Latino community accessing healthcare through the ventanilla de salud movil in southwest Kansas

INTRODUCTION: The Affordable Care Act, which will greatly expand access to the medical care services will not cover Latino recent immigrants and will not ensure physicians where the need is the greatest. Drawn by opportunities in service, agriculture, and meatpacking industries, Latinos have become the fastest growing minority group in the rural counties in the Midwest. OBJECTIVES: To empower rural Latinos with access to preventive health screening and knowledge to work as equal partners in the development and implementation of culturally relevant interventions that will reduce the burden of lack of health access in their communities. METHODS: We developed a community-based, participatory research (CBPR) program that involves partnerships between academic institutions, community health workers, and the Ventanilla de Salud program with local Mexican Consulate. Trained Promotoras de Salud partner with medical providers to disseminate the culturally relevant health education, conduct health screenings, and provide follow-up case management. RESULTS: During 2012, 1,031 participants attended the VDS mobile events. Participants were mainly Hispanic(94%), uninsured(71%), between 18-50 years old(75%), and recent immigrants(33.7%). The screenings identified: 67.3% of the participants are overweight or obese, 26% have high blood pressure, and 15.4% were diabetic or pre-diabetic. A total of 22 Promotoras de Salud completed three educational sessions on Cancer and Cancer Clinical Trials. Trained Promotoras de Salud provided culturally-sensitive educational material to approximately 500 participants and follow-up with participants at high risk. CONCLUSION: By accessing healthcare we will be able to improve the overall health, identify community's health needs, and eliminate the existing health disparities among Latinos in Southwest Kansas.