March 2, 2025 • 19 mins
The RJEC Medical Clinic promotes proactive health management among marginalized communities. By increasing the number of people who receive general assessments, blood pressure checks, and health education through quarterly health talk workshops and an annual health fair—all of which are intended to be family-friendly and empower the whole family—the RJEC Medical Clinic promotes general community health.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:01):
You're listening to ProjectRedcord Chronicles, a podcast of
the Renee Jones EmpowermentCenter.
We are so excited about thispodcast about the Renee Jones
Empowerment Medical Clinicbecause we want you to
understand the benefits to thecommunity today we have Marvin.
(00:25):
that come to the clinic on aregular basis and I'd like to
introduce him to our audience.
Welcome Marvin.
How are you doing?
We thank you for joining us forthis episode of Project Red
Court Chronicles.
Can you share with our audiencewhat you've been able to gain by
coming to the clinic?
I feel like I gained a familyfor one.
(00:46):
Yes.
Now that I can come someplace Ican trust the people that work
here with my private informationand whatever I need and make
sure I get it done.
Or if they can't help me, theypoint me to the right direction.
That is wonderful.
We are so glad because that'sthe whole point of us being
here, we want you to feelcomfortable.
(01:06):
We want you to gain knowledgeabout taking care of yourself
and your health and if can'tprovide the service, we
definitely want to make sure youare pointed to someone that can.
We're glad of that.
Is there anything else you'dlike to share about the clinic
you enjoy?
The young lady, Jalisa, shealways give us that warm welcome
feeling when we come around.
(01:27):
Even sometimes my mic come and Ibe talking a lot.
She don't run me off.
She listen to me unless somebodyelse comes to get Sandy.
She had to take care of thatperson, so I had to take a walk
for a little while.
Yeah, but that's nice.
We do have a wonderful nurse,Jalisa, that runs the clinic.
That's wonderful for people tounderstand that it means
something.
(01:47):
For someone to take time tolisten to you and your concerns
and make you feel warm andcomfortable.
That is exactly our goal here atthe clinic.
So we're glad to know that.
We want people to know thatwe're only able to provide the
clinic because of funding thatwe get from a foundation called
Three Arches Foundation.
(02:07):
And it's very valuable and wewant people to know, and we want
people to hear How important itis to have something like this
in your community that you canjust walk into.
We really appreciate y'all beinghere.
A lot of us wouldn't know whatto do if y'all wasn't here.
Yes.
So we hope y'all continue to bearound to help us.
We thank you, Marvin, forjoining us for this episode of
(02:30):
Project Rare Core Chronicles.
You have an awesome day.
You too.
We are so excited to let youhear from our nurse, Jalisa, We
are celebrating two years ofhaving our medical clinic open
which was made possible by theThree Arches Foundation.
Because it's the beginning ofthe year, we wanted to share
(02:52):
with you some of our statisticsof the people that have been
served.
At our medical clinic.
I'd like to take the time towelcome our nurse, Jalisa, to
this podcast Hello.
Thank you for being here,Jalisa.
Thank you.
Anybody listening to the podcastfor the first time learning
about the clinic.
We'll learn that we not onlyprovide services to the
(03:14):
community, but also services tothe clients we serve, as well as
providing services and outreachat two locations that are
included within the grant wereceived.
You have a number of areas wherepeople are coming to receive
services.
So can you share with us whatare our final numbers for the
(03:37):
Two year period.
Yes.
For the year 2023 and 2024 theRJEC medical Clinic serviced
over a total of 1,555 people.
And that included our onsiteclinic, our clients that we
serve, our health talks andhealth fairs, our outreaches,
(03:58):
including Arch Wood andLorraine, and also our pop-up
outreach.
That is amazing.
Can you specify the number ofwomen and the number of men and
the demographics for each group?
Yes, so we sent a total of 802females and 753 males.
(04:20):
And they were either white,black, Hispanic, or Asian.
That is amazing.
We are definitely reaching someof the underserved populations
in these areas within thecommunity where we're located
our outreach locations and evensome of the clients that are
being served.
(04:41):
Thank you so much for thosenumbers because that is pretty
powerful that we were able toserve that many people in a
clinic.
