June 7, 2019 (Friday)

June 7, 2019 (Friday)

What are the challenges that individuals you met today face?  How does The Open Door help with some of the needs of the community?  Are there other connections in the community to help improve health for those facing health disparities?

One challenge that is faced by some of the individuals I met today are finding a job. Most of the individuals I talked to said that there aren't very many opportunities or they have a hard time getting someone to give them a change. Individuals also are uneducated with healthcare and don't trust doctors. Another challenge that the individuals face is drug addiction. Many of the individuals are addicted to drugs. Something I found truly interesting was that these individuals were happy with their life. They loved where they lived, they never want to move. A lot of them have left and came back. They are comfortable and happy. The open door helps with so many different things. Monday-Friday they serve breakfast and lunch. Saturday-Sunday they serve breakfast, lunch, and dinner. They also give food out to people to take home with them like frozen meat and mac and cheese. The open door allows individuals to do laundry and bathe themselves. There is a second-hand store that has low priced items for them to buy. They have 30 churches that volunteer every month to cook food for everyone. Every church is assigned the same day each month.  They also pay to fill prescriptions for people. Some connection in the community is Meridian which helps with drug and alcohol abuse. Meridian also helps with behavioral health issues which are their main focus. Also, there is a shelter about 3 miles away to try and get people off the streets. Learning from these individuals today was an experience that I will never forget. They are such interesting individuals and so smart. They took a wrong path and are more than willing to admit it. They believe what they believe and that makes them happy. I found out from the individuals I personally talked to that health wasn't really that important to them because they were happy. I found one individual that one of the staff continued to ask him to talk to the nurses and he refused. He said he was "fine." He wasn't "sick." I attempted to talk to him and he wanted no education and left shortly after. This opportunity really opened my eyes to what means the most to people and having nothing means a lot more than having everything in a way. They considered each other as family and everyone new everyone.