Sierra Hernandez – Week Two
6-month old Sierra experienced the world through the lens of
her mother’s struggles. One small town for a few months, then on to another one
to follow the work. Her mother would always find someone to look after Sierra,
someone she would meet in a new town. Often, she found herself at homeless
shelters, and others often were able to help her as she went to work. During
one of her stays at a shelter, she spoke with another woman from Mexico who
agreed to look after Sierra for the day. The woman proved untrustworthy,
however, when she left Sierra sleeping for two hours to go to “hang out” with
friends across town. She came back high on drugs, and while she was gone,
Sierra had woken up and was crying. It was about this time that Sierra
returned, just as the Department of Social Services (DSS) Child Protective
Services arrived.
* What is migrant
labor? What are the lives of people who do such labor typically like? (Hint:
Check out JMU’s Migrant Education Program through IIHHS)
* What are the major developmental milestones for a 6-month
old? Given her migrant status, is Sierra’s mother likely to visit a
pediatrician? What are the risks associated with a lack of early primary
medical care? Is Sierra likely to receive immunizations? What are the risks if
she does not?
* What are the risks for Sierra in being given over to the
care of relative strangers for periods of time?
DECISION POINT
* Write a dialogue of the conversation as it might
have taken place between the Child Protective Services worker (from DSS), the
mother, and the woman from Mexico who left the child. If you are CPS, do you
remove the child from her mother and place the child in foster care? Why or why
not?
The term migrant labor is a “term applied in the United States to laborers who travel from place to place harvesting crops that must be picked as soon as the ripen” (McWilliams, 2007). These workers can either travel on their own time or can be assigned by someone who needs help on their land. Although they work very hard, migrant workers receive little legal protection.
ReplyDeleteThe life a migrant worker is very hard and dangerous. These workers “come stateside when the crops come in, and often move from state to state as each plant is ready to harvest” (Rosas, 2008). These workers face hardships such as low wages, unacceptable housing, and lack of health care. These workers can also work with harmful pesticides that could cause them “dizziness, headaches, weakness, fatigue, vomiting, chest pains and breathing difficulties” (Rosas, 2008). Some have also been known to develop cases of cancer. For children it is just as dangerous. They are bound to “come out of the fields with some type of physical disadvantage that their non-laborer counterparts do not have to endure” (Rosas, 2008). These workers endure many consequences for little pay just so they can support their families.
McWilliams C. (2007). “Migrant Labor.” The Columbia electronic encyclopedia. (6th
ed). Columbia: Columbia University Press. Retrieved from
http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/bus/A0833129.htm/
Rosas, R. (2008, January 4). “Mexican migrant workers: dying to work.”
Retrieved from http://serendip.brynmawr.edu/exchange/node/1701
The major developmental milestones for a 6 month old include: turning towards sounds and voices, imitating sounds, rolling over, starting to eat solid foods, and starting to sit without support, according to the Baby Center (2011). According to Sigmund Freud, some of the critical developmental milestones include: oral psychosocial development, more specifically, sucking, biting, and mouthing. Medline Plus also adds the following developmental milestones: physical milestones- ability to move an object from hand to hand, ability to pick up a dropped object, beginning of the teething process, increased drooling, the ability to sleep 6-8 hours straight per night, and doubled birth weight. In terms of cognitive milestones for 6-month-old babies, the baby should start to fear strangers, begin to mimic and imitate, vocalizes, repetitively babbles monosyllables, and prefers more complex sounds (Feigelman, 2007). Also, the child can see about 3 feet in front of himself, the beginnings of depth perception emerge, the baby can start to hold his own head up with no support, the baby begins to put objects in his mouth, the imitation of facial expressions emerge, and vowel sounds emerge (How Children Develop, 2008). Some more milestones that most 6 month old babies achieve include: playing with his toes, holding up the bottle if still being bottle fed, recognizes the faces of their family members, and begin to experiment with new noises such as squealing (Developmental Milestones, 2011).
