South Bay Family Health Center

South Bay Family Health Center
www.sbfhc.org

South Bay Family Health Care provides high-quality, safety net health care services to economically disadvantaged and uninsured residents of Los Angeles County’s South Bay and Harbor Gateway communities. The WHY grant of $13,797.00 will provide much-requested BiliCheck noninvasive bilirubin analyzers (2) for jaundice screenings and digital scales (2) to improve pediatric care at two clinics that serve medically underserved populations in the communities of Inglewood and neighboring Hawthorne. The Claudia Hampton Clinic and the Ob-Gyn Clinic both address a gap in service that resulted from the consolidation/closure of other obstetrics programs in the area. Close to 60% of full-term babies have jaundice during the first week or two of their life. This can cause damage to the brain, resulting in involuntary and uncontrolled movements (athetoid cerebral palsy), permanent upward gaze, hearing loss, and improper development of tooth enamel.  Infants who fail to thrive are not growing and developing normally, which leads to permanent mental, emotional, or physical delays. Prompt treatment may prevent significant lasting damage. Approximately 400 newborns will now have their bilirubin levels measured for possible jaundice and they will be weighed at each visit to ensure they are reaching developmental milestones and thriving.