“Sonja’s” first contact with MobileMed was in January 2017 at a clinic in a homeless shelter. At her first medical appointment, she was diagnosed with hypertension and Type 2 diabetes, with an A1C level measured at 11.9. Over the past two years, MobileMed has served as her primary care medical home – delivering regular exams and case management follow-up, arranging visits with specialists, helping her to get medications, and providing guidance on diet, exercise, and stress reduction. Consistent care from MobileMed from MobileMed staff and volunteers has helped Sonja get her chronic diseases under control.
MobileMed is a community health center where dedicated and empathetic staff and volunteers provide high-quality primary care, delivered in a culturally and linguistically appropriate manner. In 2015, its track record of caring for the community’s underserved was recognized when MobileMed was designated a Federally Qualified Health Center, the only FQHC located entirely in Montgomery County.
MobileMed operates eight primary care clinics (including three mobile van sites and two homeless shelters) in areas of unmet need. There are two weekly specialty clinics – Heart and Endocrine – in collaboration with the NIH and Suburban Hospital for patients with especially challenging conditions. Other weekly specialty services include podiatry and optometry for diabetic patients, and a women’s clinic staffed by volunteer gynecologists.
MobileMed is always looking for volunteers to keep up with increasing demand: over the past 12 months, MobileMed treated more than 4,700 patients, providing over 16,700 medical and behavioral health encounters. It has never turned anyone away because they were unable to pay.
I have been involved with Mobile Med since 2015, serving in a variety of roles as well as becoming a member of the Board of Directors. I invite you to share your skills with us and join us in our quest to leave no one in Montgomery County without health care.
Audrey Corson, M.D., F.A.C.P.