St. Clare Health Mission: Rotary Mobile Clinic Quarterly Report April - June 2023
The Rotary Mobile Clinic continues to be a beacon of hope for our patients and a source of inspiration for our volunteers and partners.
We have been working with the local Homeless Outreach Team (HOT Team), Gundersen Health System, and with Vivant Health adding their mobile unit for addiction and other services. We have developed new partnerships and have streamlined service delivery this summer – including adding scheduled appointments including diabetic care and sport physicals in rural areas vs. the walk-in model.
We have received a 3-year DHS grant for a full-time community health worker and mobile clinic coordinator. That position has been hired and she will start in a few weeks. This position will have a dual role coordinating our mobile medical rounds and carrying a caseload of mobile med patients to work with on follow-up care, referrals, and social service supports. With the Rotary Mobile Clinic nearing a year of service, we are excited for the addition of this needed role.
We have missed a handful of clinic opportunities due to 1) gaps in volunteerism which is normal for the vacation months and 2) we’re waiting on grants that would allow us, and our partner Gundersen Health System, to reach the ideal of weekly Friday rural and farm rounds. We are actively recruiting more volunteers as well to shore up gaps. Even with these challenges, patient visits still increased slightly this quarter.
Patient Volumes
Street Medicine: 117 patient visits
Rural Medicine: 32 patient visits
Farm Medicine: 12 patient visits
Rotary Mobile Clinic 161 total patient visits
Clinic dates:
Wednesdays
Street Medicine serving local the sheltered and unsheltered homeless. We make rounds to Salvation Army, Catholic Charities, Cameron Park, and local parking garages. This summer has created unique challenges and unique partnerships. We actively work with the Homeless Outreach Team, including City of La Crosse Homeless Outreach Coordinator, ILR, Vivant Health and local police. We have added locations and are anticipating a more challenging service delivery model as the city may no longer allow the homeless to congregate and live in city parks.
Thursdays
First and third Thursday: Arcadia Middle School in partnership with St. Clare Health Mission, Bridges Health Winona, and Arcadia Schools. Recently, we have added partnerships with Cochrane-Fountain City School District. These clinics have been slower due to lower volunteerism this summer, but we’re working with partners to ramp up for another busy fall.
Fridays
We alternate between farms serving immigrant farm workers. We are currently working on an expansion with Gundersen Health System where we will serve farms, rural pop-up locations, and chronic condition clinics on a rotating basis. We have added new schools, diabetic only rural clinics, and are working on a larger rotation once we hear back on a few medical foundation grants.
We alternate between farms serving immigrant farm workers. We are currently working on an expansion with Gundersen Health System where we will serve farms, rural pop-up locations, and chronic condition clinics on a rotating basis. We have added new schools, diabetic only rural clinics, and are working on a larger rotation once we hear back on a few medical foundation grants.
