Health care workers are demanding county leaders address workplace issues following one death by suicide and another attempt by Santa Clara Valley Medical Center physicians. “We’re in a crisis,” Valley Physician Group chairman Stephen Harris told San José Spotlight. The union represents nearly 500 doctors at three public hospitals in Santa Clara County. “We have suffered mismanagement for...
Long COVID poses risk for Silicon Valley: ‘It’s very debilitating’
Brandie Parshall caught COVID-19 in December 2020. One month later, she started experiencing debilitating malaise, chronic fatigue, heart issues and brain fog. In June 2021, she started being treated for long COVID symptoms, seeing Stanford specialists at the Post-Acute COVID-19 Syndrome Clinic. Long COVID is when symptoms persist for more than four weeks after infection,...
Long waits, broken machines: The state of San Jose’s Valley Medical Center
Juan Quintero was on the verge of death. After learning he had terminal liver cancer in March, Quintero ended up at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center (VMC) for treatment. Instead of getting help, Quintero waited 14 hours in an ER lobby. He waited more than a week later for a biopsy and seven weeks more for...
Santa Clara County launches mental health crisis hotline: 988
On Saturday, individuals in suicidal and mental health crisis will have a new option for help—911 flips to 988, a mental health crisis hotline. The new number takes the police out of the picture and diverts individuals toward mental health services. When calls come in, trained mental health crisis counselors work to deescalate the situation,...
San Jose residents react to record-breaking inflation
San Jose residents are grappling with the highest level of inflation in 41 years, forcing many to make hard choices about food, travel and housing—furthering the disparity between the haves and have-nots. On Wednesday, the Labor Department reported consumer prices have risen 9.1% since June of last year. Rising costs have affected nearly every sector....
10 years later, DACA recipients in San Jose fear the future
For the first time in 24 years, Miguel Santiago met his family in Oaxaca, Mexico. He crossed the border to create an ethnography report on his heritage and see his grandfather before he passed away. If not for his DACA status, researching the origins of his family’s culture and customs would have never happened. “Having...
San Jose State track proposed for fairgrounds
A proposed track and field at the Santa Clara County Fairgrounds may return a university to former glory. Assemblymember Ash Kalra requested $25 million from the state Legislature for a San Jose State University Speed City Legacy Center and Track and Field Training Facility. The Legislature approved $4 million in the 2022-23 fiscal year budget....
From violence to homelessness: Colombian migrants’ journey to Silicon Valley
When Elbert Arias and Keila Castillo married in 2014, they envisioned raising a family in their coastal hometown of Barranquilla, Colombia. Castillo would care for the children while Arias worked. Arias, with a degree in nutritional science, had a job in the meat industry, and life was good—until the cartels came to town. Violence took...
Santa Clara County school funding spurs disparity
In Santa Clara County, not all school districts are created equal. In affluent neighborhoods near Saratoga Union and Los Altos Elementary school districts where the median price of a home is more than $2 million, according to censusreporter.org, property taxes boost student funding and programs remain robust. The situation is not as rosy in other...
Contagious COVID variant puts Santa Clara County on alert
COVID-19 infections are on the rise in Santa Clara County again, and officials are urging residents to mask up—even in some outdoor settings. In recent days, the county has reported more than 1,000 new daily COVID infections, officials said, noting the actual tally is likely much higher due to underreported test results. The current seven-day...