In July of last year my newborn son had a heart attack at 16 hours of life that he narrowly survived. Given my history of postpartum anxiety and depression I had established care with an amazing provider before giving birth and my first follow up appointment was the day my son got home after 3+ tumultuous weeks in the NICU. I could barely get the words out to describe what I had just endured and Dr. Jaclyn Vargas and Evelyn Robarts LMFT were the first and best referrals in maternal mental health I could have ever hoped for. I don’t know that I would have survived what happened without their unrelenting kindness, professionalism and support. Losing access to these resources would be absolutely detrimental to a community of mothers trying to recover from a traumatic event or just acclimate to motherhood in a country not set up to provide them with adequate support. The idea of eliminating part-time positions impacting exclusively women in this political climate is obscene. Women have and continue to go through enough. Mental health resources for women are absolutely pivotal for the overall health and wellbeing of a mother and her family. We should not even be in a position to be discussing the negative impact this would have on UCSD Patients and Providers, as well as UCSD’s reputation in the community. As an institution you need to manage your financial difficulties in a way that does not blaringly highlight your disinterest in protecting the wellbeing of this most vulnerable patient population. #patientsoverprofits #istandwithwomen
— Jessy