Final Paper: San Diego and Tijuana- Health and the Homeless Population
Our homeless population’s health- It’s almost like an oxymoron; how do people stay healthy while living on the streets, if they have nothing protecting them? Especially people who are under more strenuous situations like pregnant women; they are more susceptible to illnesses, mental health issues, and even diabetes. It’s interesting because how do these women and others stay safe? Is there anything that our community is doing for them, not just here in San Diego, but also in Tijuana?
I wanted to create an awareness, that for some, is right in front of us, something so overlooked that hopefully - with my ideas - won’t be any more. At the early stages of our project, I wanted to create t-shirts with an empowering quote to give people some awareness. Once we made profit, we could donate the money to a charity in need. Some charities my partner and I had in mind to donate to are Father Joe’s Villages and theSt. Vincent de Paul Center. We were thinking of these places because they serve people in need every day, and could always use donations. This seemed like a great way to integrate my interests with the greater cause to come up with something amazing.
What did I already know about pregnant homeless women? For one, they are much more susceptible to mental illness. Also, they I knew that they don’t have prenatal care or screenings, so they don’t know if their baby has or will have birth defects. These mothers are also prone to diabetes and hypertension. These are long term diseases and if not treated early on, they could be dealing with these for the rest of their lives. However, there are ways these women can get help. They can visit places like St. Vincent de Paul for an Obstetrics appointment; or they could visit the health center in Downtown San Diego.
What I wanted to know is: what are people doing to solve this issue? How can our San Diego population as well as Tijuana, Mexico help our communities and the people living in it? This question I wanted to focus on is: what is our world doing to help this problem- and what can i do to help, as well? I wondered how facilities like the Health Center or St. Vincent de Paul Center got started? Why aren’t there more of these places if they are so beneficial? Hopefully, as our world grows and expands, people will realize we need more; more help, more empathy, more understanding for the people in need.
For my interviews, I interviewed a healthcare professional who specifies in OB/GYN. This is where I got the load of my questions answered. Since I’m going more in depth into pregnant homeless women and the symptoms they face, this was perfect! The interview went great and helped a lot more with my understanding of what happens to these women. I would have never thought they are more susceptible to mental illness, diabetes, and even hypertension. Another idea a group of students and I have is to volunteer at Father Joe's Villages soup kitchen. We’re hoping to get a new understanding of what it’s like to help out the community, and to maybe even start going a few times a week. This is super important to me because I’ve always wanted to help out and this is a great way to achieve that.
For my research topic, it all started with Into the Beautiful North, by Luis Alberto Urrea. I wasn’t sure what to research at first, however the book explained a lot of Mexico’s homeless life. It talked about the garbage houses which really got me thinking. For those who haven’t read Into the Beautiful North, the garbage houses were homes made of exactly what they’re called; trash from the landfill in Mexico. These are real homes that trash pickers live in and have to make due with. The text got me thinking because it opened my eyes to what's really out there. Before, I had no idea a place like the garbage houses was real. Now, I’m much more informed on my topic and thankful because it’s showed me a lot.
Once I decided I wanted to research the homeless population I had a talk with Lisa. We talked about going more in depth because the homeless population is a vague topic. Once we started talking more I decided I wanted to go more in depth and research homeless pregnant women. I did this because I’m really interested in what these women face more than other people on the streets, and wanted to know how to relate this to my final product.
After that, I took off; started researching articles and finding out more about my topic. For our research notes, I had to create six notes, using articles/interviews I found. Starting out I used articles keyword searching homeless pregnancy among the homeless population. Things like statistics and facts, just to get a better understanding of my topic.
Another part of my research included my first interview. I hosted an interview with a healthcare professional, my dad, who is an OB/GYN. I asked him a series of questions regarding the health of these women and what they are more susceptible living on the street.
The final step to my research was volunteering. A group of students and I went to Father Joe’s Villages to serve hot lunch to people in need. This was a super amazing opportunity and really opened my eyes. It was such a rewarding act, and I will never forget this experience because it showed me how to help my community.
