By Brad Wong
When teenager Jiahao Hu stepped into the International Community Health Services school-based health center in Seattle in September, he spotted a familiar face – Anthony Chen, an ICHS staff member.
The two had met during a summer program and Hu, a student at the Secondary Bilingual Orientation Center, had arrived that day because of an illness. The two were raised in Southern China. Both spoke to one another in Cantonese.
After Hu’s medical visit, an ICHS doctor thought it would be worthwhile for the Beacon Hill resident to receive some help with English – and Chen pitched in. “As an immigrant, I’ve felt the pressure when you come over,” Chen said.
Since September, ICHS has operated a school-based health center on the campus of the Secondary Bilingual Orientation Center and NOVA High School. It is an important way to provide adolescents, especially those who are uninsured, underinsured, immigrants and refugees, with medical and behavioral assistance at a location where they spend a large portion of each weekday …
