N492 WINDSHIELD SURVEY
2
D
ATE OF
S
URVEY
:
November 6, 2013
C
OMMUNITY
N
AME AND
L
OCATION
A
SSIGNED IN
C
LINICAL
:
Zip code 11219
–
Borough Park
P
LACE
:
Borough Park
, as a community , ha s man made borders
[see
diagram to the right
(Olson, Van Wye,
Kerker, & Frieden, 2006)
] with
Maimonides Medical
Center
, located at
4802 Tenth Avenue, Brooklyn, NY 11219
, serving as the main acute care health facility
.
On the whole, h ealth care facilities, including a hospital, doctors, dentists, and even specialists, are all available within the borders of the Boro ugh Park community
,
and all health facilities are all accessible by car and public transportation, including subways and buses.
I noted limited garden landscaping and very few animals while walking through the community . The lack of space for landscapin g lessens the threat of poisonous plant availability or soil to threaten children and animals with plant or soil borne disease. Similarly, I saw only a few stray cats, and no dogs or rats limiting the possibility of disease spread through animals.
The
re are numerous private schools in, and surrounding, zip code 11219 but only a few public schools. I found no reports of overcrowding in the public school system, though World
Media Group, LLC (2013) reports that the public school system in zip code 11219 is ranked above average. All school buildings, private and public, appeared in good repair though, in some instances, there was limited space for children to play outside. Public protection is evident with numerous EMS services, including several volunt eer ambulance services. One police precinct is located in zip code 11219
. The closest Fire Department is in Sunset Park.
P
EOPLE
:
At 4pm mostly women and children were on the street. Many of the women
N492 WINDSHIELD SURVEY
3
were dressed modestly and tastefully with long ski rts, jackets, and hats. Many students in the streets were wearing uniforms and backpacks. Near Maimonides many workers were leaving the hospital wearing scrubs. The few men that I encountered varied in appearance from suits with long coats and hats to p lain clothes or scrubs. The population observed was overwhelmingly white, with some Hispanic, African
American,
and Asian people were observed. The groups are residentially located with the highest concentration of white, residents at the center of Borough Park and other groups dispersed throughout the community with a concentration of non
-
white residents at the e dges of
Borough Park. Racial and ethnic characteristics of the community are most evident at synagogues and private schools, many of which depict the institution names in Hebrew or
Yiddish. On the fringes of Borough Park I saw one store with Chinese char acters on the awning.
I saw no churches during my walk through Borough Park. The Synagogues varied by groups including Hassidic, Sephardic, and Ashkenazi Jewry.
The World Media Group, LLC (2013) reports the “ per capita income of 11219 Zip Code is $12,678
, which is much lower than the state average of $23,389 and is much lower than the national average of $21,587;” however, the fancy stores, large homes, and luxury cars I saw indicate that some of the community members are very wealthy.
This became more a pparent as I moved from the lower avenues and streets up to the higher avenues and streets of the community.
Around Maimonides Medical Center I saw evidence of mental illness and disease, particularly when one gentleman on the street, who looked poorly ke mpt and disheveled, with a flat affect, started to suddenly yell at his cell phone. However, in general, once over one block away from the hospital I did not see any evidence of drugs, violence, disease or mental illness.
E
NVIRONMENT
:
There are no large industrial factories in Borough Park. Sm