ReplyDelete(2008). How Children Develop. (online). (2011, September 11). Retrieved
from http://www.howkidsdevelop.com/developSkills.html.
(2011). Developmental Milestones. (online). (2011, September 11).
Retrieved from http://www.dars.state.tx.us/ecis/resources/developmentmilestones.shtml.
Feigelman S. The first year. In: Kliegman RM, Behrman RE, Jenson HB,
Stanton BF, eds. Nelson Textbook of Pediatrics. 18th ed. Philadelphia, Pa:
Saunders Elsevier;2007:chap 8.
Medical Advisory Board. (2011). Milestone Chart: 1-6 months. Baby
Center. Retrieved from http://www.babycenter.com/0_milestone-chart-
1-to-6-months_1496585.bc .
Given her migrant status, Sierra’s mother is not likely to visit a pediatrician. In a study conducted by Dr. Peter Chi which examines this exact question in regard to migrant workers and illegal immigrants, he concluded that unless the situation warranted desperately needing a doctor, then a migrant mother would not be likely to take her child to a pediatrician. One interesting fact that he found as a result of this study however, is that long-term migrants are more likely to visit a doctor than a migrant who just recently arrived in the United States. Of all of the families that he studied, only 28% of newly arrived migrants visited a doctor of any kind, and of this 28%, 20% was for a serious illness. (Chi, 1984).
Chi, Peter. (1984). Medical Utilization Patterns of Migrant Farm Workers
in Wayne County, New York. Retrieved from
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1425076/pdf/pubhealth
rep00097-0030.pdf.
Some of the risks associated with a lack of early primary medical care include: having a child with low birth weight and not knowing it, which can lead to death, lack of vaccinations against deadly diseases that can manifest quickly after birth, Sierra’s mother may not be educated in the correct diet for her, which could lead to serious health problems, and even such mental health issues as post-traumatic stress disorder after giving birth to Sierra, which can affect her ability to take care of the child. And the greatest risk is that Sierra’s mother may not understand how to care for a newborn to allow for the maximum level of development that Sierra could achieve (International Red Cross, 2011). Also, another key risk that Sierra’s mother could be exposing Sierra to is environmental danger, such as lead poisoning or asbestos, and would not even be aware of it (Alliance for Healthy Homes, 2011).
ReplyDeleteAlliance for Healthy Homes. (2011). Disparities in Risk. Retrieved from
http://www.afhh.org/chil_ar/chil_ar_disparities.htm.
International Red Cross. (2011). Infant Mortality. Retrieved from
http://www.faqs.org/health/topics/73/Infant-mortality.html.
No, Sierra is not likely to receive immunizations. If she is not likely to be taken to a hospital or pediatricians office to get periodic check-ups, then she is not likely to be taken just to receive a shot. And there is also a chance that her mother may not even be aware of the immunizations that she should get after birth to protect her from diseases and illnesses in the future. If she is not aware of these immunizations or even post-natal care, she may not know that she needs to take Sierra to the doctor, or even how to properly care for her baby.
There are many risks if Sierra’s mother does not take Sierra to get immunized. First of all, many of the post-natal immunizations were developed to prevent the harm that many infectious diseases can cause- such as mumps, measles, polio, pertussis, and chicken pox. If Sierra is to grow up without being immunized, she could miss school for being sick frequently, possible hospitalizations, and even premature death. In some of these diseases that could have been prevented by getting immunized, the child can find it hard to breathe, have problems eating or drinking, cause pneumonia, and lead to mental retardation (Center for Disease Control, 2010).
Center for Disease Control. (2010). What Would Happen if we Stopped
Vaccinations? National Center for Immunization and Respiratory
Diseases. Retrieved from http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/vac-
gen/whatifstop.htm.
