This new van will travel throughout New Haven in tandem with the city's Needle Exchange Program. The van also will be used by another Yale program, the Medical Residents Training Program, which will continue to provide medical services one day a week to individuals at city soup kitchens. Since the mobile medical health clinic program's inception in 1993, more than 1,800 men and women between the ages of 20 and 45 have been served. The new van, which replaces a smaller one rented from the APT Foundation, includes two exam rooms, one counseling room, plus a waiting area. The number of days that the van is in operation has been expanded from two days a week to five, and the staff has been increased, bringing its complement up to 10.
Some members are bilingual.
As we introduce this expanded mobile medical service, we will evaluate whether it changes patterns and ways people use the health care system in a middle-sized city. As part of this federally funded project, the Yale team will follow 500 drug users and look at how they utilize health care services. We will see if people who have repeated interaction with the van change from episodic and fragmented care to primary care.