Mobile clinic answers community call

jbradshaw@cp-cto.org (Jaime-Lee A. Bradshaw) — Mon, 14 Aug 2023 02:46:24 GMT

Madelyn Lazorchak, NeighborWorks America Senior Communications Writer

The average life expectancy in Riviera Beach, Florida, is 69 — compared to 81 overall in Palm Beach County. So when a private foundation, who chose to remain anonymous, wanted to do something related to health and asked how they could help the Riviera Beach community, Community Partners of South Florida (CPSFL) worked with residents to help figure out their priorities. CPSFL hosted a series of listening sessions to learn the history of health care in the community — and what the community wanted. The answer was clear.

"They wanted a clinic, to not have to go to the next city if they needed medical care," says Jaime-Lee Bradshaw, CPSFL's chief strategy officer. The network organization convened a group of residents to work as advisors, identifying plans and a health provider well-suited for the community.

They formed a strategy: So that residents could have access to health care sooner, they would start with a mobile health clinic. Then, with help from the city, construction would begin on a brick-and-mortar clinic.

And in the last days of March, FoundCare's new mobile clinic pulled up in front of CPSFL's building for the first time. The clinic, where medical staff will serve clients with and without health insurance, is there every Monday. On Tuesdays, it parks at a local community center, and on other days of the week, the mobile clinic parks at other Riviera Beach locations, serving as a bridge until the building opens in 2025. Organizers expect the clinic to see 300 to 400 patients per month, according to Kelly Powell, chief operating officer at CPSFL.

The residents who worked on the clinic — part of CPSFL's comprehensive community development work, which centers resident voices and involvement — attended NeighborWorks' Community Leadership Institute (CLI) in October last year, with a goal of focusing on health issues. Their intention now is to keep things going as the Riviera Beach Health Initiative, looking at more ways to improve health outcomes for residents.

Kerry-Ann Dixon became involved at the beginning stages. A nurse by training, she had been working at the health department and had seen the need for more local care for pregnant women in Riviera Beach, and for other patients as well. Many in the community were using the emergency room as primary care, she says, something her partner, who works for the Fire and Rescue Department, reinforced.

"I knew the issue," says Dixon. "It was access to health care. It's one of those things where you know what the problem is, but how do you fix that problem? There were multiple layers at work. Access to food, access to dental, unemployment."

Dixon says that in her position on the CLI team, she was able to view the situation through multiple lenses. When she was 8, her family immigrated from Jamaica to Florida, and she grew up with limited access to health care. She remembers sitting for hours in a clinic waiting room. When people at Riviera Beach had to go to a clinic in neighboring communities, they would do the same. But hours waiting for the doctor meant hours away from work, and for many people, that wasn't an option.

"If you don't work, you don't get paid. You can't miss out on that money and if it's money or health, you've got to choose the money because if you don't, things spiral." But health can spiral out of control, too. "I know what it feels like," Dixon says. "That's not the answer."

Along with the clinic, Dixon's team is working with the American Heart Association to do health education. "It's incorporating education for the community and expanding it out from there," she says. "We're looking at the social determinants of health and we want to tackle everything. We're starting by looking at the resources we need assistance with and forming partnerships."

That includes areas like mental health, cardiovascular health, and diabetes.

"To see it all come together — it's just mind-blowing," says Dixon, who was nominated for a Dorothy Richardson Award for Resident Leadership for her work. "This is the stuff you read about and to see it happening, to see the breaking down of those barriers, that's what it's about; it's about doing the right thing for what people need."

Says Powell, "The goal of our team is to address the social determinants of health to show that as their social needs are met, residents have better overall health outcomes. One large part of what we will be doing is collecting data to show positive health outcomes."

From the beginning, the clinic team wanted to be a voice for impact, and that desire grew with the project. "They realize they have something here, knowing how to advocate on behalf of residents. What they want is to create a legacy," Bradshaw says. CLI team members will also serve on the clinic's board.

Riviera Beach is a predominantly Black community of 9.66 square miles. More than 20% of residents have incomes below the federal poverty level and in some neighborhoods, it's as high as 48%. The clinic will start with primary care, but the goal is to expand to women's health care, dental care and mental health care.

NeighborWorks America's leaders say the work at CPSFL is a prime example of comprehensive community development, an approach to development that creates places of opportunity for all. The approach is community and data driven. A focus on residents is essential. "The work happening in Riviera Beach proves that residents know what they need, and that with the support of an organization like CPSFL, they can achieve results," shares Elizabeth Druback Celaya, director of Community Initiatives at NeighborWorks. "That is why centering resident voice is a central pillar of the NeighborWorks comprehensive community development framework, and it shows how opportunities like NeighborWorks' CLI can accelerate strategies coming directly from the community, moving them from idea to reality."

Home Matters

Fri, 15 Jan 2016 18:27:21 GMT

Home Matters (HM) is a national movement that’s redefining the American Dream. The New American Dream is one where every American lives in a safe, nurturing environment with access to quality education, healthcare, public spaces and community services.

HM's mission is to build awareness and raise funds for more affordable homes and better communities across the nation.

NeighborWorks Florida Collaborative is proud to be part of HM's coalition of over 325 partner organizations – corporations, government agencies and nonprofits – supporting ambitious, but necessary goals over the next decade to make the New American Dream a reality for all.

To learn more, and to join us as an HM supporter, visit: homemattersamerica.com

2016 Legislative Day

Wed, 13 Jan 2016 15:57:03 GMT

Leaders of NeighborWorks' Chartered Member organizations from around the Sunshine State gathered in Tallahassee to visit with legislators and staff on Wednesday, January 13th for the Florida Collaborative's inaugural Legislative Day.

In nine short hours, NeighborWorks Florida Collaborative (NWFLC) members met with over 30 state representatives, state senators and/or their aides (20% of the Florida Legislature!) -- educating them on the great work NeighborWorks Collaborative members and their partners are engaged in throughout Florida.

NeighborWorks Florida Collaborative members with Sen. Arthenia Joyner.

"With the need for comprehensive community development statewide, it was exciting to meet with so many of Florida's policymakers and discuss NeighborWorks Florida Collaborative's collective capacity to provide statewide solutions that increase homeownership and economic opportunity," said Ernest M. Coney, Jr. -- the Collaborative's 2016 Board Chair.

To learn more about the NeighborWorks Florida Callaborative, visit: nwflc.org .

Happy 2016

Fri, 01 Jan 2016 16:27:11 GMT

New beginnings, fresh starts, reaffirmations of the people and ideas we value and promises for a brighter future for all come to mind as we ring in a New Year.

On behalf of the board and staff of NeighborWorks Florida Collaborative , here's wishing you the happiest of new years in 2016. Thank you for all you do to support strong, thriving communities across our great state!

neighborworksfl

​​Mobile clinic answers community call​

Madelyn Lazorchak, NeighborWorks America Senior Communications Writer

Home Matters

2016 Legislative Day

Happy 2016

Mobile clinic answers community call