Tattoo discrimination in Mexico motivates interest in tattoo removal among structurally vulnerable adults.

Tattoos are less prevalent in Mexico and tattooed persons are frequently stigmatized. We examine the prevalence and correlates of interest in receiving tattoo removal services among 278 tattooed Mexican adults living in Tijuana, Mexico who responded to interviewer-administered surveys, including open-ended questions. Overall, 69% of participants were interested in receiving free tattoo removal services, 31% reported facing employment barriers due to their tattoos, and 43% of respondents regretted or disliked some of their tattoos.

Deported Men's and Father's Perspective: The Impacts of Family Separation on Children and Families in the U.S.

Family separation due to the deportation of a migrant is pervasive, yet less is known about its potential impacts on the social, economic and mental well-being of families remaining in the United States. We conducted a mixed-methods study. In 2013, 303 Mexican male nationals completed an interviewer-administered questionnaire at a free clinic in Tijuana, Mexico.

Cost-Effectiveness of a Technology-Enhanced Diabetes Care Management Program in Mexico.

Background: The prevalence of diabetes has increased substantially in Mexico over the last 40 years, leading to significant impacts on population health and the healthcare system. Technology-based solutions may improve diabetes outcomes in areas where lack of efficient transportation creates barriers to care.

Objectives: To estimate the lifetime cost-effectiveness of a technology-based diabetes care management program from the perspective of the Mexican healthcare system.

Tattoo Removal as a Resettlement Service to Reduce Incarceration Among Mexican Migrants.

In Mexico, tattooed migrants face discrimination and are at high-risk of incarceration, thus, we assessed whether receiving laser tattoo removal affected the likelihood of incarceration. In 2015-2016, 89 adults ages ≥ 18 years with visible tattoos were recruited at a free-clinic to receive laser tattoo removal or assigned to the wait-list; all completed baseline and 6-month questionnaires. Overall, 97.

Association of Adverse Childhood Experiences with Depression in Latino Migrants Residing in Tijuana, Mexico.

Context: Physical, sexual, and emotional abuse in childhood-adverse childhood experiences (ACEs)-are associated with poor mental and physical health.

Objective: To determine the prevalence of ACEs and their relationship to depression among Latino migrants in Mexico, which has not been previously examined.

Methods: A total of 110 Latinos aged 18 years and older residing in Tijuana, Mexico, completed interviewer-administered questionnaires, including the ACE scale (range = 0 to 10 items), at baseline in 2015.

The Border Health Consortium of the Californias-Forming a Binational (California-Baja California) Entity to Address the Health of a Border Region: A Case Study.

The California-Baja California border region is one of the most frequently traversed areas in the world with a shared population, environment, and health concerns. The Border Health Consortium of the Californias (the "Consortium") was formed in 2013 to bring together leadership working in the areas of public health, health care, academia, government, and the non-profit sector, with the goal of aligning efforts to improve health outcomes in the region. The Consortium utilizes a Collective Impact framework which supports a shared vision for a healthy border region, mutually reinforcing activities among member organizations and work groups, and a binational executive committee that ensures continuous communication and progress toward meeting its goals.

Depressive symptoms among patients at a clinic in the Red Light District of Tijuana, Mexico.

Little is known about depression among structurally vulnerable groups living in Tijuana (e.g., migrants, deportees, substance users, sex workers, homeless) who may be at high risk for poor mental health.

The Health Frontiers in Tijuana Undergraduate Internship Program: A Novel Global Health Experience in Mexico for Pre-medical/Pre-health Undergraduates.

We describe the creation of the Health Frontiers in Tijuana (HFiT) Undergraduate Internship Program (UIP), a novel global health experience for U.S. and Mexican undergraduate students based at the binational HFiT student-run free clinic.

Dulce Wireless Tijuana: A Randomized Control Trial Evaluating the Impact of Project Dulce and Short-Term Mobile Technology on Glycemic Control in a Family Medicine Clinic in Northern Mexico.

Background: The global epidemic of diabetes calls for innovative interventions. This study evaluated the effectiveness of the Project Dulce model, with and without wireless technology, on glycemic control and other clinical and self-reported outcomes in patients with poorly controlled type 2 diabetes in Mexico.

Subjects And Methods: Adults with type 2 diabetes and a glycated hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) level of ≥8% were recruited from Family Medical Unit #27 of the Instituto Mexicano del Seguro Social (IMSS) in Tijuana, México, and randomly assigned to one of three groups: Project Dulce-only (PD); Project Dulce technology-enhanced with mobile tools (PD-TE); or IMSS standard of care/control group (CG).

Risk of violence in drug rehabilitation centers: perceptions of people who inject drugs in Tijuana, Mexico.

Background: In 2009, Mexico reformed its health law to partially decriminalize drug possession considered for personal use and to increase mandatory referrals to certified drug rehabilitation centers in lieu of incarceration. Concurrently, news media reported violent attacks perpetrated by drug cartels against Mexican drug rehabilitation centers and instances of human rights violations by staff against people who inject drugs (PWID) in treatment. In many cases, these violent situations took place at "Peer Support" (Ayuda Mutua) drug rehabilitation centers that house a large number of drug-dependent PWID.

Supporting the minority physician pipeline: providing global health experiences to undergraduate students in the United States-Mexico border region.

Background: The sizeable US Latino population calls for increasing the pipeline of minority and bilingual physicians who can provide culturally competent care. Currently, only 5.5% of US providers are Hispanic/Latino, compared with 16% of the US population (i.

The role of visual markers in police victimization among structurally vulnerable persons in Tijuana, Mexico.

Background: Law enforcement can shape HIV risk behaviours and undermine strategies aimed at curbing HIV infection. Little is known about factors that increase vulnerability to police victimization in Mexico. This study identifies correlates of police or army victimization (i.

Molecular characterization of Mycobacterium bovis isolates from patients with tuberculosis in Baja California, Mexico.

The incidence of tuberculosis (TB) from Mycobacterium bovis in humans is likely to be underestimated and in some cases even ignored in most developing countries. This may be due to the difficulty of differentiating TB caused by either Mycobacteriumtuberculosis or M. bovis.

Establishing a binational student-run free-clinic in Tijuana, Mexico: a model for US-Mexico border states.

In 2011, a bi-national student-run free clinic for the underserved, known as "Health Frontiers in Tijuana" (HFiT), was created in Tijuana, Mexico. Students and faculty from one Mexican and one US medical school staff the clinic and attend patients on Saturdays. Students from both medical schools enroll in a didactic course during the quarter/semester that they attend the free clinic.

Profiles, perceptions and motivations of Community Health Workers of NGOs in a border city of US-Mexico.

To analyze the profile, perceptions and motivations of Community Health Workers (CHWs) from non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in the border city of US-Mexico and to describe the type of community interventions they perform. we surveyed 121 CHWs from 9 NGOs participating in a monthly meeting between May and July of 2009. Each participating CHW answered a structured questionnaire.