SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS RADIO) – The pediatrician will soon come to you in parts of the East Bay this summer.
UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals Mobile Care Van will be out and about this summer to areas of Alameda and Contra Costa counties where there are barriers to accessing healthcare – including transportation issues, financial constraints, and limited availability of services.
“We'll be offering a wide range of pediatric and adolescent primary care services, including well child or physical health exams,” Joyclyn Garrette, UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland’s Federally Qualified Health Care Director, told KCBS’ Bret Burkhart on As Prescribed.
She said the targeted clientele will include new immigrants and housing insecure individuals.
This mobile unit will also offer services like vaccinations, lab services, foster care services and family planning.
“What we are trying to do is make sure healthcare is more accessible and convenient, eliminating the need for families to travel long distances and ensuring that they still receive timely and regular access to medical services,” Garrette explained.
Ultimately, the mobile care van aims to reduce the need for emergency room visits by making preventative medicine more accessible from the start.
The van itself will also be a head-turner.
“When you see this van, I think everyone will be quite surprised. It's a beautiful van,” stated Garrette. “It is going to show a very beautiful cartoonish view of Lake Merritt. It's blue with a baby blue cab. Once you walk up the steps into the mobile van, you will be welcomed into this very, very warm environment. We will have two clinic rooms and one large bathroom. And then there will also be a registration area for our families to work with our nursing team to help make sure appointments are scheduled in the future or to make sure that we're getting the lab services available and to do any other type of registration work.”
She said it is meant to feel welcoming and culturally sensitive – a reflection of UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospitals clinics and hospitals.
At the van, people can make future mobile appointments, get a walk-in appointment, or even schedule appointments for UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Oakland.
And while it is primarily designed to offer pediatric primary care for patients between the ages of zero through 24, adults can use the van as a resource to find other health centers in the area.
When the care van hits the road, it will initially be in areas of Oakland that have higher levels of uninsured or underinsured patients.
“We're also looking to move into Hayward, San Leandro,” Garrette explained.
As for Contra Costa County, Garrette said the Oakland campus will be working with its specialty sites in Brentwood and Walnut Creek to also offer primary care with the van.
She added, “We'll also be looking into going into the Richmond areas, our San Pablo, Berkeley areas as well.”
The UCSF Benioff Children’s Hospital Care Van is expected to hit the road late this summer with a schedule to be released.
“Right now, we probably are looking to offer services about two to three times a week, but we are planning to increase our reach and that will include more days of the week,” Garrette explained. “We also are going to continue and work on new partnerships with schools and community-based organizations to help us reach those populations that are most in need. We also want to be able to eventually introduce services related to environmental health, such as lead testing to further support our community's health needs.”
Until the van hits the road, people looking for these services are able to receive care from these facilities:
Teen Clinic: 5400 Telegraph Ave., Oakland, CA 94609. Phone: 510-428-3387
Primary Care: 5220 Claremont Ave., Oakland, CA 94618. Phone: 510-428-3226
Chappell Hayes/McClymond’s Health Center: 2607 Myrtle St., Oakland, CA 94607. Phone: 510-835- 1393
Youth Uprising/Castlemont Health Center: 8601 MacArthur Blvd., Oakland, CA 94605. Phone: 510-428-3556