September 17, 1999
A new school bus converted into a state-of-the-art mobile health care clinic will begin making medical round next week at Chula Vista elementary schools, delivering free services to children who do not have health insurance.
A year in the making, the "Spirit of Caring Mobile Health Care Clinic" will officially be unveiled Thursday, Sept. 16, at Chula Vista City Hall, 276 Fourth Ave. Immediately afterward, the clinic will roll to its first elementary school.
The innovative health care project is a partnership of the Chula Vista Elementary School District, Sharp Chula Vista Medical Center, Scripps Memorial Hospital Chula Vista, and the city of Chula Vista. Several community organizations, corporations and foundations have provided more than $300,000 for the project, which is dedicated to improving the health of uninsured and underin-sured children. Many such children miss school too often because of an easily treatable ailment such as an ear infection or common cold.
Countywide, school districts lose more than $20 million in funding each year because of absenteeism, and an estimated 185,000 children do not have health insurance.
The clinic includes exam rooms, a small laboratory, a pharmacy and an education are. The clinic will be supervised by a physician and staffed by a bilingual family nurse practitioner, a registered nurse and a medical assistant. Adorning the outside of the clinic are life-size color characters created and donated by local artist Suzy Spafford of "Suzy's Zoo" fame. Besides providing free medical services to uninsured and underinsured children, the clinic will help connect families with local agencies and organizations to assist in obtaining health care insurance coverage, through programs like the state's "Healthy Families."
Return
to Frontpage