Scott Webb (Host): I'm joined today by family nurse practitioner Celina Medina, and she's here to tell us about the Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic, where and when you can find the mobile clinic and how the clinic is protecting kids with their Vaccines on Wheels Program.

 This is Ask the Experts, the podcast from Salinas Valley Health. I'm Scott Webb. Celina, it's so nice to have you here today. We're going to talk Vaccines on Wheels—I like saying that, Vaccines on Wheels, right?—and how you protect kids through the mobile clinic. So, briefly tell us about the wonderful work the Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic does in the community and how you're helping folks.

Celina Medina: Our mobile clinic is focused on providing free healthcare services to our community, whether that be urgent care-style visits, physicals. We also now have a vaccine program that is a state-funded VFC Program for kids that are eligible for this program that we provide all their routine immunizations as well.

 A lot of times, we're finding a lot of newly diagnosed diabetics managing hypertension, high cholesterol. We see patients also for like urinary tract infections or upper respiratory symptoms. We provide the flu vaccines to all of our patients. And we just do a little bit of kind of everything. We're just a mobile urgent care/like primary care. And we do really focus on our uninsured patients just because, you know, there is such a large population of uninsured patients. And so, really connecting them and making sure that they're up-to-date with all their routine, you know, preventative exams as well, sending them out for referrals, for mammograms, colonoscopies, Pap smears, and all the routine, you know, recommended exams.

Host: Yeah. It sounds really comprehensive. Like I said, the Vaccines on Wheels, but not just vaccines. It's, you know, full service, uninsured. Everything you can do to sort of meet the community where they are, of course. And let's talk about that, like where does the mobile clinic travel to and are appointments needed?

Celina Medina: So, the appointments, actually, we have only like a very limited amount of appointments per location, just because we usually do our appointments on a first come, first serve basis. So, the mobile clinic, we have a set routine schedule. For example, like on Sundays, we're at the soccer complex of a constitution. Most of the locations are in Salinas. But every Wednesday, we also go to Greenfield as well. And so, just depending on the day, we'll be at a different location. So, Mondays we're at Alisal High School. Tuesdays, half the shift in front of Walmart off of North Maine. Second half at Alvarez High School. Wednesdays, we travel to Greenfield in front of their Family Resource Center. And then, on Thursdays, we are in front of a Martin Luther King School, like in their back little area there.

Host: Sure. That's awesome. Yet I know you provide vaccines for children wondering, which vaccines you administer? Is there a cutoff age? And again, are appointments needed for vaccines?

Celina Medina: Not usually. Our Vaccines for Children Program, so they're for eligible patients that are 18 or younger. And so, basically, in order to qualify for them to get the vaccines placed on our mobile clinic, they either have to have Medi-Cal only, be uninsured, or be American-Indian or Alaskan native to receive these free immunizations. The only times when we really request that they maybe make an appointment in advance and that they kind of talk to us beforehand is when we get kids from either they're out of state or they're from a different country, and we need to update their immunizations in the California Immunization Registry. And so, that's the only time when we need a little bit more time, because it requires more time to update all their information in that registry basically.

Host: Right. Obviously, a little bit more paperwork involved. And let's talk cost for vaccines. I know you're talking about helping the uninsured. But just generally speaking, can you explain how the cost works for vaccines?

Celina Medina: So, these vaccines are completely free. So, the patients don't pay anything when they receive these vaccines from our clinic.

Host: That's amazing. That brought a big smile to my face, for sure. So, what are the most important vaccines that children should be receiving?

Celina Medina: All of them. I don't think—there's not a specific—

Host: That's perfect. Yeah.

Celina Medina: Yeah. There's not a specific one that I think, you know, has a hierarchy system in it. I think they're all on the recommended guidelines. And we want to give our patients, our kids, you know, the most protection as we possibly can. And so, that's where the immunizations become a crucial part. You know, we've been able to eradicate a lot of these diseases because of vaccines and how impactful they are and how effective they are. So, I think there's not one in particular, but it's just super important, all the recommended guidelines. And so, we are going by the Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices guidelines per VFC Program.

Host: Yeah, that may be one of my favorite answers from Salinas Valley Health, when we've asked the experts things, which ones should we get? All of them.

Celina Medina: All of them.

Host: I absolutely love that. In spirit of all of them, if you will, maybe you can walk through the schedule of vaccines for children.

Celina Medina: Yeah. So, it really just depends on the child. So, it's very specific. So for instance, like I said, we do get a lot of kids from either different states or different countries, and maybe they missed their immunizations that they were supposed to get when they were maybe a year old or three, you know, six years old, whatever that may have been.

So, I can give you the list of immunizations. I mean, we have DTaP, polio, Hep B, Hib, pneumonia, hepatitis A as well, MMR, varicella, meningococcal, HPV. And basically, all the routine immunizations. So, it really just depends. I would say on what the child need is. So, you know, what age they're at, what their past medical history is and so forth.

Host: Yeah. Right. And we won't hold you to this if maybe you left one out. But just, as you say, it's important to get all of them recommended on the schedule, all of that. And when in doubt, ask the experts, right?

Celina Medina: Yep. Exactly.

Host: Right. Just give you a chance here at the end, you know, and I love hearing about initiatives like this, Vaccines on Wheels. I love that. I feel like it needs a T-shirt. Maybe you will talk to Claudia and get some shirts made.

Celina Medina: Yeah.

Host: I'll just give you a chance here at the end. Anything else, final thoughts, takeaways about the services and vaccines that the mobile clinic provides to the community?

Celina Medina: Just in general, I mean, I think it's really important. We're all about preventative care. And so, we really try to connect our patients with different resources within the community to help them make sure that they're getting their routine preventative exams, but also treating their chronic conditions and giving them the appropriate resources and education to do so. So since the mobile clinic opened up its doors in January 2020 to today, we've seen more than like 22,000, patients.

And another service that we do offer as well is food bank distribution. So, food bank distribution usually occurs Tuesday through Thursday. And really, I think, it's a crucial part of it is because the food bank that in Monterey County actually serves one in five residents. We get a long line waiting of residents that are waiting to have those fresh foods and vegetables. So, it's really awesome to be able to also partner with the food bank to be able to do that distribution as well.

Host: Right. Yeah. It always warms my heart to hear what Salinas Valley Health is doing to help folks, to reach folks, to feed them, to provide vaccines, all of it. Great stuff. Thank you so much.

Celina Medina: Yes. Thank you so much.

Host: And for more information about the services that our Salinas Valley Health Mobile Clinic provides, visit salinasvalleyhealth.com/mobileclinic.

And to listen to more of our podcasts, please visit salinasvalleyhealth.com/podcasts. And if you found this podcast to be helpful, please be sure to tell a friend, neighbor, or family member. And subscribe, rate and review this podcast, and check out the entire podcast library for additional topics of interest. This is Ask the Experts from Salinas Valley Health. I'm Scott Webb. Stay well, and we'll talk again next time.