Among the questions we sought to answer: How can people help those who are homeless in the Coachella Valley? How is money being spent on homeless services in the Coachella Valley? Why did Roy’s Desert Resource Center close in Palm Springs?
The data showed that drug and behavioral health treatments are among the greatest needs in the community with the least available services in the Coachella Valley.
The Desert Sun surveyed 200 people experiencing homelessness in the Coachella Valley about health needs and access to health care.
This story was produced as part of a larger project led by Rich Lord, a participant in the USC Center for Health Journalism's 2019 Data Fellowship.
Other stories in this series include:
Much has been reported already about the lack of access to clean water in the unincorporated areas of the Eastern Coachella Valley. Here's how one of our fellows found a new angle.
Differences between the two sides of Coachella Valley in California are stark, but one has a particularly harsh health impact: access to clean water. While westsiders have pools, golf courses and sprawling lawns, parts of the east have up to ten times the safe levels of arsenic in the water.
What's driving some residents in Palm Springs and the Coachella Valley to seek out health care in Mexico? It turns out it's not just a question of money or cultural familiarity, as Barrett Newkirk reports.
Mary Belardo drives down the half-mile dirt road to her home. Her house – built by All Mission Indian Housing Authority – sits on a nearly 40 acre allotment on the Torres Martinez Desert Cahuilla Indian Reservation in Thermal, Calif.
COACHELLA, Calif. – Cristian Cabrera was working in the grape fields with her family last summer, saving money for the fall semester, when she received a text from a friend. “Have you heard the good news?” The news was life-changing for Cabrera and other undocumented college students.
During the month of April, Vida en el Valle ran a four-part series - called Latinos Protecting La Tierra – about environmental advocates from across the state. Why did we focus on the people fighting the environmental battles, rather than the issue itself?
