Clinic assists underserved community

A collaborative effort between VCU’s School of Nursing, the Richmond City Health District (RCHD), the Richmond Redevelopment and Housing Authority (RRHA) and the Mosby Tenant Council helped launch a new neighborhood health center in downtown Richmond.

Located just blocks from VCU in an underserved RRHA district, the Mosby Resource Center offers a community- and relationship-based approach to promoting wellness through a variety of services, including health screenings, checkups and health and nutrition education.

Through partnering with organizations such as the RCHD, Fan Free Clinic and Peter Paul Development Center, as well as the Richmond Memorial Health Foundation and the Virginia Health Care Foundation, which provided funding for the center, services also include AIDS testing, family planning, teen peer support, tutoring assistance, budget management and community resource information.

“There are a lot of people out there who don’t have the means to get to the doctor and don’t have proper health care,” said Aquanetta Scott, vice president of the Mosby Tenant Council. “The new clinic [is a] great addition for everybody in the neighborhood as well as the surrounding areas.”

The new Mosby Resource Center joins existing resource centers in RRHA’s Creighton, Fairfield and Whitcomb communities, where VCU School of Nursing students provide clinical services as a part of their required nursing school course work.

“The goal is to help the citizens in the community not only improve their health care, but also learn how to navigate the health systems in the Richmond metro area,” added Stephanie L. Ferguson, Ph.D., RN, FAAN, associate professor and director of the Community Nursing Organization in the nursing school. “I hope we will have a positive impact on the community by providing increased access to prevention, wellness and chronic care management services.”