by Julieta González

The University of Arizona's Southwest Institute for Research on Women (SIROW) has launched two new community-based programs to examine and help resolve issues related to substance abuse.

"Mujer Sana," an outreach, service and evaluation center, is a five-year project that will serve 1,200 women in Pima County. Working in collaboration with various community groups, it aims to reduce women's risks of contracting HIV, STDs, TB and hepatitis B and C. "Mujer Sana" serves economically disenfranchised women who have extensive histories of drug use and risky drug and sex behaviors.

Janice Monk, executive director of SIROW, says that the project will develop intervention programs that go beyond the standard approaches provided by community health agencies. "Our projects are particularly sensitive to the issues of women's power relationships with men and how those relationships impact their health situations. We are trying to find ways to give these women more power and control over their own lives," says Monk.

Associate Project Director Patricia Manning adds that the gender-sensitivity focuses on the vulnerabilities that lead many women toward substance abuse as a way to cope. Some of those issues include poverty; a history of physical/sexual/emotional abuse; self-medication and multi-generational substance abuse. Manning says that the curriculum of the project is to realistically examine what these women can do to build support systems and work on certain skills to facilitate their making life-altering changes.

Martha Barron, a prevention specialist, enrolls women in the Mujer Sana program. (Photo: FOTOSMITH)

"Conexiones Sanas," also a five-year community-based service and evaluation program in collaboration with various agencies in Maricopa County, serves adolescents. It expects to enroll 384 youth in a substance-abuse treatment program and 575 youth in its drug diversion component. As in "Mujer Sana," "Conexiones Sanas" targets largely diverse populations from marginal economic backgrounds.

Principal investigator and project director Sally Stevens reports that "the Conexiones Sanas" project is particularly timely given the substantial increase of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases among adolescents who use alcohol and drugs."

Stevens adds that "most of the youth have a very limited understanding of their bodies as regards reproduction anatomy and disease transmission. They perceive themselves to be not at-risk and engage in high-risk sexual behavior, especially when using substances."

Mujer Sana staff - including Christina Bracamonte (l), Bruce Cole, Claudia Powell, Gabriel Casillas and Linda Shaird - meet regularly to discuss and troubleshoot program related issues.

The "Mujer Sana" project began enrollment in February 2003; "Conexiones Sanas" began enrollment a month later. Both projects will follow clients for one year and both include a process and outcome evaluation. Findings will assist researchers and service providers in their understanding of what components of the intervention were most helpful in creating positive and sustained behavior change and to determine for which subgroups of clients the programs were most effective.

Part of a coloful quilt adorning a wall in the Mujer Sana clinic. The quilt has been passed down from several other programs that have helped at-risk women and adolescents deal with HIV/AIDS.

As part of the women's studies department at the UA since 1979, SIROW is connected with 30 colleges and universities in the southwestern United States and northwestern México. Programs such as "Conexiones Sanas" and "Mujer Sana" are just two of the numerous collaborative projects with community agencies. Funding for both programs was provided by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.

Other health-related programs include collaborative programs in the U.S.-México border region. This work is funded by the Ford Foundation and includes partnerships with the University of Texas and El Colegio de Sonora and includes outreach to community health agencies. Historically, according to Monk, women's health care has focused on maternal and child health. Recent thinking about women's health has widened that scope to recognize the need for gynecological care that addresses other issues besides the diagnosis and treatment of cervical and uterine cancer. New health promotion programs fostered by SIROW's work have raised awareness of the need for older women on both sides of the border to maintain a level of gynecological care even beyond their child-bearing years.

Monk says that SIROW's broad agenda allows for social research in a variety of areas Ð they include cultural, political and economic issues as well as continued educational support for women through programs like Women in Science and Engineering (WISE). WISE, established in 1976 only one year after women's studies was founded, works to motivate female students to enter careers in science, engineering, mathematics and technology and to support these students in their studies.

In addition to WISE, a three-year collaboration with Pima Community College recruits minority and low-income students in the math, science, engineering and technology fields at PCC. The program then assists students to transfer to the UA where they can complete their undergraduate degrees and strengthen their relationships with faculty through research experience and mentoring programs.


Bruce Cole draws a blood sample from a Mujer Sana client.

Through active partnerships with regional and national organizations, SIROW prioritizes community needs that haven't been met previously, especially those of Hispanic and Native American women and girls. The women's studies department also benefits directly from SIROW's work, which enhances its national reputation and supports students as research assistants.

Elizabeth Kennedy, head of the women's studies department, says that theirs is a "research and teaching unit that is responsible to the community." According to Kennedy, SIROW is an essential aspect of women's studies. "It's doing research that's community based and research that will produce positive results and benefits for all women." Collaborating agencies in the two main projects, "Mujer Sana" and "Conexiones Sanas" include Community Outreach Project on AIDS in Southern Arizona; Amity's Circle Tree Ranch; CODAC's Las Amigas and Las Hermanas programs; the Haven's Mother and Child Program; Pima County Health Department; UA Services Research Office; Emergency Mobil Pediatric and Crisis Team-Suicide Prevention and the Maricopa County Health Department (MCHD).