Jennifer on the Issue:

​In my daily work as a nurse, I’ve witnessed the inequities in our healthcare system. I’m tired of not having adequate resources to do my job which is why I’m working to enhance our social safety net. I’m not only a full time psychiatric and public health nurse, I also served as Vice President of the Board for the Alameda Health System for the last three years, which is delivering care to the most vulnerable residents of our county. I'm bringing fresh ideas and a healing approach to problems that have been escalating and getting worse right in front of our eyes because we need to prioritize providing more resources for community-based preventative care. 

​

Our county must expand community based mental healthcare. Wait times to be seen can be  6-8 months. Meanwhile, our county jail is on of the  largest provider of mental healthcare in the county. Too many people get the care they need only after a mental or behavioral health crisis involving police and the carceral system. By providing timely care upfront we can keep people out of this system, a solution that is not only more humane, but less costly.

​

We also have to make sure that health services, which the county has a mandate to provide, are distributed in an equitable way. I have watched too many people in our community, especially Deep East Oakland and the Unincorporated areas, suffer the consequences of inadequate healthcare access.