When Sierra is placed in random homes of people neither her nor her mother know, many horrible incidents could happen. The people Sierra is left with could abuse or neglect Sierra or the person could also bring drugs around Sierra, which could affect her health. It has been shown that “one in three children with an identified disability for which they receive special education services are victims of some type of maltreatment (i.e., either neglect, physical abuse, or sexual abuse) whereas one in 10 nondisabled children experience abuse. Children with any type of disability are 3.44 times more likely to be a victim of some type of abuse compared to children without disabilities” (Sullivan & Knutson, 2000). It has also been shown that “26% of homeless people are addicts”
ReplyDelete(2009). This might be too big of a risk to leave a baby with someone that might be a potential addict. When Sierra’s mother leaves Sierra with a random stranger, there is the chance that Sierra could be kidnapped. Statistics show that “58,200 children reported missing in a one year timeframe were abducted by non family members” (2011).
Another risk is that Sierra could possibly have no one to really talk to. Being 6 months old this a crucial time for her communication skills to develop and this could be difficult for her if nobody is really around to talk with Sierra. There is a chance that whoever Sierra’s mom leaves Sierra with be a genuine person, but that is not a chance a mother should take with their child.
Leigh Ann Davis. (2009). Thearc.org. September 12’th, 2011 from
http://www.thearc.org/page.aspx?pid=2452
Nationalhomeless.org. Retrieved September 12’th, 2011, from
http://nationalhomeless.org/factsheets/addiction.html
Us Department of Justice. (2011). Missingkids.com, retrieved September
12’th, 2011,
http://www.missingkids.com/missingkids/servlet/PageServlet?
LanguageCountry=en_US&PageId=2810#1
Caseworker: One of the concerns I have about Sierra is the substantial time that she is left alone without adequate supervision. We received reports that she was left alone and crying. Why were you not able to remain with your child?
ReplyDeleteMrs. Hernandez: I am a migrant worker and a single mother. I have to work to be able to survive and provide for my child. I always try to find someone nearby who can watch Sierra until I can return.
Caseworker: Who did you leave the baby with today, and why was this person not around?
Mrs. Hernandez: I left her with a woman, Rosa, from the shelter. I move often to follow the work so I am not able to have a consistent babysitter.
Caseworker: Can I speak to Rosa?
Rosa: Can I help you?
Caseworker: Can you explain to me what happened today?
Rosa: The baby was sleeping. I had to go across town, and I thought she would be ok for a short while since she was sleeping.
Caseworker: Why did you have to go across town?
Rosa: I had to get something from a friend’s house. It is not in the best neighborhood, so I didn’t want to take the baby. She would be safer in the shelter.
Caseworker: Mrs. Hernandez, were you aware this would happen?
ReplyDeleteMrs. Hernandez: No, I was not. If I was, I would not have left my baby with her.
Caseworker: Has this ever happened before? How will you be sure that it won’t happen again?
Mrs. Hernandez: Not that I am aware of. I can look into the local churches and see if they offer free or inexpensive childcare. Hopefully that would be a safe location to leave Sierra while I have to work.
Caseworker: I don’t think it would be safe to leave Sierra with someone from the shelter again. Only a trusted friend or a trained professional would be an adequate care provider.
Mrs. Hernandez: With my work schedule and how often I move, I don’t think I would be able to find a consistent qualified caretaker.
Caseworker: If that is the case, then I think it would be best to take Sierra into custody of Child Protective Services, until you can arrange for adequate childcare.
Mrs. Hernandez: While I don’t necessarily like it, I want to protect my baby. Please let me know how she is doing. As soon as I make a plan to get my daughter back, I will let you know.
Our group chose to place Sierra in foster care because we believe that her mothers actions meet the federal definition of negligence which is “an act or failure to act which presents an imminent risk of serious harm”. Childwelfare.gov (2010).
(2010). Childwelfare.gov. retrieved September 13’th, 2011, from http://www.childwelfare.gov/can/defining/federal.cfm