Randolph Township: From Cochato to a Flourishing Town - Essay Sample

Introduction

Randolph township in Norfolk county, eastern Massachusetts is located 15 miles south of Boston city. The town was initially called Cochato due to the presence of the Cochato Indians (Town of Randolph, n.d). The down developed as a shoe manufacturing center but eventually grew into a residential area which practiced retail trade and light manufacturing. The town flourished in the 20th century especially after the establishment of The Boston School for the Deaf in 1899 and by 2017, the town had a population of 33,704 with 38.4% being African American. 36.2% of the population are White and 12.4% are Asian. Of the total population, 91% are United States citizens (Data USA, n.d).

The town recorded a median income of $69,969 in 2017 and the median property ownership was recorded as $283,100 (Data USA, n. d). Majority of the houses in Randolph are owned by individuals. Furthermore, the housing prices in this town are lower as compared to the neighboring regions. However, the increase in costs due to increased inflation has resulted in increased housing rates which translated to increased evictions (Metropolitan Area Planning Council, 2020). As a result, the town is becoming more unaffordable to the residents of Randolph as affordable housing is a cornerstone of community health.

Interrelated Subsystems

Physical Environment

Randolph township in Massachusetts is one of the seven municipalities that are named Randolph. Additionally, there are several natural green spaces that are identified in the community which are essential as they promote physical activity. Some of them include Powers Farm and Belcher Parks. The town also has the Randolph Intergenerational Community Center (RICC) which is glorified by focus group as an essential facility that helps to bring people together. The town also has local religious institutions and a high school that according to the people is under-resourced and requires several improvements (Metropolitan Area Planning Council, 2020).

Health and Social Services

Randolph's Public Health Department provides essential services such as immunization to the people. The town is also serviced by numerous regional hospitals as well as preventative care providers. Furthermore, insurance issues as well as the lack of cultural competency of healthcare providers are barriers to accessing care (Metropolitan Area Planning Council, 2020). Also, the low-income earners have a problem accessing medical facilities as they are charged fees. Some neglect the urgency or need to visit clinics. Many have ended up suffering and being diagnosed with diseases at critical levels. The emergence as well as widespread nature of this disease has resulted in severe negative impacts on the economy, as well as the social nature of the community.

Economics

The Randolph community is greatly suffering due to the emergence of the pandemic as a few food stores are allowed to open for a limited time. furthermore, the pandemic has contributed to panic buying which has resulted in limited supply of food in the store such that some commodities are no longer available in the store and will not be available for a while due to delayed shipping of supplies. Therefore, individuals who are unable to stock-up on food due to their inability to afford food everyday as they cannot work from home or underpaid are more likely to suffer from nutrition problems and even face the risk of starvation if the condition persists (Whittall, 2020).

Safety & Transportation

The interstate highway in Randolph is essential as it connects the town with the neighboring regions. However, some of the downsides that accompanied the interstate highway were pollution, congestion, and accidents. However, with the emergence and spread of COVID-19, the government has closed borders, and incorporated national lockdowns which have resulted in reduction in total movement.

Communication

The town used formal communication methods such as newspapers, television and local radio channels. Within Randolph community, there was a sense of limited coordination, communication as well as collaboration between the departments in regards to events, initiatives as well as projects. Moreover, the communication methods in this town were not streamlined and thus promoted the circulation of numerous false information. However, in the war against COVID-19, the town had to streamline its communication channels to ensure information regarding the prevention as well as facilitating reduction of the spread of the pandemic is circulated to all the citizens. Informing the people about the health risks associated with this disease and the measures they can take to protect themselves as well as their loved ones has proven effective in mitigating the spread as well as reducing the chances of new infections among people (PAHO, 2020). Thus, the town has attempted to provide real-time information to the people in regards to the risk areas which has greatly helped to make decisions as well as adopt adjustments that will help to protect them from this pandemic. However, there is some struggle when it comes to using a formal language that people understand as there is too much diversity and some members of the community who do not understand or cannot speak English are often left out or neglected.

