When Clarence first met the Aurora Health Care Mobile Health team in November 2023, he was living at a shelter for the homeless.
“He would stop in once a week for blood sugar and blood pressure checks,” recalled Carolyn McCarthy, a family nurse practitioner with the Mobile Health team. “It took weeks of showing up and building trust for him to share the pain and issues he was experiencing with his foot. It has been partially amputated due to frostbite and was very painful and not healing properly. Our team provided wound care for weeks until Clarence agreed to see a specialist for his foot.”
The team worked with him to schedule his appointment, including securing rides and confirming insurance coverage.
“I had never lived alone and had never taken care of my health or health care myself,” shared Clarence. “I didn’t know how.”
The team continued to meet with Clarence on a weekly basis. They taught him how to call and schedule his own appointments, showed him how to set up transportation and made sure he understood what information he needed to be successful. They discussed the importance of regular health checks, managing chronic illness and his medications and supporting him in managing and improving his health.
In February, Clarence moved out of the shelter and into his own place.
“We hope he’s doing well and is empowered to continue to manage his own health,” said Carolyn. “Clarence can always contact us if he ever has questions or just needs some words of encouragement.”
“I was feeling hopeless and was not taking care of my medical obligations, and they helped me through all that,” Clarence said. “They helped me with my medication, and now I have some hope. They turned my whole situation around and I am grateful for it. They check on me. I am not organized, and Aurora helped me a lot.”
About Aurora Mobile Health
Aurora Mobile Health provides free health services in 10 Milwaukee County zip codes documented to have been experiencing the greatest gaps in access to care and services and a disproportionate burden of disease.
“We’re trying to reach people who are not currently engaged in health care and build relationships with them,” explained Carolyn. “The health care system can be complicated to navigate for some people, and many of them have decided that trying to figure it out is not worth the effort. We want to reengage those people and empower them to maximize their quality of life.”
In 2023, the team partnered with community organizations to provide services at 212 community events across 44 locations, where Carolyn and two community health workers, Chayla King and Louise Nowell, provided consultations, referrals and screenings, including 2,577 blood pressure screenings.
“We also provide a different experience for patients. We have more one-on-one time to listen to them and build trust. We’re meeting them in a place where they already are. They don’t have to sit in a waiting room, and then wait again in a doctor’s office. It’s a more friendly and comfortable experience.”
Education also plays a huge role in what the team does.
“You can give a person a prescription, but they have to understand how to take their medication and how lifestyle, exercise and nutrition all play a role in maximizing health,” said Carolyn. “We want to give them education and motivation, so they see the value of health care.”
How you can help
The Aurora Mobile Health program is managed by Aurora Walker’s Point Community Clinic and supported by Aurora Health Care Foundation funds.
“We’re so happy to be on this team, and our patients are happy to see us. It’s a wonderful gift and blessing to have the luxury of time to listen and engage with them on a deeper level than we could in a traditional clinical setting,” shared Carolyn. “And we’re grateful to donors who understand how important it is to help and care for people who can’t navigate the health care system on their own.”
You can support Aurora Mobile Health and patients like Clarence by making a gift today.