Posted on 01 March 2015 by La Habra Journal
By Rachel Ramos
La Habra Journal
The La Habra Family Resource Center’s mission is to “empower people to better health” by offering a wide variety of courses and resources to the community of La Habra. As a direct service provider of the Institute for Healthcare Advancement, they put family first by encouraging health literacy and by creating a comfortable, welcoming environment where children and adults can come learn about their health or can get on track to a healthier lifestyle. The La Habra Family Resource Center is offering many classes for parents, including a once-a-week course called “Better Choices, Better Health.” This program is a hands-on course for those with chronic illnesses or for those caring for someone with a chronic illness. This class, offered in Spanish, is a small gathering with about 12 people and focuses on curriculum geared towards living a healthy lifestyle. The La Habra FRC will also be starting parental nutrition classes in April, which correlates with the “Move More, Eat Healthy” kids’ program. While parents are learning about nutrition, their kids will also be learning about fitness, health and nutrition at La Habra City School District’s K-2 schools. Another 10-week course that will be offered later this year is a teen course that goes along with a new book titled, “What to Do For Your Teen’s Health.” The new class will cover basic health education as well as more serious topics that teens face, such as stress, bullying and depression. Parents and teens are both encouraged to attend so that they can learn together and can help each other deal with these issues. “Sometimes, teens find it difficult to communicate those things with their parents,” said FRC manager Helen Acevez. “They are often dealing with things at school that are even bigger than the stressors of education”. The La Habra FRC also has case managers that can help families cope with complicated situations in the most effective ways possible. The case managers can help them find the resources that they need, and can thereby lead them to achieve a better quality of life. The La Habra FRC is a direct service provider that provides outreach and social services. “Many of our services have been focused on social services and are tailored towards behavioral health,” said Acevez. Mental health, behavioral health and physical health are all interrelated. “If someone is unhealthy physically, they’re not going to be healthy mentally, and vice versa.” The La Habra FRC aims to be that family-oriented safe haven and comprehensive health education center. As a resource center, it also offers information for local care provider agencies. It’s important to the FRC to make sure people have access to affordable health care and are finding the resources they need.
For more information, go to www.frclahabra.org.