And we're grateful to ThreeArches Foundation for making
that possible for us.
One of the other things I'd likefor you to share with our
audience is what were some ofthe successes that we
(05:04):
experienced during this two yearperiod?
There were quite a few successesthat we experienced.
One thing that was veryimportant when starting the
clinic is building arelationship with the community.
Cause it was something new, youhave to build that trust with
them so that was something thatwas really successful.
Now we have regular people thatcome every time the clinic is
(05:25):
open.
Also, being able to help peoplewho really need the help.
Who doesn't have any medicalinsurance, or like it's some
type of language barrier, orit's the reason why they are
unable to see the doctor.
Yeah.
That's part of the biggestsuccess is being able to help
people and merge the gap betweenthe people in the community and
the healthcare system.
(05:46):
And that's very importantbecause sometimes those barriers
keep people from even seekingout any kind of care.
You said it was important tobuild relationships because as
we've heard from some of thepeople that attend the clinic
that's one thing that theyemphasized, how feeling welcome
and, being able to talk withsomeone and feeling comfortable
(06:09):
is very important to peoplecoming in and maybe haven't
received care, don't have accessto care.
Making it a comfortable placefor them to be is great.
In all the successes, we arealways happy about what we can
do, and we're always thinkingabout what we can do to improve.
Along with successes, we alsohad some challenges.
(06:29):
What are some of the challengesthat you experienced within this
two year period?
One thing was building arelationship with some people
with the drug epidemic that'sgoing on, they feel like they're
gonna be judged because of thescarring and different things
like that They embarrassed alittle to come in So that was a
challenge letting them know weare a judge free safe zone And
(06:53):
that we just here to help sothat was one of the challenges
that we had to overcome also,helping people with different
language barriers and differentcultures that was, one of the
things that was a littledifficult.
We had to figure out a way thatwe can communicate with people
who have language barriers.
So we started to use translatorsand give information that's in
(07:15):
the language they canunderstand.
That was one of the things thatwas really big.
Yeah, I've witnessed that atoutreach seeing people come up
and a lot of times having someissues, feeling their blood
pressure was up, they werefeeling a little bit sick, and
they wanted to get checked outbut didn't know how to
communicate.
Like you said, that wassomething that we definitely
(07:35):
learned.
Now you have a translatormachine.
Can you share a little bit abouthow that machine is helping you
to communicate with those whomay speak a different language.
Oh, yes.
The translate machine iswonderful.
They're able to expressdifferent things and I'm able to
tell them exactly what's goingon or things that they need to
know or point them in the rightdirection.
(07:57):
It speaks to them, they're ableto read it too.
Yes.
It's amazing.
That is awesome.
That has been great to see.
How that is helping with thechallenge of not being able to
communicate the people I've hadthe opportunity to see, when
you're using that machine itmakes them feel really
comfortable that someone isunderstanding what they're
(08:18):
saying.
Very important.
Are there any other challengesyou may have encountered during
this couple years?
Yes, One thing that was a reallybig challenge that I noticed,
they have the new technologywhere they see the doctor
virtual to get refills onprescriptions or things like
that.
A lot of people really don'tunderstand so they either miss
the appointment or they missread the terms in order to get
(08:41):
insurance to even get refillsfor prescriptions and afford it.
Even myself as somebody thatgoes, for someone who is not
tech savvy, or maybe don't evenhave a cell phone the way things
are now that you have tovirtually, you gotta sign in.
It's so much general informationthat people really need to
understand.
(09:02):
If you don't do this on aregular basis, it can be quite
intimidating to say you have avirtual visit.
And most of the time, peoplewon't go.
That was something that wasreally big being able to help
them to understand virtual ordifferent questions they could
ask the doctor when they do goencouraging them to keep a log
of their blood pressure.
So when you go, it's oh, youhave a high blood pressure this
(09:23):
time, but every time you come tothe clinic, you have a really
good blood pressure.
Just encouraging them to dodifferent things to, okay.
I know that's one thing that wewant to be able to do more
information about too, aboutvirtual visits, what they can
ask questions, how to sign on,how to use your cell phone.
that way they can get the healthcare they need.
