…Alicia's entire life has been building to this heart-breaking moment at the breakfast table. She finally realizes that the colon cancer will take everything ... everything…her successful psychiatric practice, a comfortable home, and....her new romance with Don Juancho.
"Encrucijada: Sin Salud No Hay Nada," the title of this American Spanish language telenovela says it all: "Crossroads: Without Health, There Is Nothing." On “Encrucijada,” Alicia's dramatic past and horrible future are mixed with education about the importance of visiting the doctor regularly, catching cancer early and planning for end-of-life care. The TV program dramatizes everything from diabetes and melanoma to dental care. Each story delivers public health messages to a Latino audience.
As a group, Latinos remain one of the nation's most uninsured, and -- increasingly -- unhealthy segments of the population. “Encrucijada” gets positive health information out to millions of Latinos.
According to Dr. Michael Rodriguez, professor of medicine at UCLA, "These telenovelas are happening every day, so there's an opportunity to have numerous messages heard frequently, by different players, over a period of time." And that, he said, "translates into behavior changes."-Jason Kane PBS
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