Home: Highlights
Restorative Practices Now More Important than Ever
With the majority of schools in San Mateo County continuing with online learning due to COVID-19, students have fewer opportunities to interact with their friends and classmates. This isolation can be difficult for children and their families and the toll on mental health continues to grow. While schools are implementing remote learning, they can look to Restorative Practices as a tool to increase students’ connectedness.
Increasing Food Insecurity due to COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has had far reaching impacts on many aspects of our life. Our economy has been extremely hard hit, with unemployment rising due to business closures. As unemployment has risen, so has food insecurity. While food insecurity can be difficult to measure in real-time, one indicator is fairly certain, the number of people accessing emergency food resources. Second Harvest of Silicon Valley has seen a steady increase in demand for food in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties since the beginning of the pandemic in March.
My Final Post with Deep Gratitude
Greetings, GHSMC partners! I write my final post with deep gratitude and optimism during one of the more challenging years in recent memory. As I wrap up my transition this month working for the County of San Mateo, I am encouraged by all the great health equity work that I was fortunate to be a part of during my three years with the Health Policy and Planning team. We were able to advance policy efforts such as Daly City being the first city in the county to adopt a Vision Zero Action Plan to eliminate traffic deaths, which disproportionately affect our most vulnerable communities.
Sharing Opportunities and Challenges: Implementing Racial Equity in County Health Web Forum #2
Public Health, Policy and Planning (PHPP), BHRS’ Office of Diversity and Equity (ODE), and County Health’s Governmental Alliance for Racial Equity (GARE) team hosted its second racial equity web forum to deepen our understanding of the key gaps, opportunities, and priority areas for advancing racial equity in County Health.
How Does Civic Engagement Impact Your Health?
Our recent report on Youth Civic Engagement and Health highlights the positive health outcomes that civic engagement has on the health of youth. The more young people engage in civic activities, the higher their social connection and sense of belonging to a community, which ultimately translates into better physical and mental health outcomes. Yet, younger voters vote at much lower rates than older voters. So it is important for all qualified voters to register and cast their vote.
San Mateo County Health Joined 38 Health Systems to Declare: It is Undeniable, Racism is a Public Health Crisis
County Health is part of the Healthcare Anchor Network (HAN), a national collaboration of leading healthcare systems, which published the “Racism is a Public Health Crisis” statement in which 39 health systems signed on to. HAN’s members employ over half-million employees across 45 states and Washington, DC. and have committed to take concrete action to address the impact of structural racism in our communities.
Risk of Eviction Could Impact 6,900 Local Households
Poverty and overcrowding go hand in hand and both are local drivers of the spread of COVID-19. As unemployment and income loss continue to rise, the Board of Supervisors extended the moratorium on residential evictions through the end of August 31, and residents impacted by COVID-19 that need rental assistance or tenants’ rights legal advice can call Legal Aid Foundation 650-558-8911 or CLSEPA 650-422-2885.
Cities in San Mateo County Considering Adoption of Local Minimum Wage Ordinances
East Palo Alto City Council will hold a second reading of a proposed $15/hour local minimum wage ordinance on September 1st, and the City of Burlingame will hold their first reading on September 8.
San Mateo County Board of Supervisors Provides Funding for Childcare Programs
Childcare providers across San Mateo County and beyond have been severely impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. On Tuesday, July 21st the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors voted to provide $2 million to support local childcare providers. The funds will establish a new Child Care Relief Fund. The purpose of the Fund is to help providers remain open, particularly those in areas of the county serving low-income families and to ensure working families have access to quality child care.
San Mateo Food System Alliance Network Manager RFP
San Mateo County Health is preparing to release an RFP for the Network Manager Services for the San Mateo County Food System Alliance on August 1st. Learn more about the San Mateo County Food System Alliance at their website. Check the Get Healthy SMC website after August 1st for the RFP.
Digital Divide Data: New Maps & Charts on the Get Healthy SMC Portal!
Fast and reliable internet is critical to accessing information and staying connected to people. Broadband internet is a type of fast internet that runs through cables versus dial-up internet that typically uses phone lines. Households with access to broadband internet can quickly utilize online services such as telehealth, teleworking, and education – which are critical to most people’s daily lives these days. You can now see the latest local indicator for broadband internet access in the Health Neighborhoods Data Portal.
Welcome Erika Rincón to the Team!
Erika will be supporting Get Healthy SMC Healthy Economy efforts and the Community Collaboration for Children’s Success (CCCS) initiative. With a focus in workforce development and transportation justice, Erika brings over 10 years of experience working to advance equity and access to opportunity for low-income people of color in California. She holds wide-ranging experience in coalition and capacity building, policy advocacy, community-based planning, education outreach, technical assistance, and research.
Board of Supervisors Codify their Commitment to Black Lives Matter
At the June 23rd County Board of Supervisor meeting, the supervisors unanimously voted on a resolution supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and reaffirming the County’s commitment to racial equity. The most important part of the Board meeting was how many people turned out to express their deep commitment to racial justice.
Planning for Health Toolkit Update: New Chapter on Community Engagement
Community engagement is a critical component to planning for health and advancing equity. Check out our latest update to our Planning for Health Toolkit to learn more about inclusive public engagement that respects community leadership and expertise, and the importance of youth civic empowerment. We will soon add a virtual community engagement section to the toolkit. Stay tuned! To learn more, please contact HPP staff Heather Eastwood.
Please Share Resources
As a community of families and community based leaders, the CCCS network is an important place to share resources and information that our families could use during this difficult time. We are emailing resources to our network weekly and any new opportunities would be appreciated. If you have services or resources you are aware of that are relevant to our CCCS families, please contact Shireen Malekafzali at smalekafzali@smcgov.org.
Local Job Boards for Those Seeking Jobs
Local organizations are regularly updating their job search boards with available jobs in the region:
Job Train jobs board: https://www.jobtrainworks.org/job-seekers-services/
SAMCEDA Jobs board: https://www.samceda.org/Employment-Information
NOVA Job Board https://jobboard.novaworks.org/
Expansion of COVID-19 Testing
Testing for COVID-19 is now available in Daly City and East Palo Alto as well as San Mateo. Testing is available Monday through Saturday on a rotating basis through the three cities and free to any resident without the requirement of a doctor’s note, symptom screening or medical insurance. See all three locations and how to schedule an appointment at https://www.smcgov.org/covid-19-testing.
County Leadership During COVID-19 to Support Our Communities
Our Board of Supervisors have been taking leadership to support our communities. They have passed a moratorium on evictions for rental units across the county. They have passed a moratorium on small business evictions in our unincorporated communities. More information on the moratoriums and housing and small business resources can be found in our Healthy Housing and Healthy Economy sections below.
Becoming Connected Resilient Educators in Uncertain Times
Schools and their staff have responded to the COVID-19 public health emergency by shifting from classroom-based learning to virtual platforms almost overnight. This shift along with the stresses of dealing with the shelter-in-place orders can be stressful for everyone, teachers, students, and families included. In response to the need of San Mateo County educators and administrators, the San Mateo County School Wellness Alliance has created a weekly series of Restorative Practices workshops.
Resources for Small Businesses
Renaissance Mid-Peninsula continues to offer online classes and workshops to small and disadvantaged business owners such as on how to build your business online now that the shelter-in-place order is in place. They are also supporting disadvantaged business that have been impacted by COVID-19. You can access their support form in English and Spanish.