The New Homeless on NBC's Dateline 7/4/03 @ 8PM (EDT)

Nurses Activism

Published

Tomorrow night's Dateline on NBC is going to focus on the "new homeless". Mark your calendars. It is BOUND to be scary.

Specializes in Med/Surg, Geriatrics.
Originally posted by colleen10

As for the topic at hand, I don't want to place a ton of blame on the parents but when you see that she delivered in a hospital and the list of relatives you do have to wonder why no one helped these people at all. Where else did they go to get help, and get denied, before it got to this point?

I would like to comment on the original subject. The parents moved here from Detroit seeking jobs and a better life. I've been to Detroit and that is totally understandable. Being new to the area, they may have not known very well where they could go for help. Also the mother is has a mild developmental disablility. The fact that she delivered in a hospital is really irrevelant because Grady(the local county hospital) delivers people like her every day. The volume is staggering and the need is overwhelming. And there is no way they can provide for everyone, someone is going to fall through the cracks and that is the whole point. Also, having relatives is no guarantee of getting help especially if the relatives are barely able to take care of themselves or are unwilling. One last point, it was stated that the parents may have felt they would be blamed for their status or risked losing their child and I think that was a just fear considering that when they did try to get help they were promptly arrested. It's a hard world out there.

Thank you Geek,

you are right. I obviously could not see how hard she was struggling, and I should have praised her like you did. Please forgive me, and I hope I can one day be like you. You take this very personally, don't you? You missed my point, but that's OK. It was about the HOMELESS

Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.
Originally posted by SharonMH31

I would like to comment on the original subject. The parents moved here from Detroit seeking jobs and a better life. I've been to Detroit and that is totally understandable. Being new to the area, they may have not known very well where they could go for help. Also the mother is has a mild developmental disablility. The fact that she delivered in a hospital is really irrevelant because Grady(the local county hospital) delivers people like her every day. The volume is staggering and the need is overwhelming. And there is no way they can provide for everyone, someone is going to fall through the cracks and that is the whole point. Also, having relatives is no guarantee of getting help especially if the relatives are barely able to take care of themselves or are unwilling. One last point, it was stated that the parents may have felt they would be blamed for their status or risked losing their child and I think that was a just fear considering that when they did try to get help they were promptly arrested. It's a hard world out there.

THANK YOU. For a VERY sensible post. May we NEVER judge unless we know the WHOLE story. And I know most of us have not judged, but have been interested to know the whole story. This definately sheds more light on the subject. The "cracks" are there, and they will gobble us up in a heartbeat. But one has to have been there to know.

I'm one of the judgers in this situation. They could've dropped the kid off in any emergency room, church, school, hell shopping mall and the kid would be alive today. I generally agree we should try to be nonjudgemental, but when it comes to a child dying, I admit to having trouble remaining that way. I would rather risk loding a child to social services than a cemetary.

Specializes in MICU, neuro, orthotrauma.
Originally posted by MishlB

Thank you Geek,

you are right. I obviously could not see how hard she was struggling, and I should have praised her like you did. Please forgive me, and I hope I can one day be like you. You take this very personally, don't you? You missed my point, but that's OK. It was about the HOMELESS

I sense sarcasm in the beginning of your post. Without your tone, I can not verify, so I will choose not to respond as if it were sarcasm.

I take this personally, because being on that much govt assistance is always one half step away from being homeless. When one is homeless they are essentially at the bottom, unless of course theya re also addicted and then they need more help than just a homeless person. Or if someone were struggling with a disease like diabetes and homeless, that would be more of a plight.

I don;t take away the luck and tenacity (anyone who has asked for a govt handout is tenacious if they have received it) that goes with pursuing and attaining givt help. One needs BOTH luck and tenancity. Also knowlege. WHere to go what to do which is hard to get on the streets. I actually was homeless when I was oyunger and then again in my early twenties. I don;t wear it as a badge of honor; I;m not asking for sympathy so please don;t take my statement as such. i am simply stating that I know what it is like out there.

And I know what it is like to be on govt assistance. I didnt need it during nursing school, I somehow muddled through (now i am wiggling with joy that I have a boyfriend who helps me with my last semester, but at first I didn;t have this luxury and I was scared of not being able to do this), but I have been on food stamps before, and it was a horrible process to get them. Dehumanizing. tinynurse has gone through the process of grants, welfare and foodstamps to make her dream come true. She is higher up than the couple in atlanta, but, quite frankly, not by much

because no matter how hard she worked to get all this assistance and lined everything up to be able to go to nursing school, they could have easily taken it away before she had completed her goal and she would have had to give up nursing school or go homeless trying to complete her task.

And with homelessness becoming ever more prevalent you are going to find a good deal more people who have never been on the street and don;t know how to navigate through the system out there. I have been one of those people. tinynurse was so close to there, and yet you attack.

Again, I dont know if youa re sarcastic when you say things like "I hope to be more like you." (makes me feel weird even typing that) and I will try to assume you aren't ebing sarcastic, but jesus I get the feeling that you don;t get my plight, her plight... I guess it isn;t sexy enough for you.

Or for most newsshows. We navigated such that we are going to be ok. We should be commended and praised for what we have done and we arent trying to ake away anything from those who were lost thru the cracks of the system. Only trying to make it more aware that ANYONE OF US IS SUSEPTIBLE.

Originally posted by geekgolightly

I take this personally, because being on that much govt assistance is always one half step away from being homeless. When one is homeless they are essentially at the bottom, unless of course theya re also addicted and then they need more help than just a homeless person. Or if someone were struggling with a disease like diabetes and homeless, that would be more of a plight.

And with homelessness becoming ever more prevalent you are going to find a good deal more people who have never been on the street and don;t know how to navigate through the system out there. I have been one of those people. tinynurse was so close to there, and yet you attack.

Again, I dont know if youa re sarcastic when you say things like "I hope to be more like you." (makes me feel weird even typing that) and I will try to assume you aren't ebing sarcastic, but jesus I get the feeling that you don;t get my plight, her plight... I guess it isn;t sexy enough for you.

I didn't realize she was "on the verge of being homeless". What, are you her case manager? Not sexy enough? What the he** are you even talking about?????

Specializes in Hemodialysis, Home Health.

Fergus..

I agree with you in that when the death of an infant/child is involved, it DOES make it difficult to not want to judge... however, I can't help but believe that these 2 parents didn't have a full understanding ( or the capacity to do so ) of just what was occurring withtheir child, or that it was in anyway intentional.

It does not change the outcome, but makes me be a bit more understanding, a little less willing to throw stones. We just don't know what was going on in their lives to have let this happen.. and/or if they even recognized the danger signals. I don't know enough about their mental/emotional stability to judge them on this one.

That's all I'm saying here. :o

Specializes in MICU, neuro, orthotrauma.
Originally posted by MishlB

I didn't realize she was "on the verge of being homeless". What, are you her case manager? Not sexy enough? What the he** are you even talking about?????

umm, sexy is a journalism term. look it up.

anyone on that much assistqance is on the verge of being homeless. im surprised that you dont understand this concept.

i dont think you want to do anything but argue, so i am going to leave it at that. good luck in everything you do.

Specializes in ER, ICU, Nursing Education, LTC, and HHC.

So very sad and so very true that it takes something like the death of a baby to get the state and local officials to help those in the greatest need.

God Bless Them All.

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