CommunityHealth is deploying mobile care units to local police precincts to provide thousands of new arrivals with health assessments and resources.
NBC5 Chicago sat down with our Chief Executive Officer, Steph Willding, MPA, to talk about the CommunityHealth mobile units providing urgent care at local police precincts where the city currently has over 750 asylum seekers housed.
With an expectation of over 1,000 people seeking shelter by the end of the week, the City of Chicago‘s Office of Emergency Management requested the aid of CommunityHealth “because of our reputation working with these communities.”
“We have a very progressive approach to make sure that we are reducing all barriers for folks including migrants who may not necessarily have all of the paperwork that you would typically expect in a traditional medical setting.”– Steph Willding
Although “we did not expect the need to increase this rapidly,” CommunityHealth is working to provide “not only health care but access to food, access to showers, access to toiletries” for the migrants who contribute to almost 20% of the city’s economy.
“This is about dignity.”
CommunityHealth will continue to triage health and wellness of adults housed at police stations as well as we will be going out to police stations twice a week, partnering with Lurie Children’s Hospital every Wednesday.
Community members can support CommunityHealth’s efforts by either donating directly to our migrant response fund or by sending toiletries to respite centers through our Amazon wish list.
