tucson Rafael Barceló habla durante la conferencia de seguridad para migrantes el 28 de marzo de 2024 en la base militar de Tucson. (Foto de Adriana Gonzalez-Chavez/Cronkite Noticias)[/caption]
Es por esta razón que los representantes de los diferentes consulados estuvieron presentes en la conferencia de prensa para proveer recursos sobre las maneras regulares de migración.
En el caso de ciudadanos mexicanos, el representante del consulado en Tucson Rafael Barceló invitó a las personas a llamar al Centro de Información y Asistencia a Mexicanos disponible las 24 horas del día durante todo el año.
“Les puede ofrecer no solamente ayuda en momentos en los que una persona migrante puede estar teniendo un grave problema al momento de cruzar por las regiones fronterizas, pero también de manera previa les puede ofrecer información real y actualizada sobre las rutas legales que existen para la migración”, dijo Barceló.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wp6f5ibjJhM
(Video de Adriana Gonzalez-Chavez/Cronkite Noticias)
]]> April 29, 2024
Keeping the faith: GCU, others believe religion and sports can coexist
]]>April 29, 2024
‘Unconditional love’: Saving One Life helps cats through colony feedings, TNR, fostering, adoptions
PHOENIX – According to the annual Shelters Animal Count report, 41% of cats that ended up in Arizona shelters in the first quarter of this year were strays. There are many animal organizations that contribute to the well-being and care for these cats. Cronkite News followed volunteers with one organization to see what it takes to get a cat from the cold streets to a warm, safe home. Saving One Life is a nonprofit organization that provides care for at-risk cats and dogs through foster and adoption programs. Anna Zhundrikova, is a volunteer who helps coordinate the organization’s Trap-Neuter-Return (TNR) program. According to Saving One life, it uses TNR to humanely trap feral cats and spay or neuter them in order to help decrease the population. Once the cats have healed, they are returned to the colony in the area where they were trapped. Zhundrikova spends many nights a week driving around to different locations to feed homeless cats in Phoenix. Colony feeding, as it’s known, usually takes place late in the evening when the cats are most active. Zhundrikova said she continues to volunteer because she has compassion for animals and doesn’t want to see them suffer. [caption id="attachment_231191" align="alignnone" width="1024"]
Zoe Zaine and Clover Kay, wait to be adopted on Feb. 14, 2024, at the Saving One Life location in PetSmart in Phoenix. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
“I’ve always been one that is passionate about the community, no matter how that looks, whether that’s animal-related or human, and this is just another one of those things where it impacts us in a way that I think a lot of people don’t realize,” Zhundrikova said.
Saving One Life distributes approximately 1,000 pounds of cat food per week to identified colonies, according to the website.
Many of the cats volunteers encounter will be trapped in order to determine whether they are suitable for fostering or if they need to be spayed or neutered. If the cats can no longer be domesticated due to being in the wild for too long, Saving One Life will treat them for health issues, neuter or spay them and then release them. Saving One Life provides for about 800 cats around the Phoenix area every day, according to its website.
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Saving One Life volunteer Kelly Stinson weighs a cat as part of her requirements as a foster parent on Feb. 28, 2024, in Chandler. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Fostering is another part of the group’s mission. After a cat is trapped and deemed suitable for fostering, it is placed with a volunteer. Once a cat is in a foster home, it gets daily love, attention and medical treatment, including flea baths and medication for deworming, daily weight checks and vaccines for common diseases.
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Hank, one of Kelly Stinson’s foster cats, receives his deworming medicine on Feb. 28, 2024, in Chandler. Stinson has fostered a total of 75 cats, and all of them have found homes. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Saving One Life volunteer Kelly Stinson said she never planned to foster cats, but once her son started volunteering at the PetSmart, she discovered her love of fostering.
“It just feels really good to be able to give back to the community this way. It just breaks my heart any time I think about any animal that’s been abandoned or mistreated, and for me to be able to give a cat a chance to go into a loving home just makes me feel like I’m contributing,” Stinson said.
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Jojo Wangler, 7, a Saving One Life volunteer, pets a cat on Feb. 14, 2024, at PetSmart in Phoenix. She volunteers with her mom, Rylie Wangler, and her sister to help cats and bond with her family. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Cats who need extra medical care are seen by veterinarians, and every cat is spayed or neutered before they are adopted out. Cats ready for adoption often go to PetSmart locations throughout Arizona or to the Kitty Pause Kitty Café in Mesa. Rylie Wangler, a PetSmart volunteer, plays with and cares for the kitties with her two daughters. She said volunteering is a way of bonding with her kids and that she enjoys seeing the cats find loving homes. “I would say the next piece for me is to find their forever home. It’s the whole process. It’s so heartwarming,” Wangler said.