(09:46):
That's awesome.
Since we're talking about that,you developed a blood pressure
journal that's really importantand impressive to people when
they go to their doctor, theyget their journals where they
have kept track of their bloodpressures.
Teaching them how to takecontrol of their health.
In that journal you have whatother kind of information is in
there other than them trackingtheir blood pressure readings?
(10:09):
Yes.
It's educating them on bloodpressure, different things that
affects the blood pressure, theimportance of monitoring the
blood pressure, and the thingsthat high blood pressure can
cause, and taking control oftheir diet and fluid intake and
how it affects the bloodpressure, different things of
that nature.
I've witnessed people asking.
For those journals, I know atfirst it was a challenge, but
(10:31):
now they look forward to gettingthose journals and keeping track
of it, one of the people weinterviewed, she's a part of a
study at University Hospital onblood pressure.
So that experience of her comingto the clinic really opened her
up to be a part of that trial.
Yes.
So I thought that was amazing.
(10:51):
Along with all of thosechallenges, knowing that we see
a lot of people in the communitywho are addicted to drugs, and
like you said, there's a shamefactor.
They may not want to get theirblood pressure checked because
you may see their track marksOvercoming that challenge.
Has been really good.
I've seen the transformation inthe number of people in the
(11:13):
community.
And I would love for you toshare with the audience about
the kit that you put together tohelp those who are struggling
with addiction.
Yes.
I was thinking, sometimes Thedrug addictions is out of people
control, they try to fight theaddiction, but in reality This
is something that they do socame up with something to try to
(11:34):
make it safe as possible toprevent the spread of infection
or Someone becoming septus andhaving to go to the ER, so we
came up with a kit that includesdifferent things We have gloves
antibiotics, antibiotic ointmentwe have alcohol swabs, masks,
saline solutions to cleanwounds, and different types of
(11:56):
bandages to wrap wounds or trackmarks to prevent them from
becoming infected.
It was amazing that you came upwith that, I've witnessed how
important that kit is.
To those who come.
Now they know, that they cancome.
Yes, we would love for them tonot do drugs, but, you know
(12:17):
what, this is an addiction, andwe still want them to be safe
and healthy as possible, likeyou said, prevent spreading
infections, one thing that stoodout to me is when you started
doing this, I remember someonementioning That they no longer
would throw their needles on theground because you had given
them a kit.
(12:37):
It comes with a zipper bag wherethey can put everything in.
That really stood out to mebecause we don't want someone
walking past or a child see aneedle on the ground and pick it
up.
Spreading disease by leavingneedles on the ground.
Yes.
They did really appreciate that.
And they really look forward tothe kids.
Sometimes they come to theclinic just for a kid.
(13:00):
Yes.
I'm just glad that we have themand we are able to help.
As much as we can while they'regoing through this struggle and
just let them know that we'rehere for them, no matter the
situation, and no judgment, andit's safe to talk about it or
ask questions.
I also incorporated differentthings so they know, like, when
to go to the ER or when to gosee about something, when the
(13:20):
infection is starting, yes, andthat is so important.
Now, another thing I want peopleto see, to know about is this.
When the clinic is open to thecommunity, we have a, entrance
on the lower level where peoplecan just walk in, it's easy for
them.
You have a lot of posters thereand they have a lot of good
(13:41):
information about drug andalcohol use and what it does to
the body and other things.
Can you share a little bit aboutthose posters and the effect
they have?
Oh, yes.
For example, we have quite a fewposters.
One that tells, like, how thebody reacts to alcohol, heroin,
(14:01):
and also cocaine.
Yes.
Because, sometimes people don'trealize how much damage
something is doing to theirbody.
Yes.
And so they actually sit downand you explain to them Oh I
drink, but I don't have, I'mfine.
My blood pressure is good.
And then you start to explain,you show them the posters and
you start to explain okay, itcan start with this, like it
affects the liver a largerstomach, And they be like, oh,
(14:23):
wow oh, I do have that a littlebit, so they are very good
resources.
Sometimes you see people walkpast and take pictures of the
poster.
