Hospital unveils new mobile clinic
McLaren Macomb’s Medical Outreach Clinic unveiled week before Christmas
It is only appropriate that McLaren Macomb Hospital unwrapped its completely updated and larger mobile Medical Outreach Clinic (MOC) a week before Christmas Day.
It is definitely a gift that will keep on giving for years to come.
The MOC is a state of art medical facility on wheels. It certainly puts Cousin Eddie’s beaten down RV featured in the National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation movie to shame.
The MOC benefits the uninsured and medically underserved population of the county. The large vehicle, referred to as a “doctor’s office on wheels,” travels to various locations throughout Macomb County to provide primary care needs to those seeking treatments.
“The motivation of beginning
and continuing this program has never been to gain anything, but rather to give,” said Dr. Richard Chalmers, family physician and medical director of the MOC. “We’re here to give access to medical care by bringing the physicians to them. We’re motivated by being good stewards to our community, and to provide in every way we can for its overall well-being.”
Tom Brisse is the president and CEO of McLaren Macomb:
“As a healthcare provider, we recognize the responsibility we have to care for the well-being of our community and those who call it home,” said Brisse. “The selflessness and humanitarian spirit of the staff that runs the MOC program makes all of us in this organization proud to be associated with it. We are grateful to now be in the position to continue this extraordinary program for many years to come.”
It truly is an extraordinary program. Being without health insurance is a scary proposition, How do you weigh your options when you are poverty stricken? A pot pie and a few tater tots for dinner or blood pressure medications that can halt a stroke? Put badly needed brakes on a car or take medication that can stop a serious medical issue that can only get worse by not keeping up with your medications?
“A lot of our patients are very hard working men and women who fall into the economic gap,” said Dr. Chalmers. “They make too much for Medicare but not enough for private health insurance. We are very happy to help. We pride ourselves on bringing care to them. We don’t just screen patients. We take care of it all for them.
“We had one patient who had applied for a job as a driver. One of the job requirements was no high blood pressure. We worked with him to get his blood pressure under control and he got the job.”
In 1995, Mount Clemens Regional Medical Center (now McLaren Macomb) acquired a 40-foot vehicle designed to transport medical staff and equipment to at-risk individuals in order to deliver preventive and primary medical care at no charge to the medically underserved residents of Macomb County.
The new MOC is 10 feet longer. It has more treatment rooms and includes a reception and charting area, restroom, and counseling area. The MOC serves people with urgent or chronic illnesses such as hypertension, diabetes, upper respiratory infections, influenza, and a variety of family medicine related issues.
The new vehicle also includes a dental area thanks to a partnership with Delta Dental and Baker College.
Gifts and fundraising efforts made the purchase of the new MOC possible. Contributions were made by the employees and medical staff at McLaren Macomb, Michigan State University College of Osteopathic Medicine, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, Rotary Club of Mount Clemens and Delta Dental Foundation.
In Macomb County, there are approximately 60,000 to 100,000 uninsured people. Approximately 11 percent are under the age 18. Almost 40,000 fall below the federally- designated poverty level.
In addition, more than 4,000 people are homeless. For both the working poor and the indigent, lack of transportation and inadequate health insurance present major barriers to accessing proper care. The high prevalence of health risk factors and chronic disease that plague the county and state are magnified within this population due to a number of factors including the inability to afford medications and difficult living conditions.