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Campus and Community Collaborate to Bring the Women and Infants’ Mobile Health Unit to the Central Coast

When STRIDE’s Women and Infants’ Mobile Health Unit begins operating next year, the free health outreach and counseling services will be available on the Central Coast thanks to collaborators across Cal Poly and throughout San Luis Obispo and Santa Barbara counties. The state-of the-art mobile unit arrived at Cal Poly in November equipped with two rooms for exams and education, refrigeration for biospecimens, an area for referrals and space to conduct research.

The unit will offer opportunities for students and faculty across campus, beyond those directly studying public health or health professions. Collaborators from nearly every college and some non-academic departments are involved, including Campus Health and Wellbeing, Graphic Communications, Social Sciences, Journalism, Modern Languages, Biological Sciences, Kinesiology and Nutrition.

“It's great to see a cross-campus interest, and we're hoping to see future involvement from students in different fields of study,” said Shelby Bachelder, the unit project coordinator.

Campus projects include:

  • Under the direction of Professor Dan Eller, journalism students are promoting launch events for the unit on campus and in the community. As part of the campus launch, faculty, staff and students will be invited to see the unit. Staff will also bring the unit to events in Santa Maria and Guadalupe, the cities where it will initially be parked for clinical and research hours.
  • Graphic communications students are designing an app and website for the unit as part of their coursework.
  • Students in Health Ambassadors, a kinesiology elective, are preparing to enroll participants in government programs and receiving training in all aspects of prenatal health needs on the Central Coast and in mobile health unit services and service protocol.
  • Social science students will conduct program evaluations with Sara Lopus, a social sciences instructor.

On the community front, the Women and Infants’ Mobile Health Unit will have a close referral relationship with the Center for Family Strengthening and its partner programs; Community Action Partnership of San Luis Obispo County, Community Action Commission of Santa Barbara County; Public Health; Women, Infants, and Children; People's Self-Help Housing; and many more public service organizations. In preparation for the unit launch, students and unit staff have established connections with these organizations  through participation in trainings, meetings and events. On the clinical services side, the Women and Infants’ Mobile Health Unit will offer supplementary and complementary care to that which is already offered by Community Health Centers on the Central Coast and Dignity's Health’s Pacific Central Coast Health Centers. Local OBGYNs will volunteer their services in the exam room alongside those involved in the Marian Regional Medical Center's residency program.

The unit started as part of a partnership between STRIDE, the Cal Poly/French Hospital Prevention Work Group and the Santa Maria Women’s Health Center. It is possible thanks to generous contributions from community members.

To join this university collaboration or to find out more about the unit, email project coordinator Shelby Bachelder at slbachel@calpoly.edu

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