Inside the Clinic: Tale of Two Cities Edition
Each week, our Executive Director, Anne-Lise Quinn, sends out a Clinic Update to the staff. In an effort to keep our wider community updated about the happenings inside Culmore Clinic, we will be posting an annotated version of this update to our blog each week under the Inside the Clinic tag.
Good evening, dearest Colleagues!
I don’t know if any of you read the article in the Falls Church News Press yesterday that said the City of Falls Church was named the third healthiest community in the USA by the US News and World Report, but I was quite struck by this.
My immediate thought was to compare with data I had seen in a Fairfax County Health and Human Services report earlier this week which showed that 42 percent of emergency food assistance calls to the County’s Coordinated Service Planning (that “222” number you may have heard about) came from the zip codes that we serve - just a hop, skip, and a jump from the City of Falls Church! And that almost a third of calls asking for rental assistance came from this community, too!
Then today I was at the Clinic when First Christian Church was hosting its Safe Haven Grab-and-Go lunch and I was quite overwhelmed by how many people were in the parking lot, socially distancing, of course, but still so many people needing food. I bet if I showed up at the other food pantries in town, from Columbia Baptist and Dar Al-Hijrah to St. Anthony de Padua, the picture would be, unfortunately, the same.
People are experiencing hunger all around us.
And hunger makes people stressed and sick (or sicker).
What I love about this community is that people get what’s happening. They see it. They feel compelled to do what they can to help. And that includes supporting the small, but mighty Culmore Clinic in whatever way they can to ensure that no one suffers from lack of access to the healthcare or medicines they need.
People like “Juana”.
“Juana” is a 60-year-old female from Latin America who cares for her grandson. Her husband lost his job due to the COVID-19 crisis and tries to obtain work as a day laborer to make ends meet. Juana suffers from the chronic conditions of hyperlipidemia, hypertension, and osteoporosis. She also has two unique conditions: Cysticercosis - a parasitic tissue caused by larvae cysts of a tapeworm that infects brain and other tissue and which is a major cause of adult onset seizures in some countries; and Hydrocephalus - a buildup of fluid in the brain, the pressure of which can damage brain tissues and cause a range of impairments such as loss of bladder control, memory loss, loss of other thinking or reasoning skills, difficulty walking, and/or poor coordination or balance. Juana suffers from all of these symptoms.
Upon receiving the diagnostic results confirming Hydrocephalus, Culmore Clinic staff moved quickly to initiate a neurology referral with Inova Health System. This required the patient to provide documentation of her address and income and complete a complex application form. Juana came to Medication Pickup that same day where she was assisted in completing the Inova Financial Aid form by (regular) Spanish-speaking volunteers from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (the Mormon church). The form and documentation were scanned onsite and sent to Clinic staff who submitted the materials to the Inova charity office to ensure tracking and resolution of the application. The patient left that day with the referral process in full motion as well a bag of vegetables and a meal for her and her husband, donated by Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center. She also received masks, gloves, and hand sanitizer as well as information on local foodbanks from Culmore Clinic.
Within a few days, the patient was diagnosed with a UTI and received medication. Within a week, and not on a Monday when COVID testing is available onsite at Culmore Clinic, the patient called to say her husband, who is not a Culmore patient, had a high fever, aches, and lost his sense of smell. Staff facilitated an immediate, next-day referral to Neighborhood Health for COVID-19 testing and reached out to the mosque, which provided a food delivery for the patient, including chicken and kitchen staples, so she could isolate. Clinic nurses provided intense teaching on COVID-19 and the need for Juana to quarantine herself from her husband, who had tested positive, and stay safe. Her husband will be enrolled in Culmore Clinic, where he will be followed for his COVID symptoms and will find a compassionate medical home for the long run.
So, dearest Colleagues, when you close your eyes tonight, and even though you may have burdens of your own weighing heavily on your spirit, remember “Juana” - your neighbor, a wife, a grandma, a newcomer. You have made a difference in her life.
Warmly,
Anne-Lise