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From left, Hannah Galaxy, 10, and Cathy Christensen, volunteer at Saving One Life inside PetSmart in Phoenix on March 20, 2024. Christensen has been volunteering for three years. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
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Saving One Life volunteer Kelly Stinson feeds cats at the Kitty Pause Kitty Café in Mesa on Feb. 28, 2024. Kitty Pause Kitty Café partners with Saving One Life on cat adoptions. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
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Cats sniff each other at the Kitty Pause Kitty Café on Feb. 28, 2024, in Mesa. (Photo by Mariah Temprendola/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Saving one Life is a never-kill shelter, meaning it will provide all veterinary needs for animals and only consider euthanasia when all medical options are exhausted, according to its website.
Stinson says it’s heartbreaking to her when she sees a helpless animal abandoned. “I think some people aren’t wired to believe that animals are at the same level as humans. It makes me very sad because people that put kittens in a garbage bag and throw them in a trash can don’t view animals as their equal. I can’t relate to that at all,” Stinson said.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YTKnvkjizI
(Video by Lauren Bly/Cronkite News)
]]> April 29, 2024
The Society of St. Vincent de Paul will provide more beds to help the homeless survive extreme heat this summer
PHOENIX – With temperatures in Phoenix already hitting 100 degrees, concerns for how the homeless populations will survive the heat this summer are front and center. According to the Maricopa County 2023 Heat Related Deaths Report, the homeless population accounted for 45% of the 645 heat-related deaths in the county, which saw a 52% increase in overall heat deaths compared to 2022. That same report showed that 71% of heat-related deaths occurred on days when the National Weather Service issued an excessive heat warning. Temperatures stayed high even at night; the low recorded for one night last July was 97 degrees. Excessive heat is particularly hard for the homeless population as they don’t have indoor spaces to find relief. The Society of St. Vincent de Paul (SVdP) – an organization dedicated to “feeding, clothing, housing and healing individuals and families” who don’t have other sources of help – is changing its focus going into the summer. According to Jessica Berg, chief program officer for SVdP, the real danger of heat for people who are homeless is their lack of shelter makes it impossible for them to get out of scorching temperatures. The best solution is to be inside somewhere that has a working air conditioning system, Berg said, and that’s why her organization is prioritizing providing beds over walk-up services. Even just walking outside for a prolonged period of time can be dangerous. Asphalt can get up to 121 degrees and the Arizona Burn Center warns that contact with hot asphalt or cement can cause serious burns. Berg said SVdP will be putting its resources toward beds and places for people to stay that will keep them safer for longer – for instance, the organization will be opening 171 new beds by July. [caption id="attachment_231177" align="alignright" width="300"]
Dennis Robinson on his bed in the Society of St. Vincent de Paul’s Washington Street Shelter in Phoenix, on Jan. 31. (Photo courtesy of Troy Hill/The Society of St. Vincent de Paul)[/caption]
Dennis Robinson is one individual who has been helped by SVdP’s resources. He is a resident of the Washington Street Shelter and was assisted in getting a job as a chef through the organization’s workforce program.
Robinson has been staying at the Washington Street Shelter for seven months. After his sister passed away last July, he said he gave all his money to his family to pay for the funeral costs; when he got back to Arizona, his job as a house manager in a sober living home was gone. Without the job, and no money, Robinson had nowhere to go.
The heat was a real concern as last July hit record-breaking high temperatures.
“Walking out there in that heat was kind of detrimental. I'm 62 years old, and I wasn't trying to be in all that heat, have another stroke or a heart attack,” Robinson said.
Robinson credits SVdP for helping him get a vehicle, uniforms for his job and an apartment, which he’s set to move into soon.
“I don't know what I would have done,” Robinson said. “St. Vincent de Paul was a great help, a rescue in my life. I mean, I thank God that the shelter was here. I thank God for the resources.”
Robinson also said he uses other SVdP resources such as the dining rooms.
According to Berg, some of the dining rooms will have extended hours for heat relief this summer. In addition to shelters, dining rooms and the workforce program, SVdP has a medical clinic, a family support program and a day relief cooling center in partnership with Phoenix. The organization also helps people with their utility bills, rent, and holds drives for water, hygiene items, lip balm, sunscreen and hats.
“It's really keeping people safe. And I think that is anywhere where we can bring people inside and make sure they have air conditioning and water and food,” Berg said.
