NHC acquires new mobile medical van to reach at-risk patients
Lack of transportation, the inability to take time off work and not knowing how or where to access care are all factors that can make it difficult for many in our community to come into a doctor’s office to receive care. This is especially true for historically marginalized populations.
To help address and overcome these barriers, NHC has acquired a new mobile medical van. The new vehicle was provided by a generous grant from Oregon Health Authority (OHA). It will allow NHC to deliver medical care services to patients across the community.
Many NHC patients have underlying health conditions putting them at significantly higher risk for COVID-19. The new mobile van will enable our care team to reach these patients, offering increased testing and vaccination at a critical time in the pandemic.
Maribel Renteria manages NHC’s Canby Medical Clinic and has helped lead a number of COVID-19 vaccine outreach efforts to seasonal and migrant workers in the Canby area.
Maribel and her team vaccinated an estimated 220 migrant workers at four separate outreaches since April. She says the new mobile medical van will allow them to reach more migrant workers with more health care services — and extend NHC’s outreach to a wider geographic area. With the Delta variant causing a spike in COVID cases across the region, the van couldn’t have come at a better time.
Thank you, OHA, for providing this tremendous resource to our community.