At first, I had no idea what the Hepatitis A outbreak was caused by. For my resource #5, I read the article Environmental Report: Should we test waterways for Hep A? It’s Murky. This article gave me an idea of other places the disease can come from, other than not having proper sanitary restrooms, sinks, etc. In the article I learned that it can actually be carried through our waterways. In 1969, a boy scout troop drank water from an infested river, leading researchers to their discovery of the infested waters. Later they related the more recent outbreak to “patient zero”, a homeless man carrying the disease. Their research led them believe this man is the person who re-started Hep A, and brought it to the San Diego county. This man lives in El Cajon, and went into questioning earlier in the search.
Hepatitis A is also spread from not being sanitary. Examples are after going to the bathroom and not properly washing your hands; after that, you tend to touch things. Thus beginning the circle of contamination and spreading the disease. Signs of this disease are sometimes hard to catch, but that lead me to find an article explaining the symptoms of Hep A. It stated that symptoms are yellowing of the eyes, nausea, fever, loss of appetite (WebMD).
Since I was going more in depth on the subject of pregnant homeless women, I had to dive deeper at what struggles they face. I immediately found an article, Pregnancy and Mental Health of Young Homeless Women. This article shared a lot of facts about mental health, physical health, and the after-birth process. Between 35-70% of pregnancies when homeless end in miscarriages. Most homeless women face mental health issues during their life due to drugs, alcohol, and pre-existing illnesses. Something else surprising was that most women turn to alcohol and drugs, leading to deformities and mental health issues later in life not just for them, but their babies as well.
There are however places to help homeless women, and even special facilities for pregnant women. During my interview with an OB/GYN, I made sure to ask what centers there were to help these people; some of the places mentioned were St. Vincent de Paul, Family Health Center in Downtown San Diego, and Father Joe’s Villages. One of the most surprising things I learned during my interview was that if you don’t have a home address, you can’t take your baby home. This is very common and happens quite often due to the fact that some homeless people don’t have an official address. The children then go into Social Services and then off to the adoption process (Mitchell).
A group of students and I were able to volunteer at Father Joe’s Villages, serving food and water. The crowd was definitely different than expected. There were little to no kids, and very little women through the line. The abundance of people that came through were men, ages 20-70 years old. When volunteering at Father Joe’s Villages, another surprising fact was that they would only serve milk to pregnant women or children. They told us it was because those are the ones who need milk. Since I was handing out water, many asked if we had milk to give out, mostly men and non-pregnant women. After reading the article by LiveScience, Do Kids Really Need Milk?, to clarify my beliefs, my mind is made up. Although milk has vitamins and nutrients, it isn’t the only way to get those types of nutrition. This brings me back to my question of why was Father Joe’s Villages (FJV) serving milk to only a specific category?
Psychology is a big part of the Mental Health Infrastructure according to the KPBS article, U.S. Deportations Strain Tijuana’s Mental Health Infrastructure. Deportes tend to start losing their value and self worth, tumbling into depression. Many cases vary, but more that not, these people’s problems are pre-existing. Many experts think to believe that more often, the pre-existing illness starts in Mexico. Due to the event of deportation, and an abundance are tainted and left feeling upset. Many of which that are deported are dropped off in Tijuana, and become homeless.
According to my partner from Tijuana, many homeless people have lots of options to help them. They have casas which are small homes in which people stay and get help. There, they have a roof over their head, food, and people in similar situations. Similarly, here we have places like Father Joe’s Villages, St. Vincent’s, and many more. She also states that many are homeless because of their parents, education, or a need to not be at home. That is another fact that is very similar to San Diego’s homeless population (Maldonado).
In conclusion, I used articles along with a mixture of interviews to learn more on my topic. This brought me to my current state of knowledge on Tijuana’s and San Diego’s homeless population, pregnant homeless women, and everyone’s overall health. After learning this much I can confidently say I am much more educated on these topics.
Reflecting on this whole process, I’d say it went really well. To start off my research, it was a bit tough because I didn’t know where to start. However, after picking my research topic, everything just flowed in. I was able to find legible articles that worked perfectly with my questions and answered most of them. I also learned so much more than I was looking for, and it really pushed me to find really well written articles that actually taught me about my topic.
