Healthy Development Community Clinic: Wellness for Children, Youth, & Families - Population The Healthy Development Community Clinic (HDCC) serves children, youth, and families in South and East San Jose, California. According to the U.S. Census Bureau (2021), residents of the catchment area primarily identify as 39% Asian, 25% Latinx, 3% Black or African American, and 4% with multiple ethnoracial identities. In the city of San Jose, 20% of families live below the Federal Poverty Line (FPL) including 31% of San Jose children. In South San Jose, 26% of families (and 33% of children) reside in households at 185% or more below the FPL (Santa Clara County Public Health Department, 2018). One-quarter of households have children (0-17 years; Santa Clara County Public Health Department, 2018). Furthermore, 39.7% of San Jose residents are born outside the United States (U.S. Census, 2021), and 56% of households report speaking a home language other than English (Santa Clara County Public Health Department, 2018). Collectively, these numbers highlight the multiple communities who may experience language, cultural, and systemic barriers to care. Services The purpose of the Healthy Development Community Clinic (HDCC) is to promote equity through holistic wellness for children, youth, and families. Through primary prevention and community outreach and education, the HDCC builds on individual, family, and community strengths; connects families with existing resources; and provides culturally- and linguistically-responsive, trauma-informed services to meet the wide-ranging needs of children, youth, and families. The HDCC uses an interdisciplinary, team-based approach to lead services through screenings, short-term interventions, outreach and education, and targeted referrals. Services address mental health, speech and language, academic and social success, and parent/family education. Examples of services include mental health, developmental, oral, hearing, and speech and language screenings; brief psychotherapy, psychosocial educational groups (e.g., coping skills to manage anxiety, social skills for healthy relationships), parent and family psychoeducation; community wellness events, and referrals and recommendations for community services. Services are provided by student clinicians and supervised by San Jose State University faculty and licensed providers; thus, in addition to serving the community, the HDCC is also training the next generation of mental health and health providers. Coordination The HDCC is committed to coordinated efforts with state and local health organizations to collaboratively address health equity and coordinate care. Extensive and ongoing conversations regarding formal processes to more effectively coordinate care continue to evolve. Local agencies seeking to collaborate with the HDCC include local county community health organizations, non-profit organizations focused on child health screenings and parent support, county health and education leaders, and mobile health services who are able to bring brief services into the community.
