SOUTHHAMPTON COUNTY, Va. — The Old Dominion University Mobile Community Care Clinic is offering free pediatric physicals to students ahead of the new school year.
"It's just really important to meet people where they are," said Amanda Hudgins, the clinic's lead nurse practitioner.
The City of Franklin and Southampton County partnered with Old Dominion University to launch the mobile clinic in an effort to serve people who otherwise would have to travel great lengths to see a doctor.
The doctor's-office-on-wheels has served over 144 patients in just eight weeks of operation.
"It's so fulfilling as a provider to be able to bring this healthcare to Franklin and Southampton County," said Hudgins.
Now the clinic has a new mission: to ensure every child has the physical exam they need before heading back to the classroom.
Combined, Southampton County and Franklin have just two pediatric physicians who each provide direct care for an average of 23 hours a week, according to the Virginia Department of Health (VDH).
"That is 45 hours a week available to serve 3,477 Southampton residents and 2,123 Franklin City residents under the age of 18," said VDH. "That is the equivalent of one full-time pediatrician for 5,600 kids."
While there are eight family practice physicians in those communities who can help offset this need, the lack of pediatric care frequently forces families to travel far to get their kids the care they need.
Director of Curriculum & Instruction for Franklin Public Schools, Dr. Clint Walters, says this oftentimes results in kids missing school to see a doctor.
"One of the things that we see when our students are seeking this care is that they're missing that time in school," he said. "Having Old Dominion University partner with us, and they're right here on school grounds, is really helping to solve part of that problem of absenteeism."
Dr. Walters says that missing school is only part of the problem: the inability for some families to visit the doctor's office at all is also an issue.
"A lot of our families in the community lack access to consistent transportation, and that impacts their ability to get the medical care that they need," he said.
To help combat this, the Mobile Community Clinic is partnering with Molina Healthcare to host a free healthcare event on Saturday, July 15.
The event is being held from noon to 3 p.m. at Gatherings in SoCo. A team of 30 nurse practitioners and nursing students will offer free annual and sports physicals to students. According to VDH, the most common health disparities rural children face are obesity and lack of access to mental healthcare.
The clinic will also be offering healthcare services to parents.
"We'll be doing BMI screenings, blood pressure screenings, and A1C screenings for adults," explained Hudgins.
Hudgins says the clinic will be a one-stop-shop for the whole family to get the care they need.
"We're hoping to streamline the physicals too, you know, [we want] the wait times to be very short," she said. "They just show up at our station and we will provide them with all the necessary things to complete their physical."
Several vendors will also be handing out free school supplies during the event and there will be games for kids.
"We're coming into the community so this community does not have to travel," said Hudgins. "They do not have to seek care outside of their community, they can come to us."
If you miss the event on Saturday, you can still catch the mobile clinic at various locations across Franklin and Southampton County.
"We're in the schools every Tuesday and we're in the community every Thursday at rotating sites," explained Hudgins.
For more information on where the clinic will be and when, head to this website.
