Partnership in Action

RFU’s Community Care Connection health outreach program continues improving the health of underserved populations through strategic partnerships with service organizations, foundations and community resource centers.

Since its inception in 2011, the Community Care Connection (CCC) has evolved from a single, refurbished mobile health vehicle to a brand-new, custom-designed, 40-foot mobile clinic supported by a fleet of three electric SUVs that allows program staff to visit multiple sites, restock the clinic mid–site visit if needed, and pick up and deliver supplies essential to creating healthier communities.

The positive impact the program makes on medically underserved communities in Lake County, Illinois, results from a multifaceted collaboration. That interprofessional group includes Lupe Rodriguez, APN, nurse practitioner and executive director of community engagement; Jeff Espina, MBA, vice president of clinical services; the CCC’s small but prolific team of providers and staff; Rosalind Franklin University administration; and the foundations, healthcare providers and community groups that support the CCC’s operations.

Services offered through the CCC include: 

• Screenings for blood pressure, blood sugar, BMI and cholesterol
• Vaccines for uninsured and Medicaid-insured children and uninsured adults
• Assessment and management of acute needs such as testing for influenza, COVID, strep throat, urinary tract infections and pregnancy
• Assistance finding a healthcare provider for regular visits and navigating the complex health system
• Health education classes, many offered in English and Spanish
• Sports physicals for children and teens
• Information from local advocacy groups, including Mano a Mano Family Resource Center, Endeavor Health, City of Hope, YWCA Metropolitan Chicago, Roberti Community House, Angel’s Boxing Academy and many more on a revolving basis

Expanding to offer such a wide range of services meant the CCC team would often need to be in more than one place at one time. The most efficient way to make that happen was the addition of the sprinter vehicles, made possible with the support of a grant from Endeavor Health.

“We don’t want it to ever be just technical visits — it’s a relationship visit. We want it to be more than just lab values. It’s more, ‘I care about you, and I want to know how I can help you.’ It’s relationship-building with the person sitting in front of us.”

“Having the three electric vehicles has really elevated our ability to serve the community,” Ms. Rodriguez said. “We always take a vehicle along with the mobile clinic on site-visit days, because we never know when somebody might need to run back to the clinic to get another vaccine a community member is asking us for, or to get more supplies if something is running low.” 

The vehicles can also be used to pick up donated supplies — anything from clean socks and diapers to a wheelchair — and bring those resources to patients with transportation issues. Previously, CCC team members were using their personal vehicles, and paying for gas out of pocket, to travel to clinic sites and make deliveries. This meant the addition of time-consuming, mileage-reimbursement paperwork each week. The purchase of the vehicles took many of those administrative tasks off the care providers’ plates, giving them back more time to focus on the people and communities they serve. 

The People Are the Purpose

The heart of the CCC and all it does is, of course, the patients and people in the communities it serves. Building relationships within communities is paramount to Ms. Rodriguez and her team.

“One of the things about our program that makes it so successful is that, while we are talking about health conditions, we’re primarily building relationships with the people we’re serving,” Ms. Rodriguez said. “We try to connect on a human level first, before we expand into talking about blood pressure and cholesterol. We don’t want it to ever be just technical visits — it’s a relationship visit. We want it to be more than just lab values. It’s more, ‘I care about you, and I want to know how I can help you.’ It’s relationship-building with the person sitting in front of us.”

Hubs for Community Health

In addition to regularly scheduled site visits at libraries and community centers throughout Lake County, the CCC initiated community hubs in the cities of Park City, North Chicago and Zion, Illinois, all located along Lake County’s northeast corridor. The hubs are strategically placed and designed to bring resources at no cost to communities in need.

“At the community hubs, we invite other nonprofit community organizations to join us and provide information about their organization,” Ms. Rodriguez explained. “They’re all community-focused organizations.”

One of the more recent additions to the CCC service line is fresh-produce distribution, made possible through partnerships with organizations such as Greentown Grows, a Waukegan, Illinois–based nonprofit that donates produce from community gardens for distribution in low-income areas of Lake County; Blue Cross Blue Shield; and Los Perez, a grocery store in nearby Mundelein where the CCC can purchase produce at wholesale prices during the winter months.

“I thought, ‘What if we could provide at least small quantities of fresh produce to those who come to see us?’” Ms. Rodriguez said. “It would serve multiple purposes. It promotes healthy food choices, but it also addresses a need in our communities, where fresh produce can be hard to come by. When it is available and at no cost, it really engages people to want to stop by and talk to us. Whether they need fresh produce, or medical care, or just a friendly face and sympathetic ear, we can provide that. When we meet people where they are and build those relationships, they can tell us what they need.”

Excerpts from Lupe's Diary

Lupe Rodriguez, APN, executive director of community engagement, shared real-world examples of how the Community Care Connection team improves the health and well-being of the local residents they serve. These excerpts offer brief but powerful glimpses into the personal connections Ms. Rodriguez and her staff make with their patients. Identifying information has been removed to protect patient privacy, but these are stories of real patient-care experiences, recorded by Ms. Rodriguez and members of the CCC team in their work diaries. 

“This week, we came across a patient with hypotension, who also started experiencing nausea and vomiting. We called EMS and had the patient transported to the hospital. We are keeping in touch with the patient and their primary care provider (PCP) to ensure the correct dosage of medications is being taken.”

“A patient came back to express gratitude for the work we do for our community. They were able to keep track of their glucose levels and take necessary measures to reduce them. The best news was that the patient was able to get off their diabetic medication. It’s stories like these that make our work worthwhile.”

“We were able to connect a patient with the Lake County Health Department Crisis Care Program. The patient has been feeling overwhelmed juggling various issues: moving, family troubles, single parenting, work and lack of insurance. We provided options for mental-health resources and support programs, and our team will follow up with the patient to provide additional support.”

“A patient presented with hypertension and uncontrolled diabetes, and informed us they did not have a PCP in the area due to lack of insurance. We helped guide the patient through the process of establishing care at a local clinic that did not require health insurance, and we also provided the patient with a blood pressure monitor so they could monitor their BP at home.”

Sara Skoog is a staff writer with the RFU Division of Marketing and Brand Management. In addition to writing for Helix and other university publications, she also produces Pulse, RFU’s monthly e-newsletter.