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The neighborhood is doctors' office

A roving medical van will provide primary care to people who don't have insurance or can't pay.

By TIFFANI SHERMAN
Published June 26, 2005

Who said doctors don't make house calls? Starting next month, Pinellas County's mobile medical van might make a stop near you.

"The intent is to provide primary medical care to people who don't have insurance or can't pay," said Lisa Freeman, social work supervisor of the Mobile Medical Unit. Beginning July 1, the fully-equipped medical van will spend many evenings and Saturdays at neighborhood centers around the county.

"We're finding there are a lot of people who need basic, primary care and don't have access to it," Freeman said. "Finding out early that there is a problem is a lot less expensive than later."

People are eligible to visit the Mobile Medical Unit if they do not have private medical insurance and do not qualify for Medicaid, Medicare, or benefits through the Veterans Administration.

"We have a lot of people who fall into that category," said Glendine Davis, program director at Tarpon Springs' Union Academy Neighborhood Family Center, which serves about 200 families each year in Tarpon Springs. "It's going to be wonderful."

A doctor, medical assistant, social work investigator and a social work assistant will provide physicals, preventive screenings and care for things like colds and minor illnesses.

"We're basically going to be a gatekeeper," Freeman said, providing basic care and referring patients to hospitals or other health care facilities when necessary.

The Mobile Medical Unit program began in 1988 as a way to provide medical care to the homeless in Pinellas County. Federal money pays for that continuing program; the expansion to include the uninsured and working poor will be taxpayer supported.

Adding the additional shift will cost about $232,000 annually, said Clark Scott, the senior administrative manager for the Pinellas County Human Services Department. That money will pay for clinical staff under a contract with the health department, the social workers and medical supplies.

"You have to think about what we're saving here" as opposed to what the county spends, Scott said. He said emergency room visits usually cost much more than preventive care, and the equipped medical van already exists in the county.

"We can get even more out of an asset we already have" and help more people, Scott said. "Let's run this van another shift and not have it sit in a parking lot."

It certainly won't sit much. The van is scheduled to visit 12 neighborhood centers from Tarpon Springs to southern St. Petersburg and will be open in the evenings and on Saturdays, when traditional medical care is not usually available.

The goal, Freeman said, is to make it easier for working people to get the help they need, without the stress sometimes involved. No taking time off to go see a doctor during regular office hours and then figuring out how to pay for it, she said.

"We have to be sensitive to making (services) available on (the patients') schedules, not ours," Davis said.

"I'm very excited that they're coming," said Margo Adams, executive director of the High Point Neighborhood Family Center in mid Pinellas. "Having something available in the community at various times will be beneficial."

The center serves about 500 families each year, most of whom do not have health insurance.

"What we're hoping is it provides accessible and affordable health care," Adams said.

Accessibility is often key. Adams said many of the families she deals with do not have cars and rely on bikes, buses or their feet for transportation.

"It's a huge difference if you can go to the doctor within walking distance," she said.

Davis said having the unit come into the neighborhoods will also help the patients open up.

"Sometimes you have families who aren't really comfortable going out of their communities," she said. Having the unit come there will make them feel more comfortable and give them more of a sense of trust, she said.

The Mobile Medical Unit eliminates some excuses people might have for not seeing a doctor.

"If you don't have insurance and you haven't been to the doctor in a while, please come to the van," Freeman said. "That's what we're here for."

[Last modified June 26, 2005, 00:34:18]