|
CENTRO SAN VICENTE MISSION – to seek out families in need without access to health and human services and to serve the families living in the community
Centro San Vicente is a federally qualified health center affiliated with the Daughters of Charity Health System. Centro San Vicente is a community based healing ministry and in the spirit of St. Vincent de Paul, it applies the principles of Jesus and the Catholic Church in a holistic approach in caring for the whole person -- body, mind and spirit.
Located in the Lower Valley of El Paso, Centro San Vicente provides community based primary health care and social services in its service area in a collaborative manner with other health, social service, and education agencies. The center has a particular concern for the economically poor, the needy, the oppressed, and those who have nowhere else to turn for care. The emphasis of the center is on preventive health care, encouraging individuals to become personally responsible for their own health and well being.
In an atmosphere of respect, kindness, and simplicity, Centro San Vicente provides quality, affordable health care, social services health education and disease prevention programs.
Centro San Vicente is a non-profit Community Oriented Primary Health Care Center (COPC) providing primary health care and social services as part of the "Healthier Communities" model for residents of El Paso. The Center is "Health Care Home" that transcends the traditional application of primary health delivery to a dynamic one that reaches out to the needs of the community. Since opening its doors in 1988, the Center has provided over 100,000 health care visits for the residents of El Paso County. Centro San Vicente is dedicated to meeting the holistic health care needs of families. The Center serves a primarily Hispanic, "working poor" population without health insurance or the financial means to pay for needed services. Services are provided regardless of age, gender, race, religious belief or the clients’ ability to pay.
NT>
The "Healthier Communities" Project actively seeks input from the community regarding the health and social service needs of the community. The Center listens to the needs and concerns of residents, helps to identify areas in need of development, and acts to develop programs that are culturally and linguistically relevant for residents. The "Healthier Communities" model's goal is to provide health and human services that include the quality-of-life concerns and issues of the poor.
After performing a Community Needs Assessment the Center identified a major concern of residents for wellness programs as an alternative to illness. Major concerns identified were: diabetes health promotion/disease prevention, cancer awareness and screening, exercise, weight reduction and nutrition, home visitation for families of newborns, and volunteer transportation services for patients without access to transportation to the Center for health care appointments.
Centro San Vicente also maintains a close relationship with community collaboratives to be responsive to the changing needs of the community. Included in the Center’s community collaboration is a primary care health center designed specifically for homeless persons of El Paso, the Centro San Vicente Homeless Clinic. Located in the Opportunity Center for the Homeless (OC) on Myrtle Avenue since 1998, the clinic is run by Certified Nurse Practitioner, Joan Courteau. This clinic demonstrates an obvious example of the agency’s dedication to responding to needs determined by the community and shows a priority in serving the economically disadvantaged.
Inability to pay and disenfranchisement from the system impede homeless individuals from accessing much-needed health care, often times leaving serious, yet treatable, illnesses go untreated for years. “We see a lot of chronic illness … diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure … stuff like that, that has gone untreated for years,” states Courteau. Untreated, chronic illness is frequently exacerbated by conditions associated with homelessness – nutrient deficiency, sleep deprivation, living in close quarters with other potentially ill people, depressed immune systems, substance abuse issues, at-risk behaviors, and lack of hygiene.
The Centro San Vicente clinic located at the OC attempts to circumvent the conditions that obstruct homeless persons’ access to health care by offering on-site services in a facility readily accessible to all homeless persons. “We provide services to all clients of all service providers that are members of the coalition,” Courteau explains, “So we see a broad range of ages and issues.”
Not only does the clinic provide standard primary health care services, it has an extensive referral network maintained for individuals requiring more comprehensive or specialty services. “Every Wednesday we have a renal specialist come in here, and potentially, it is my goal to get a different specialist in here every night,” says Courteau. They are in the process of opening a dental clinic and usually have a mid-wife available to provide prenatal care.
The Centro San Vicente Homeless Clinic sees an average of 300 scheduled patients a month with 20-30 walk-in patients that come in for prescriptions, blood pressure checks, sugar tests, or quick follow-ups. “Well, that is just the medical piece. Then, there is the mental health piece, and she sees about a gazillion patients every month,” Courteau laughs. Homeless individuals that use the Opportunity Center for shelter or food services frequently access mental health services at the clinic.
Centro San Vicente’s Homeless Clinic is part of the vast continuum of services offered to homeless individuals in El Paso. It is, however, the only health clinic for the homeless. It is obvious, as it is with other clinics that specifically serve homeless patients, that this small clinic is constantly busy; yet it is also obvious that the health needs of all who access the clinic are given the utmost care and attention that they deserve.
| PRIMARY CARE SERVICES PROVIDED BY CENTRO SAN VICENTE* |
|---|
| Primary care diagnosis and treatment |
Diagnosis and Treatment of Adult Chronic illness |
| Pediatric diagnosis and treatment (sick and well child) |
Case Management |
| On-site DHS eligibility screening |
On-site Thomason Hospital "Care Card" screening, eligibility, and card issuance |
| Specialty services (Ob-Gyn, Pediatrics, Adult chronic disease, Diabetes, etc) |
Treatment of common episodic illness |
| Class D Pharmacy |
Lab services |
| Health and dental screening & referral |
Family planning |
| Social service counseling & referral |
On-site City/County WIC services |
| EPDST |
Cancer Health screening services |
*Mammograms provided through referral
For information about making a donation to Centro San Vicente, contact Mr. Jimmie C. Parker, Chief Operations Officer, Centro San Vicente, 8061 Alameda, El Paso, TX 79915, (915) 859-7545; or send a donation in any amount directly to Centro San Vicente, 8061 Alameda, El Paso, TX 79915.
|