Education

The health of the youth is significantly affected by the education and surrounding environment. The schools in Randolph are relatively under-resourced with poor quality of food, limited access to drinking water as well as lack of after school activities. For instance, there are learning institutions that lack proper loos and sock-pits for disposing of their refuse which further endangers the lives of learners. Furthermore, the youth in this town have limited physical activity, and suffer from obesity. Although the town maintains sports facilities and provides extracurricular and athletic programs the enrollment rate in this town is lower compared to all the other regions. Additionally, the spread of the COVID-19 virus has resulted in closure of schools and facilitation of studying from home in a bid to curb the spread of this disease. As a result, the social cohesion and physical activity of the youth has further reduced which has further contributed to the abuse of drugs and other substances.

Recreation

Despite the availability of parks and other recreational activities, majority of the youths in this town have resorted to abusing drugs and other substances. However, the town does not have the necessary qualified knowledge in regards to how to handle this issue. Thus, the long-term health of youth will deteriorate, forcing families to spend so much on rehabilitation and treatment. Furthermore, with the development of COVID-19 virus, youth who are smokers have a higher risk of suffering from the negative impacts of this deadly disease.

Stressors

Majority of the population in the town do not have access to the available healthcare as they cannot afford to pay for the services. The further spreading of this pandemic will only continue to depict the inequalities that are resent in the current healthcare systems in the town through the exposure of the system's exclusion of certain groups such as the low-income earners from accessing care. Furthermore, through this pandemic the ability of the town's government to plan and deliver services that will meet the needs of all its citizens as well as the ability to communicate as a prevention and reduction of the pandemic is greatly tested and assessed.

Normal Level of Defense

Upon diagnosis, individuals require hospitalization. However, severe cases whereby the individual has severe illness may necessitate respiratory support and or ventilation as they may be unable to breathe on their own. Furthermore, mortality rate is about 1%amoung diagnosed cases where else almost 3%from severe cases. Risk factors including hypertension, diabetes, cardiovascular diseases, cancer and obesity, chronic respiratory diseases compromise immune status have been identified in all mortality cases. As a result, patients with these conditions are often advised to stay at home and medication is delivered to their houses. This action helps to reduce the risk of contracting COVID-19.

Flexible Line of Defense

Due to the widespread of the COVID-19 pandemic, the government has issued lockdowns that have resulted in closure of all social institution. This notion has prevented the people from accessing these facilities. Furthermore, the prevention measure of social distancing has reduced social cohesion between the people as they are required to stay at home. However, the pandemic has resulted in insufficient facilities and resources that can be used to treat the sick. Majority of the health systems that had braced for the impact of the pandemic have been pushed to breaking point by under-resourcing, sanctions, austerity as well as political mismanagement that they are barely able to cope with the normal patient lead (Whittall, 2020).

Lines of Resistance

The town is likely to suffer severe negative impacts as the town is not agricultural and will rely on the supply of food. However, since the town is capable of light manufacturing, they use the available resources to improve their situation through manufacturing materials that can be used to reduce further spread of this disease. the interstate highway is also beneficial as it can help in transportation of resources such as food and medical materials into the town from neighboring regions.

References

Data U.S.A. (n.d.). Randolph, MA. Retrieved from https://datausa.io/profile/geo/randolph-ma

Metropolitan Area Planning Council. (2020). Randolph Community Wellness Plan. Retrieved from Metropolitan Area Planning Council website: http://www.mapc.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/01/Randolph-CWP_Final_20200101.pdf

PAHO. (2020, March 4). Communicating the risks to health posed by COVID-19 is key to protecting populations and mitigating spread. Retrieved from https://www.paho.org/en/news/4-3-2020-communicating-risks-health-posed-covid-19-key-protecting-populations-and-mitigating

Town of Randolph. (n.d.). Town of Randolph- Interesting facts. Retrieved from https://www.randolph-ma.gov/about-us/pages/interesting-facts

Whittall, J. (2020, March 20). Vulnerable communities bracing for impact of coronavirus COVID-19 | MSF. Retrieved from https://www.msf.org/vulnerable-communities-are-bracing-impact-covid-19