Our view: Getting laser tattoo removal equipment into a local community clinic would be a concrete, and doable step

Think about how hard it is to get a job for someone with gang tattoos all over his (or her) arms, neck, head and face -- job stoppers, a local tattoo artist has called them.

Unfortunately, the cost of tattoo removal at a private dermatological office may run into the thousands of dollars, so how's somebody wanting out of the gang life and into a productive job going to afford this?

Getting rid of unwanted tattoos is but one facet of the street gang problem -- a topic pushed back into the public conversation by the tragic and fatal shooting of Oceanside Police Officer Dan Bessant on Dec. 20 allegedly by two juvenile gang members.

The natural response across North County and its civic leadership is that something must be done, but "the what" is always the problem.

Often passionate discussions devolve into more hours of "talk talk" and program promises and ideas beyond the grasp of individuals. And while there are many sensible programs and strategies around, they are neither enough nor are they something that everybody can be involved with.

So here is a reasonably simple, concrete and doable idea that would make a difference and is open to all: Organize a fundraising effort, buy the laser equipment used for tattoo removal, get it in the hands of our community clinics, provide support of either donations of time or money, and give those who want to walk away from the gangster life a chance to compete for jobs.

Jim Mousseau, owner of The Laser Network in Morrison, Colo., says that new laser equipment (a Q-switched laser, a class-4 laser which requires a medical doctor for its operation in this state) costs between $55,000 and $80,000. Used prices are between $20,000 and $45,000. No other significantly large purchases of special equipment are required, he said.

A typical medical treatment room is necessary, but the equipment is not so large as to require dedicated space.

A big cost is for a doctor's time, but because the procedure is relatively straightforward (although it make take multiple treatments to work), regular MDs with training may be capable of doing the work.

One retired dermatologist we know suggested that if the risk of medical malpractice liability were removed, retired doctors might be willing to donate their time and talents to conduct the operation.

An executive at one of our community medical clinics said that such an arrangement would be easy to work out by using the clinic's malpractice insurance to cover the doctor's tattoo removal procedures.

Other soft costs (bandages, etc.) and administrative overhead costs are issues, but not insurmountable ones.

Once the equipment was in hand, the project itself would be scalable according to the need -- estimates are that it costs the clinic about $100 per average patient visit to operate. Patient fees are on a sliding scale.

With more than 1,500 documented gang members and thousands of others, including wannabees and hangers on, there's plenty of potential work.

Of course, this is the back end of what needs to be a whole range of solutions, including effective intervention among our children aged 10 to 14 to keep them from moving from sweet little kids to gang wannabees to full-fledged gang members.

But execute on this one (or some other concrete step) and we have a success to build on.

Then, maybe, we can get our various governments to get serious about helping us rid our communities of the gangs and all the woe they bring. Let's not let Dan Bessant's life slip away without it becoming a catalyst to change our world.

Any takers out there?