The CEO of the Family Health Center of Kalamazoo says if they were going to reach Kalamazoo Public School students and offer them basic health care, the clinic would have to come to them.
Denise Crawford says the new mobile clinic will begin visiting Kalamazoo Public Schools this week. She says it will offer outpatient services such as checkups and immunizations. Crawford says it will help underserved communities in Kalamazoo who don’t have access to a regular primary care physician. She says a lack of primary care in the childhood years is linked to serious health problems later in life.
The clinic includes three examination rooms and a restroom. Crawford says the mobile clinic can provide any services that are currently provided in their outpatient clinic.
Crawford says transportation is a hurdle to quality health care, especially in winter weather. She says primary health care is often not the first thing that low-income families think of as they care for their children.
The mobile clinic will be at schools for an eight hour day throughout the school year. Crawford says any student at those schools will be eligible for services. She says the Family Health Center accepts Medicaid and uninsured patients.
The mobile health clinic was launched with a grant from the Learning Network of Kalamazoo. Crawford says it should be able to continue as long as the mobile clinic continues running. She says mobile clinics like this one usually last for about 25 years.