Origins of the NEON Program

In 1996, after several false starts, the human service providers in the North End came together, because, despite the many programs we had to offer, the overall well being of the people of the community continued to deteriorate. So many of our neighbors had difficulty accessing existing services that we were determined to create a structure that could reach everyone in the community. We also agreed to assess the scope of our services together, eliminate duplication and work to fill the service gaps that we found.

The organizations that came together are the ones located in the North End and have the main focus of their activity in this community. These service providers envisioned that a population based approached to community health was the key to improving both the health of families and children and also was the key to build a healthier and strong community.

The North End of Springfield Massachusetts

The North End of Springfield is a community of about 10,000 people in the northwest corner of this small city of 150,000. The area is mostly residential and has distinct borders (the Connecticut River, downtown, and industrial area), therefore one knows when he/she enters the community. There are two designated neighborhoods, in the North End, named Brightwood and Memorial Square, each with 5,000 residents. These neighborhoods were separated in 1961 by the construction of Interstate 91. Fifty-five percent of our residents are 18 years of age or younger, 11% are over 60. The community is multiethnic though most of the people (75%) are of Puerto Rican heritage. Since the early 1960's the North End has been known as home of the Puerto Rican population of Springfield. With the rapid expansion of the Puerto Rican population of the city, there are many Puerto Rican people in other communities but most still relate back to the North End as their first home.

The community is the poorest in the city (per capita income is less than $6,000 yearly), and has the lowest education attainment of all of Springfield's communities (50% high school completion rate, less for males). The North End is also burden by a high teen birth rate, low child immunization rates (only 50% of two year olds are fully immunized) and high rates of chronic disease (20% of families report at least one asthmatic in the family, Brightwood Health Center has about 1,000 diabetics to care for).

We suffer from high infant mortality rates, high incarceration rates (5% of the North End population pass through the Hampden County Correction Center) and other measures reflective of poverty and racism in our society. The North End, unfortunately, is the center of the HIV epidemic in Greater Springfield (case rate 963/10,000 in the North End, five times higher than the Massachusetts rate). Springfield has the 11th highest new HIV case rate in the United States (reported cases 1999) and has been as high as 25th in the country in AIDS prevalence. Almost all of our HIV is related to intravenous drug use and almost half of the infections are in women. Needless to say HIV has changed the life of everyone who lives or works in our community.

There is also a disproportionate amount of asthma, obesity and diabetes in our community that affect children of all ages. Lead poisoning has decreased in prevalence but it is still a common problem. Local newspaper clippings have identified that the North End is one of the communities with the highest prevalence of lead poisoning. Asthma is one of the leading causes of missed school days, resulting in the possibility of educational failure for the child and high level of stress for the family.