Family Health offers free wellness screenings for National Health Center Week in Mobile

MOBILE, Alabama – Free wellness screenings, confidential STD testing and school immunizations for children age 4 and up were offered from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 12, at the William Clark Family Life Center, 2501 W. Main St. in Prichard. The wellness fair was presented by Family Health, the primary care division of the Mobile County Health Department, in observance of National Health Center Week which spans Aug. 10-16, 2014.

Media coverage included multiple broadcasts by two local television stations, WALA and LOCAL 15, and online reports published by al.com and television websites. Public health staff were interveiwed about the importance of vaccinations prior to the event. Dozens of families lined up to take part in the community outreach, health officials said.

For more than 45 years, community health centers across the U.S. have delivered comprehensive, high-quality preventive and primary health care to patients regardless of their ability to pay. During that time, community health centers have become the essential primary care medical home for millions of Americans, including some of the nation’s most vulnerable populations. With a proven track record of success, community health centers have played an essential role in national recovery and reinvestment efforts and will continue to play a key role in implementation of the Affordable Care Act, public health officials have said.

Statistics show that one in every 15 people living in the United States depends on services provided by community health centers. They are an important source of jobs in many low-income communities, employing more than 148,000 people nationwide. And with clinical and support staff who are responsive to their communities' needs and cultures, health centers are important partners in our efforts to reduce health disparities.

Since 1979, the Mobile County Health Department’s Family Health division has provided comprehensive primary care services throughout Mobile County and now provides primary care services at nine sites from Mount Vernon to Tillman’s Corner to Dauphin Island Parkway. The sites, which are all designated as Federally Qualified Health Centers, are strategically located where the targeted population needs are the greatest and access to care is limited, agency officials said. A mobile health unit also brings primary care and wellness screenings to those who might not otherwise have the means to travel to a health center.