There are several impressions that have struck me during my
time as a Crossroad Volunteer Intern. I
think the greatest of these, and something which I did not appreciate before
Crossroad, is what a true asset a Community Health Clinic is to the local
population it serves. Community health
clinics like this one serve to fill a conspicuous void in neighborhoods that
experience high unemployment, high rates of uninsured patients, and a general
neglect from the medical apparatus at large.
The beautiful part of it is how Crossroad goes even further than simply
providing basic primary care. I see
Crossroad Health Center as being less in the business of treating patients, and
more in the world of helping keep people whole.
This means that attention from the office doesn’t stop when you exit the
exam room. Someone will follow up with
you to make sure that you were able to schedule any other needed doctor visits
or testing. And then we’ll try and make
sure that you were able to make that appointment. And we know and understand that life is messy
and difficult and sometimes appointments can’t be kept. If you missed one, we’re here to get that
rescheduled for you. If you’ve hit a
rough patch and you’re having trouble coping with the stresses and strains of
daily life, there is a counselor on staff to speak who will listen and suggest
techniques that may help to keep things in a manageable perspective. All of this is put into one building and made
accessible regardless of employment status, insurance status, language
barriers, and so much else. What I have
seen at Crossroad Health Center is an approach to whole-person health,
providing a continuity of care that is appreciated not only by those served in
the immediate community, but also by many people who simply stated that they come
to Crossroad from outside communities because nothing in the medical
establishments in their neighborhoods gave them the sense that they were being
supported so completely as at Crossroad.
If I would also be remiss if I didn’t mention another
impression regarding insurance. Barriers
to finding care for certain patients because of a type of insurance or a lack
of insurance can seem insurmountable at times.
I have had several cases where multiple hours have been spent trying to
get one patient scheduled for an appointment to receive needed medical
care. All I can say is that it is no
wonder people give up on finding the care they need. Something must be done to broaden access to
care for a wider swath of the population or we will continue to routinely see
preventable or treatable conditions go unattended until they evolve into acute
cases requiring much more intensive and expensive medical attention to the
detriment of the patient’s well-being as well as the health of the larger
community and the costs assumed by the care providers.
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