Names of our patients have been changed out respect of their families and in observance of privacy laws.
A 14 year old came to our clinic with a puncture wound in her foot. We updated her lapsed tetanus vaccine, before further discovering that the wound happened because her apartment is almost uninhabitable. That was when we involved our behavioral health navigators to advocate for her, call the landlord, and have the situation addressed. Having earned the family’s trust, her mother discussed her daughter’s crippling anxiety — untreated because they had been unable to access sufficient mental health care. As a result, her schooling was suffering. We introduced her to our clinical psychologist to start her on the path to full wellness. All beginning with a small puncture wound. Our physicians are trained to understand that a patient’s presenting concern is not the end of ours. Often we must dig deeper to help heal.
“I first came to Clinica Medicos several years ago when I found out I was pregnant. I didn’t have insurance and I didn’t know where to go. The doctors there didn’t judge me. They just took great care of me during my pregnancy and helped me with temporary insurance to cover hospital costs. Luckily, I had a healthy pregnancy and the doctors from Clinica Medicos delivered my daughter. She’s now two years old and doing great. I now bring all of my kids to Clinica Medicos and I receive my birth control there. We can all go together. They continue to help my family and I in a number of ways. Last month, for example, I was really sick with a fever and chills. I don’t have insurance, so I am so thankful that I was able to go to the clinic instead of the emergency room. Clinica Medicos doctors took my blood, did an ultrasound, and gave me antibiotics right there to treat my infection. I know and trust the physicians there and because of them, I was able to get the help I needed on the day I needed it.”
A 17 year old from El Salvador came to Clínica Médicos on a Saturday complaining of chest pain. His physical exam and ECG were normal. When we dug deeper, we learned that he was displaced from his family, living alone, working to support himself, and on the brink of suicide. We connected him to a Spanish speaking counselor and started appropriate pediatric medications, with daily follow up, at no charge to insure his safety and build trust.
Five year old Estrella’s parents drove from Tracy City with pus streaming out of their daughter’s ear. Estrella's infection was so severe that her hearing was compromised. Oral antibiotics alone were not potent enough to reach a cure, so we provided injectable antibiotics, as well as medications from our pharmacy, over the course of five days until she was cured and could hear properly.
After a car accident, Maria S. went to the emergency room and learned she had a broken back. She also learned that she was pregnant. She came to Clínica Médicos in a back brace, frightened for her child, and upset that she could not communicate with doctors about her fracture. We accessed her records electronically and worked alongside her neurosurgeon to create a treatment plan that avoided expensive office visits and kept her baby healthy.
Jesus R. walked into Clínica Médicos with his wife and two small children the first day we opened. They recently moved from Florida. Four months previously, Jesus had been diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumor. We recognized that, with appropriate chemotherapy, he could have a chance to beat the cancer and see his children grow. Our team connected Jesus to Erlanger's tumor clinic for the uninsured and paired him with an oncologist, so Jesus could start the chemotherapy he needed. This treatment was successful, and a year later, we delivered his healthy, second child.
“My ear infection would not improve, and the antibiotics I received from the ER made me sick. I stayed out of school for two weeks because the pain was so extreme. My parents felt helpless. They talked to Dr. Arnold, who listened to our troubles and found an injectable medication that I could tolerate. I went back to school the next week without pain. My father was so impressed with the way they cared for me that he trusted Dr. Arnold. He became her patient, too, and they discovered he has diabetes. He has since lost ten pounds. He looks great and feels better!”