Looking back on my partner chats, I’d say they went fairly well for the amount of time we were given. Although it was hard merging our schedules together, we got some good dialogue in throughout the weeks. I was able to get to know my partner, and also pick her brain a little about my topic. That definitely also pushed me in my research and helped with the Tijuana part of it. I really enjoyed getting to know my group of students and I think everyone including myself made some good connections.
As for my papel picado, that’s a whole different story. I really struggled with getting a good idea of what I wanted it to look like. After collaborating with my friends, we all came up with each others and really helped one another with cohesive ideas. The one thing that was very tedious was our drafts; there were many we had to do to really get the design down. Another hardship I faced was getting my quote in Spanish and English on the same paper. Once I thought about how I would fit it onto the same one, I realized I couldn’t, and decided to put them on separate sheets. This idea helped to finalize my plan and all of my drafts. Then next chapter was to put it on my final pieces of paper. Once I finished, I was incredibly happy with the outcome and with my decisions.
When meeting our partners from Tijuana, it felt surreal. It felt crazy meeting someone that you’ve gotten to know via Skype. I was honestly a little nervous because I was feeling a little confused. I didn’t know how it would go, or what I would say, or even what they might say. Showing someone your community is a tough thing to do because it’s more than likely different to them. Meeting them was really nice, they were very kind and excited to see what we had planned for the day. My partners asked a lot of really awesome questions that I was able to explain and to break up the awkwardness. Their visit impacted me a lot; I got to learn a lot about the people I’ve been getting to know over these past few months, and it was a really great experience to be able to meet them. I got to see what people from a different home are like, and although we have a lot in common, we have our differences too. All in all, this experience has been incredibly humbling and I am very thankful to have been given this chance.
Works Cited
Crawford, Devan M., et al. “Pregnancy and Mental Health of Young Homeless Women.” The American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 2011,
Guerrero, Jean. “U.S. Deportations Strain Tijuana's Mental Health Infrastructure.” KPBS Public Media, KPBS Public Media,
Mitchell, Dale M.D. Personal Interview. 9 Nov. 2017
Morlan, Kinsee. “Home Sweet Dump.” San Diego CityBeat, San Diego CityBeat, 15 Jan. 2008, sdcitybeat.com/news-and-opinion/news/home-sweet-dump/.
Riviard. “Environment Report: Should We Test Waterways for Hep A? It's Murky.” Voice of San Diego, 23 Oct. 2017,
I wanted to create an awareness, that for some, is right in front of us, something so overlooked that hopefully - with my ideas - won’t be any more. At the early stages of our project, I wanted to create t-shirts with an empowering quote to give people some awareness. Once we made profit, we could donate the money to a charity in need. Some charities my partner and I had in mind to donate to are Father Joe’s Villages and theSt. Vincent de Paul Center. We were thinking of these places because they serve people in need every day, and could always use donations. This seemed like a great way to integrate my interests with the greater cause to come up with something amazing.
What did I already know about pregnant homeless women? For one, they are much more susceptible to mental illness. Also, they I knew that they don’t have prenatal care or screenings, so they don’t know if their baby has or will have birth defects. These mothers are also prone to diabetes and hypertension. These are long term diseases and if not treated early on, they could be dealing with these for the rest of their lives. However, there are ways these women can get help. They can visit places like St. Vincent de Paul for an Obstetrics appointment; or they could visit the health center in Downtown San Diego.
What I wanted to know is: what are people doing to solve this issue? How can our San Diego population as well as Tijuana, Mexico help our communities and the people living in it? This question I wanted to focus on is: what is our world doing to help this problem- and what can i do to help, as well? I wondered how facilities like the Health Center or St. Vincent de Paul Center got started? Why aren’t there more of these places if they are so beneficial? Hopefully, as our world grows and expands, people will realize we need more; more help, more empathy, more understanding for the people in need.
For my interviews, I interviewed a healthcare professional who specifies in OB/GYN. This is where I got the load of my questions answered. Since I’m going more in depth into pregnant homeless women and the symptoms they face, this was perfect! The interview went great and helped a lot more with my understanding of what happens to these women. I would have never thought they are more susceptible to mental illness, diabetes, and even hypertension. Another idea a group of students and I have is to volunteer at Father Joe's Villages soup kitchen. We’re hoping to get a new understanding of what it’s like to help out the community, and to maybe even start going a few times a week. This is super important to me because I’ve always wanted to help out and this is a great way to achieve that.
