Mary Lou de Leon Siantz speaks about health care for immigrants

Growing up, Mary Lou de Leon Siantz saw that the life of an immigrant was anything but easy.

Born in Los Angeles to Mexican parents, de Leon Siantz said she’s seen the barriers to entry in health care treatment.

“Being an immigrant coming into a health care setting can be intimidating,” she said.

On Monday, de Leon Siantz, the assistant dean of diversity and cultural affairs at the University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, spoke on a subject in which she is both personally and professionally well-versed: the state of health care for immigrant Latino families.

She said the families suffer through harsh conditions in migrant camps, with many living in horse stalls lacking proper sanitation.

In her research, de Leon Siantz found that many health care providers were not consistent with migrant health care.

In addition, she found that many immigrants lacked health insurance and did not follow up with doctors after medical treatment.

Mexicans had the least access to health care, she said.

After initial research, she created one program to promote parent and infant mental health and another to promote the reproductive health and high school graduation rates of Latino teenagers.

“These are two interventions that are ready to go,” de Leon Siantz said.

She also designed courses from her research to put the problem to light in Texas.

In an interview, de Leon Siantz commented on the UNC School of Nursing’s recent enrollment cuts. She said reducing enrollment by 25 percent could contribute further to existing national problems.

“We already have a shortage,” she said.

Because the U.S. population is aging and chronic diseases are on the rise, she said any cuts to the pool of trained nurses could be harmful.

She said getting into the field of immigrant health care came naturally to her, as she loved to communicate and understand the problems of immigrant children and their families.

She categorizes immigration patterns into three streams — western, Texas and eastern — with the largest percent of migrants coming from Mexico.

“I have the opportunity to work and do research in all three streams,” she said.

Diane Berry, an assistant professor in the School of Nursing, said the school looks to bring a scholar from a minority group to speak each year and share their research with students and professors.

Kristen Swanson, dean of the School of Nursing, commended de Leon Siantz’s work.

“You hear the broad stroke of how her work has touched the United States,” she said.

Nursing student Brianna Smith-Overman said she enjoyed de Leon Siantz’s presentation, adding that the Latino population is growing, as are the number of government policies in place that cover the issue.

“We should be promoting equality and education for all,” she said.

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