]]> April 29, 2024
‘Mobility, community and open space’: Culdesac in Tempe aims to provide a healthy alternative to suburban living
TEMPE – Culdesac aims to offer the convenience of city living with the warm feel of the suburbs. Located on the property is a corner market; a restaurant; several shops; a repair shop for bikes, e-bikes and e-scooters; and a night market held every Thursday to help residents connect with their neighbors and community. Apartment residents can see storefronts from their balconies and easily run down for a new outfit from vintage shop Sew Used or a gift from any of the multiple small shops. Parking is for retail convenience, rather than resident use. Located on 17 acres, Culdesac says that as a walkable mixed-use neighborhood, it is the first car-free community of its kind in the United States. Residents are not allowed to park cars in the retail lot, and other parking is not available on site. “We focus on mobility, community and open space, and for each of those, we have amenities we can build because we don’t have to have a big parking garage or asphalt parking lot,” said Ryan Johnson, co-founder and CEO of Culdesac, which opened to residents last year. Studies have shown people are happier feeling like they are a part of their community and that they enjoy having a sense of connection. [caption id="attachment_231167" align="alignright" width="300"]
Ryan Johnson is the CEO and co-founder of Culdesac, a car-free community in Tempe. Photo taken on April 2, 2024. (Photo by Crystal Aguilar/Cronkite News)[/caption]
“Social capital is the degree to which people feel connected and supported within their community. Individuals who reported higher levels of social capital have been found to report higher levels of wellbeing,” according to a study published in the Journal of the American Planning Association. “The way neighborhoods are planned and maintained matters for happiness, health, and trust.”
Johnson began thinking of this concept while he was working at Opendoor, an online company that buys and sells residential real estate.
“We saw so much demand for walkable neighborhoods. People wouldn’t always ask for it by name, the word we heard the most was ‘cute,’ and when we would ask them what that means, that means they want to live by a coffee shop, they want to live somewhere with thoughtful architecture, where they know their neighbors and they want to be able to walk around,” Johnson said.
Though it’s new for the Valley, this concept has been in practice internationally, said Christoper Boone, a professor at Arizona State University’s School of Sustainability.
“Culdesac was designed with the principle of what’s sometimes called new urbanism, and it’s really – despite the name – drawing old lessons from cities that were built before cars became a dominant form of transportation,” Boone said. “It created cities that were built on what's sometimes called a human scale so you would be able to – within half an hour – walk and find what you need.”
Though this can prove effective to improve individuals' overall mental and physical health by encouraging community interaction and staying active, it could also help the environment by reducing the amount of greenhouse gases emitted from cars.
“Cars are very expensive, as you know; they are expensive to insure, they're expensive to run and they are also expensive for our health. Cars are a leading cause of injury and death in the United States,” Boone said. “They also pollute our air, they use up a huge amount of space in our cities as well. So if you look at roads in most cities, they take up 30% of the area. What if we could use that 30% not for places to be driving 45 miles an hour, but for other kinds of uses like for places to sit and eat and watch the world go by?”
In order to ensure the car-free community works in Tempe, residents have access to an unlimited public-transit pass. Residents can catch the light rail right outside of the property and get discounts for Lyfts and Waymos. The community opened to residents last May, with free e-bikes for the first 200.
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Culdesac is a new pedestrian-friendly community in Tempe. Photo taken on April 2, 2024. (Photo by Crystal Aguilar/Cronkite News)[/caption]
Johnson said the project is an ongoing effort to change how housing is perceived and built throughout the U.S. to give people the experience of living with more spatial awareness and sense of community.
“Arguably, the best thing we could be doing for climate is getting as many people living in walkable neighborhoods as possible,” Johnson said. “When you build like this, and you put more great amenities nearby, it changes patterns and this is part of unlocking us to build more sustainable cities.
"Part of our plan is not just to build more for ourselves, it's to show other developers in the cities that this is a model. This has become the reference project for how to build walkable neighborhoods successfully in the U.S. in the 2020s, and we want everyone to copy it.”
Another factor Johnson and the team took into consideration for the project is the Arizona heat. When asked how Culdesac will work around the high summer temperatures, Johnson said, “We don’t have the heat island effect. This apartment complex is 15 degrees cooler than the apartment complex next door, and that’s for three reasons: One is there is not a drop of asphalt on the site, second is the color of the buildings reflects heat, and the third is that the design creates lots of shade and so this is part of mitigating the heat effect.”
Boone said Culdesac’s architecture is inspired from other dry, hot climates around the world. It is built with people’s necessities in mind and finds ways to combat heat, such as providing extra shade and more breeze.
“There's alternative ways of living that are not so dependent on cars and single-family homes, but if we really wanted to make a dent in those issues, whether it's the environment, physical and mental health or climate change, we need to see these kinds of ideas scale quickly, and they need to increase in magnitude much, much greater than they have today,” Boone said.
There’s more for Culdesac as only part one of three has been completed in Tempe. Though the completion timeline is not yet available, the final project is expected to host around 1,000 residents.
]]> April 29, 2024
April 25, 2024, Newscast
Baseball title run, new video game gives college players NIL rights, ‘handwritten notes’ by robots]]>