To enhance my understanding of the whole topic of birth, and most things related to birth, I decided to research about poverty stricken mothers in NYC. I focused on pregnant women more than just mothers in general so it would further connect to the Birth unit. More specifically, I focused on what the government is doing to help the pregnant women. Before starting any research, I hypothesized that the government is providing special shelters dedicated just for pregnant women, equipped to handle all the needs of the pregnant women which, in my opinion, are greater than those of the common homeless people.
While researching, I set the search parameters to NYC only because I wanted to find a place that was accessible to me because I wanted to make this project a physical experience. I came across the website, NYC Homeless Services, which educated me about an organization called PATH. There isn’t too much information on PATH online, which is understandable since most of the people interested in PATH do not have access to the internet. The lack of information on PATH made it even more important for me to visit them.
PATH stands for Prevention Assistance for Temporary Housing. The office I visited is in the Bronx on Powers Avenue and 141st street. I did not think the neighborhood the office was located in was very friendly and inviting especially considering the fact that the people going to the office are emotionally stressed and at least the staff members could make it more scenic than it is right now. However; my opinion was probably just biased because it was raining the day I visited the office.
The second I walked in through the sliding entrance doors, I was greeted with a large sign titled: RULES. I started reading from Number 1 because I was determined not to break any rules as to create the best example of myself and SoF. The last rule on the list read; No Cameras or Documentation of Any Sort. I felt a little disheartened but I was still motivated enough to move on and find my interviewee. The room adjacent to the welcome room was 90% filled up by a very intimidating metal detector. The whole time I searched my pockets for anything metal, I thought of how a mother seeking refuge there might feel. The place was certainly very secure since they led me to wonder whether if an unfortunate incident had occurred.
The guard in charge of the metal detector immediately ceased my camera and gave me a token. The reason they gave me for no cameras was that they had to protect the anonymity of their clients. But I could not help but wonder if they had a darker ulterior motive. The guards and visitors all gave me questioning looks and one guard asked whether I was lost or not. I told them why I was there and they all looked quite impressed and they all directed me to the front desk where I met my interviewee.
Mr. C, who chose to be anonymous, but consented to being called Mr. C, worked in the registration department of PATH and agreed to answer my questions as long as I did not ask to reveal any personal information of the mothers. He led me to his office that is on the second floor of the three story building. As I walked through following Mr. C, I looked around and saw many women that were pregnant and some women with infants or toddlers. They all looked happy. That was a good sign.
The second floor looked a lot less friendly than the first floor. This is probably because only one wing on the second have women living there. Mr. C's office was surprisingly spacious. I did not expect a government social worker to have an office that size. My first question to him was whether he minded if I recorded the interview, he hesitated, but gave his consent.
Here follows the list of questions I asked him and his (paraphrased) responses:
What is the first thing that a woman has to do when she comes to PATH?
We ask her to take a pregnancy test and if she is pregnant. While she waits for the results, she fills out a form that has 10 questions mostly about her past.If the pregnancy test is a positive, we refer her to an OB/GYN and then the hospital sends her back to PATH after they're done with all of their tests. The mother stays in PATH until her application has been processed and once it has been, we send her to a shelter that suits her needs.
What are some of the factors that make a woman ineligible fr a place in a shelter?
If she has a close family member that is financially stable and willing to support her, if her bank account records are decent, or if the father is able to look after her and the baby, we tell the mother that she is not eligible.
How long does it take for a mother to move into a shelter from when she enters PATH?
Around 6 hours
How many women do you have to process on an annual basis?
Hundreds! Thousands!
Can you give me a rough estimate?
Around 1500 or so...
What are some of the services that pregnant women that come to PATH receive?
Every pregnant woman has to take mandatory birthing classes at their designated shelters. Also, depending on how far they are in their pregnancy, they either attend a school where they learn skills to utilize after they leave the shelter, or we place them in a job in which they can use their skills to earn a decent salary with which she can sustain her and her baby. Our goal at PATH s to prevent mothers from living in a shelter for an extensive period of time. We aim at helping them out at a tough point in their lives so when they move on, they will not need any financial support. It's in our name, Prevention Assistance of Temporary Housing. We try and prevent the women from needing temporary housing ever again in their lives.
What is PATH's success rate when it comes to helping mothers lead a better life after they leave the shelter?
100%. No doubt about it. I am still in contact with some mothers who were desperate for help and now they live a happy life with more kids and some even have a loving husband our boyfriend.
What are the different birthing procedure you guys here at PATH follow?
We have never had a birth here in the center and as far as I know, we have never had a woman give birth at any of the shelters either. We always take them to a hospital. The pregnant women shelters are all strategically situated so the mothers can be taken to a hospital as soon as her water breaks.
(I wanted to tell him that taking a mother to a hospital when her water breaks is not the best thing to do but I digressed)
Why don't you guys look into home birth?
There are a lot of issues when it comes to home birth because we'll have to consider the mother's religion. Their family's religion. We find it easier if we just stay out of all those hassles.
With that question, I had to conclude that interview because the people at the front desk needed him for something. He gave me a couple of brochures and pamphlets that according to him would help me learn more about what exactly PATH does for homeless mothers. I think my visit to PATH was very educational and informative and I wish I could have interviewed one of the mothers living there. I think I would have been able to learn a lot more if I had multiple points of view on the topic Alas, I have to respect that agreement that PATH signed with the mothers about not giving up the mothers' identities to the public.