For my research topic, it all started with Into the Beautiful North, by Luis Alberto Urrea. I wasn’t sure what to research at first, however the book explained a lot of Mexico’s homeless life. It talked about the garbage houses which really got me thinking. For those who haven’t read Into the Beautiful North, the garbage houses were homes made of exactly what they’re called; trash from the landfill in Mexico. These are real homes that trash pickers live in and have to make due with. The text got me thinking because it opened my eyes to what's really out there. Before, I had no idea a place like the garbage houses was real. Now, I’m much more informed on my topic and thankful because it’s showed me a lot.
Once I decided I wanted to research the homeless population I had a talk with Lisa. We talked about going more in depth because the homeless population is a vague topic. Once we started talking more I decided I wanted to go more in depth and research homeless pregnant women. I did this because I’m really interested in what these women face more than other people on the streets, and wanted to know how to relate this to my final product.
After that, I took off; started researching articles and finding out more about my topic. For our research notes, I had to create six notes, using articles/interviews I found. Starting out I used articles keyword searching homeless pregnancy among the homeless population. Things like statistics and facts, just to get a better understanding of my topic.
Another part of my research included my first interview. I hosted an interview with a healthcare professional, my dad, who is an OB/GYN. I asked him a series of questions regarding the health of these women and what they are more susceptible living on the street.
The final step to my research was volunteering. A group of students and I went to Father Joe’s Villages to serve hot lunch to people in need. This was a super amazing opportunity and really opened my eyes. It was such a rewarding act, and I will never forget this experience because it showed me how to help my community.
At first, I had no idea what the Hepatitis A outbreak was caused by. For my resource #5, I read the article Environmental Report: Should we test waterways for Hep A? It’s Murky. This article gave me an idea of other places the disease can come from, other than not having proper sanitary restrooms, sinks, etc. In the article I learned that it can actually be carried through our waterways. In 1969, a boy scout troop drank water from an infested river, leading researchers to their discovery of the infested waters. Later they related the more recent outbreak to “patient zero”, a homeless man carrying the disease. Their research led them believe this man is the person who re-started Hep A, and brought it to the San Diego county. This man lives in El Cajon, and went into questioning earlier in the search.
Hepatitis A is also spread from not being sanitary. Examples are after going to the bathroom and not properly washing your hands; after that, you tend to touch things. Thus beginning the circle of contamination and spreading the disease. Signs of this disease are sometimes hard to catch, but that lead me to find an article explaining the symptoms of Hep A. It stated that symptoms are yellowing of the eyes, nausea, fever, loss of appetite (WebMD).
Since I was going more in depth on the subject of pregnant homeless women, I had to dive deeper at what struggles they face. I immediately found an article, Pregnancy and Mental Health of Young Homeless Women. This article shared a lot of facts about mental health, physical health, and the after-birth process. Between 35-70% of pregnancies when homeless end in miscarriages. Most homeless women face mental health issues during their life due to drugs, alcohol, and pre-existing illnesses. Something else surprising was that most women turn to alcohol and drugs, leading to deformities and mental health issues later in life not just for them, but their babies as well.
There are however places to help homeless women, and even special facilities for pregnant women. During my interview with an OB/GYN, I made sure to ask what centers there were to help these people; some of the places mentioned were St. Vincent de Paul, Family Health Center in Downtown San Diego, and Father Joe’s Villages. One of the most surprising things I learned during my interview was that if you don’t have a home address, you can’t take your baby home. This is very common and happens quite often due to the fact that some homeless people don’t have an official address. The children then go into Social Services and then off to the adoption process (Mitchell).
A group of students and I were able to volunteer at Father Joe’s Villages, serving food and water. The crowd was definitely different than expected. There were little to no kids, and very little women through the line. The abundance of people that came through were men, ages 20-70 years old. When volunteering at Father Joe’s Villages, another surprising fact was that they would only serve milk to pregnant women or children. They told us it was because those are the ones who need milk. Since I was handing out water, many asked if we had milk to give out, mostly men and non-pregnant women. After reading the article by LiveScience, Do Kids Really Need Milk?, to clarify my beliefs, my mind is made up. Although milk has vitamins and nutrients, it isn’t the only way to get those types of nutrition. This brings me back to my question of why was Father Joe’s Villages (FJV) serving milk to only a specific category?
