March 12, 2004

LINKing resources to improve quality of care

A refugee family from Afghanistan came to the United States, searching for a better life. They suffered a great deal of trauma during the war, including the death of the father. The family settled in Chelsea, Mass. The mother, who had been a medical professional in Afghanistan, became ill and could no longer work. Because of the difficulty of adjusting to life in a new country and a new language, the mother began feeling overwhelmed.

One of the challenges she faced was seeking help for her child who has asthma. The asthma symptoms were intensified by dilapidated conditions of her rented apartment.
The child now is a patient at MGH Chelsea HealthCare Center, and thanks to a recent medical-legal collaboration, MGH Chelsea is helping eliminate or reduce obstacles many pediatric patients face in obtaining the highest quality of care.

In July of 2003, MGH Chelsea joined forces with the part-time services of attorney Laura Maslow-Armand, (above), from the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, to start a pilot program called the MGH Legal Initiative for Kids (LINK). The program provides assistance in obtaining housing and public benefits for families who are referred by pediatricians at MGH Chelsea. In the first five months of the program, 30 families were referred. "LINK is a very powerful tool to make concrete differences in patients' lives," says Sarah Oo, MS, director of Community Health Programs at MGH Chelsea. "Because of this program, we are able to couple legal advocacy with pediatric care. The teamwork has directly resulted in improved housing conditions and better access to critical benefits."

The family from Afghanistan is one of LINK's successful interventions. Their living conditions began to improve shortly after they were referred to LINK. Maslow-Armand managed to get the family a significant amount of money that was owed them by a utility company. The landlord was contacted to remedy many problems, and a lasting improvement in the family's resources came from obtaining supplemental security income.

"I barely survived in my homeland, and now for the first time, I am able to live a good life," says the grateful mother. Maslow-Armand adds, "In the near future, my hope is that the LINK program will work even more closely with the community health team at MGH Chelsea. In collaboration, we will intervene in the lives of more families and in more effective ways."