Press

United Way
Written by Cori Yonge

Health Care for Baldwin County Kids

Deyla Gomez (right) and her cousin Eli Moreno after Deyla’s visit to the  dentist. “He gave me a toothbrush and showed me how to take care of my teeth.”

Ten-year-old Deyla Gomez is soft-spoken and shy as she describes the toothache that bothered her for more than two weeks before she sought help from her school nurse. “It was a little ball,” she whispers, pointing to a spot on her lower gum. “It hurt more than anything else.” Fairhope Intermediate School nurse Holli Vincent diagnosed Deyla with an abscessed tooth and arranged for the fourth grader to see a dentist the very next day.

Deyla is one of hundreds of Baldwin County public school children receiving health care through donations to United Medical Partnership for Children (UMPC). The program, run by the United Way of Baldwin County, provides basic medical needs for children who aren’t covered by health insurance and whose families lack the resources to pay for visits to the doctor or dentist. 

School nurses screen students and refer them to participating doctors, dentists, optometrists and pharmacists for appropriate treatment. Your donation to the United Way annual campaign pays for services.

Deyla is typical of the growing number of children in Baldwin County who aren’t covered by insurance. She lives with her aunt, uncle and cousins in Fairhope. Her uncle is a roofer and there’s little money to pay for medical bills. Ilda Najera, Deyla’s aunt, had the little girl rinse with saltwater when the tooth first began to ache. But without treatment with antibiotics, Deyla developed a low-grade fever and the tooth began to drain. Najera doesn’t speak English but through Deyla and Najera’s daughter Eli, also a student at FIS, Najera expressed her gratitude for the United Way program. “It helped us a lot because we couldn’t pay the doctor,” she says.

Through sales of jewelry and uniforms, employees of South Baldwin Regional Medical Center (SBRMC) raised almost $3,000 for UMPC. Presenting the check L to R are: SBRMC Chief Executive Officer Mike Neuendorf, UWBC Executive Director Rebecca Byrne, Enrico Eslava MD and South Baldwin Regional Home Health Patient Care Coordinator Pam Engel.

With her Aunt and cousin watching Deyla lowers her jaw to show where Trey Fellers DMD pulled the infected tooth along with three other baby teeth. “It feels weird,” she says solemnly.  Dr. Fellers, a pediatric and adolescent dentist in Fairhope says with the current economy, it’s not uncommon to see children daily who lack basic dental hygiene because their parents can’t afford to pay for medical care and the children, for whatever reason, don’t qualify for insurance. He says programs such as UMPC are the perfect non-governmental solution to caring for children who fall between the health care cracks. “By coordinating care, United Way makes certain that no child loses sleep because of illness. Handling the emergent needs of these children play an important role in keeping them healthy in the long run,” Dr. Fellers says.

Deyla Gomez’s smile is proof UMPC works.

The United Medical Partnership for Children needs your help to grow. Please help us take care of more Baldwin County children like Deyla by giving today. Designate a contribution on your annual campaign pledge card or click here to donate online now.