City's violence strains its health

July 20, 2008

As an occupational therapist new to Baltimore, I was pleased to see David Kohn's article that addressed the link between environment and health outcomes ("Violent neighborhoods are bad for your health," July 17).

Since arriving in Baltimore, I've been providing home care services largely in traditionally violent West Baltimore neighborhoods.

And I've been astonished to see that the average age of my patients here has dropped more than 20 years from that of the patients I've seen doing similar work in other cities; instead of patients in their 70s and 80s, I'm seeing patients as young their early 40s and 50s faced with chronic conditions such as heart disease and stroke.

As therapists, we attempt to instill in our patients the idea that recovery and health are not just about alleviating a set of symptoms. We aim for a holistic approach in which optimal health is gained through meaningful activity, decreasing stress and finding safety in the home environment.

Living in violent and impoverished neighborhoods creates significant barriers to achieving these objectives.

Jacqueline Roche

Baltimore

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City's violence strains its health

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