With 12.4% of Arizonians living in poverty and 12.1% of those under 65 uninsured, mobile health clinics in Arizona are stepping in to deliver crucial healthcare services to underserved communities. A green bus, equipped as a mobile health clinic by Valleywise Health, parked on Nov. 20 at the corner of Ninth Avenue and Grant Street in Phoenix, signaling a beacon of medical assistance for those with limited access. Valleywise Health’s senior practice manager Jason Vail Cruz emphasized the significance of these clinics, noting, “Our mobile health clinic is really founded on the principle of eliminating obstacles for folks to access health care,” according to a BizJournal interview.
These mobile clinics serve multiple functions, from conducting sports physicals to providing women’s health care and HIV testing. Despite the flashing hazard lights that morning, the bus was attracting individuals in need; a critical service given that, per AZ Big Media, 1.2 million people in the U.S. are living with HIV. Beth Fiorenza, executive director of Nourish Phoenix, highlighted that, “Many people lack access to health care. We want to ensure they have the access they need to be healthy and happy.”
Addressing a wide spectrum of healthcare needs, the clinics are not just about treatment; they’re also about prevention and education, especially in public health challenges like HIV. The Arizona Department of Health Services’ 2023 Surveillance Annual Report showed the Hispanic population had the highest number of new HIV cases, a statistic that underscores the mobile clinics’ important role in these communities. However, the clinics’ affordability is a notable aspect, as Denisse Ozuna, a family nurse practitioner contracted with Valleywise Health, stated, “we go based on your insurance.” Ozuna also recognized the clinics’ capacity to serve a linguistically diverse population, “I think this is a great program for the community, especially – I know English and Spanish – and I know a lot of our patients are, maybe a big percentage of them speak only Spanish,” she told BizJournal…