With hygiene bags and about 200 articles of clothing in tow, HealthPoint’s eight Community HealthCorps members volunteered with HealthPoint and Public Health mobile medical van staff recently at Kent Lutheran Church. On the first and last Monday of each month at Kent Lutheran Church, the mobile medical van staff offers immediate medical attention and insurance assistance to those in need, in addition to the warm meal provided by the church. The church has been hosting a community meal for over 30 years and on average serves 120 low-income or homeless people.
The hygiene bags were donated by HealthPoint staff and Community HealthCorps members, and included items such as shampoo, soap and toothpaste. The staff also collected donated clothing to share.
The mobile medical van is a full-service medical van owned by Public Health - Seattle & King County and co-operated with HealthPoint for people who are homeless and in need of immediate access to medical attention. The van and staff often team with the mobile dental van to make whole body health care easy to access.
HealthPoint is proud to host eight members of Community HealthCorps, an organization founded by the National Association of Community Health Centers to "promote health care for America's underserved, while developing tomorrow's health care workforce." Nationwide its members have mobilized over 70,000 community volunteers since its inception 20 years ago. Over 50% of Community HealthCorps alumni pursue higher education and/or careers in community health or public health.
When asked about what she thought of the experience, Community HealthCorps member, Erica says, “The whole event is so organized. The staff are so nice and it was really great to see those served happy and enjoying themselves."