Psychology is a big part of the Mental Health Infrastructure according to the KPBS article, U.S. Deportations Strain Tijuana’s Mental Health Infrastructure. Deportes tend to start losing their value and self worth, tumbling into depression. Many cases vary, but more that not, these people’s problems are pre-existing. Many experts think to believe that more often, the pre-existing illness starts in Mexico. Due to the event of deportation, and an abundance are tainted and left feeling upset. Many of which that are deported are dropped off in Tijuana, and become homeless.
According to my partner from Tijuana, many homeless people have lots of options to help them. They have casas which are small homes in which people stay and get help. There, they have a roof over their head, food, and people in similar situations. Similarly, here we have places like Father Joe’s Villages, St. Vincent’s, and many more. She also states that many are homeless because of their parents, education, or a need to not be at home. That is another fact that is very similar to San Diego’s homeless population (Maldonado).
In conclusion, I used articles along with a mixture of interviews to learn more on my topic. This brought me to my current state of knowledge on Tijuana’s and San Diego’s homeless population, pregnant homeless women, and everyone’s overall health. After learning this much I can confidently say I am much more educated on these topics.
Reflecting on this whole process, I’d say it went really well. To start off my research, it was a bit tough because I didn’t know where to start. However, after picking my research topic, everything just flowed in. I was able to find legible articles that worked perfectly with my questions and answered most of them. I also learned so much more than I was looking for, and it really pushed me to find really well written articles that actually taught me about my topic.
Looking back on my partner chats, I’d say they went fairly well for the amount of time we were given. Although it was hard merging our schedules together, we got some good dialogue in throughout the weeks. I was able to get to know my partner, and also pick her brain a little about my topic. That definitely also pushed me in my research and helped with the Tijuana part of it. I really enjoyed getting to know my group of students and I think everyone including myself made some good connections.
As for my papel picado, that’s a whole different story. I really struggled with getting a good idea of what I wanted it to look like. After collaborating with my friends, we all came up with each others and really helped one another with cohesive ideas. The one thing that was very tedious was our drafts; there were many we had to do to really get the design down. Another hardship I faced was getting my quote in Spanish and English on the same paper. Once I thought about how I would fit it onto the same one, I realized I couldn’t, and decided to put them on separate sheets. This idea helped to finalize my plan and all of my drafts. Then next chapter was to put it on my final pieces of paper. Once I finished, I was incredibly happy with the outcome and with my decisions.
When meeting our partners from Tijuana, it felt surreal. It felt crazy meeting someone that you’ve gotten to know via Skype. I was honestly a little nervous because I was feeling a little confused. I didn’t know how it would go, or what I would say, or even what they might say. Showing someone your community is a tough thing to do because it’s more than likely different to them. Meeting them was really nice, they were very kind and excited to see what we had planned for the day. My partners asked a lot of really awesome questions that I was able to explain and to break up the awkwardness. Their visit impacted me a lot; I got to learn a lot about the people I’ve been getting to know over these past few months, and it was a really great experience to be able to meet them. I got to see what people from a different home are like, and although we have a lot in common, we have our differences too. All in all, this experience has been incredibly humbling and I am very thankful to have been given this chance.
Works Cited
Crawford, Devan M., et al. “Pregnancy and Mental Health of Young Homeless Women.” The American Journal of Orthopsychiatry, U.S. National Library of Medicine, Apr. 2011,
Guerrero, Jean. “U.S. Deportations Strain Tijuana's Mental Health Infrastructure.” KPBS Public Media, KPBS Public Media,
Mitchell, Dale M.D. Personal Interview. 9 Nov. 2017
Morlan, Kinsee. “Home Sweet Dump.” San Diego CityBeat, San Diego CityBeat, 15 Jan. 2008, sdcitybeat.com/news-and-opinion/news/home-sweet-dump/.
Riviard. “Environment Report: Should We Test Waterways for Hep A? It's Murky.” Voice of San Diego, 23 Oct. 2017,