CALGARY – From the outside, it looks like a super-sized RV, but you won’t find a kitchen or bedroom inside the Ronald McDonald “Caremobile.” Instead, you’ll find a doctor’s office and dentist’s chair.
“This unit is out almost every day, and we have another unit that actually goes down to Siksika,” said Larry Matheson, CEO for Ronald McDonad House Charities, Southern and Central Alberta.
The mobile clinic is operated by Ronald McDonald House in partnership with the Mosaic primary care network, a PCN that serves patients in east Calgary.
“(We serve) a very challenging population. There are lots of social determinants of health, lots of people unattached (to family doctors) with very, very poor health,” said Jason Shenher, executive director for the Mosaic PCN.
Shenher says compared to other parts of the city, east Calgary has the highest percentage of low income families and the fewest number of family doctors per capita. The mobile clinic helps patients access primary care by bringing doctors to where they can be most easily accessed.
The clinic regularly stops outside Bridgeland’s Women in Need Society office.
“For the seniors (in the area), mobility is a real issue, so it means they get checked out and they don’t have to take an hour bus ride to their doctor,” said Natalie Boyle, a family resource facilitator with the Women in Need Society. “For the families, it means it’s a lot easier for their kids to get checked out.”
In the last three years, the mobile clinic has handled over 8,000 patient visits, connecting hundreds of families to permanent family doctors. The unit is staffed by a team of two pediatric dietitians, one pediatric dental hygienist, one licensed practical nurse (LPN), and a kinesiologist. The mobile clinic stops at a different location each day. You can see the schedule online here.
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