It’s Like Peeling an Onion
So much of Young & Healthy’s work is like peeling an onion. We start off with one thing and then as we reach out to families to offer support there is layer after layer of need.
We routinely do oral health screenings for little ones and then call the families if it looks like there is a tooth that needs attention. First grader Olivia had a little cavity and we called her mom, Sasha. Sasha thanked us for the alert, but she had a dentist and would take Olivia there to have the cavity filled. Sasha didn’t sound well herself and the staff asked if she was ok. Sasha had Covid and was getting better and although she didn’t need help with that, she hesitated—there was something. Her dad, Olivia’s grandpa, was sick—very sick. In fact, he was terminally ill. She understood that his health options were limited but she was worried that he might not be able to continue his cancer care at all. Her dad, Andres had always been self employed and paid out of pocket for his health insurance. Now he was sick, unable to work and unable to keep up with the insurance premiums. Our insurance advocate marked his case as urgent and immediately began looking into getting him affordable perhaps even free health insurance. The end of life is challenging at best—but now, perhaps, Andres will spend less time worrying about money and more time soaking in the love of his family. It started with a little cavity but led us to help so much more.