Yeah.
Where they come in and just.
I was just like, oh my goodness.
I didn't even realize this.
I have this going on and this.
Maybe I should go talk to thedoctor.
I had a older gentleman thatcame into the clinic last week
(14:44):
that was a diabetic.
And he was outdone by the typeof things, like the diet that he
should be doing.
Or other things that high bloodsugar can cause.
He had no idea.
He took a lot of pictures toshow his wife they appreciate
it.
I remember one man come in, andhe actually wanted us to give
him the poster to put in hisbuilding.
Because he lives in a buildingwhere there's a lot of people
(15:06):
who are addicted to drugs.
And he wanted them to see whatit was doing to their bodies.
we're glad that you have theseposters and information is
available and they're able tolearn and feel comfortable about
asking questions.
Empowering other people with theinformation, which leads to my
next question about the programsoffered through the clinic, the
(15:29):
educational workshops, theannual health fair.
We have these quarterly healthtalks, you can talk a little bit
about some of the quarterlyhealth talks that are set up for
people to attend.
Yeah, so we have quarterlyhealth talks where we educate
the community on differenttopics, we educate them and let
(15:49):
them know how to take control oftheir health and their body.
Yes.
And we also make it veryinviting.
Where it's kid friendly and wedo different activities stress
relievers and different stationswhere you can learn more about
your health and how to takecontrol of it.
Yes.
I know when we first started itwas a challenge getting people
(16:10):
to come because they're not usedto coming to something like that
but the more we started to makeit family friendly with games
and activities and art therapyand adding all these components
we were able to get.
more participation in thesehealth talks and annual fairs.
We're grateful for that.
(16:30):
I wanted people to understand,not only are you serving a
community, but you're educatingthem through these events.
The biggest one we had was asuperhero.
I thought that one was so muchfun.
It was great for the entirefamily because they learned a
lot about their health.
But they also had a good timedoing it as well.
(16:51):
We've learned making it familyfriendly is very empowering for
the community.
So we're grateful for that., Ithank you, Jalisa, for all the
work you've been doing for thepast couple of years in the
clinic we are so excited we didreceive another grant for two
more years.
And we intend to continue to dogreat work.
(17:11):
We got a few new things thatwe're going to be adding.
Do you want to share a littlebit?
Yes.
So on Fridays between 9.
30 and 12.
30, we'll be having a coffee andtea with the nurse, where you're
able to come in and askdifferent questions and have a
one on one.
And that way you can get caughtup with your health and learn,
the questions that sometimes youdon't have time or you're afraid
(17:34):
to ask the doctor.
We can go over those things andI can help you go in the right
direction.
And that is wonderful.
I love that.
I think that will make peoplefeel more comfortable you're
empowering them to take controlof their health.
What questions Should they ask,and that they have the right to
ask those questions, and theywant to be knowledgeable when
they're going to the doctor.
(17:55):
To do it and, that way they canget the health care that they
need.
Yes.
Jalisa, thank you for joining usfor this very important episode
of Project Rare Core Chronicles,all about the medical clinic
here and the services, and thankyou again for all that you do
for the community.
Thank you.
Thank you for tuning in to thisepisode of Project Rare Core
(18:18):
Chronicles, learning all aboutthe RJEC Medical Clinic.
We are so thankful you tuned in.
Please remember to like andshare the podcast with your
friends and family and make surepeople learn about the services
available at the RJEC MedicalClinic.
Be aware and care.
(18:38):
Thank you.
You're listening to ProjectRedcord Chronicles, a podcast of
the Renee Jones EmpowermentCenter.
We are so excited about thispodcast about the Renee Jones
Empowerment Medical Clinicbecause we want you to
understand the benefits to thecommunity today we have Marvin.
(00:25):
that come to the clinic on aregular basis and I'd like to
introduce him to our audience.
Welcome Marvin.
How are you doing?
We thank you for joining us forthis episode of Project Red
Court Chronicles.
Can you share with our audiencewhat you've been able to gain by
coming to the clinic?
I feel like I gained a familyfor one.
(00:46):
Yes.
Now that I can come someplace Ican trust the people that work
here with my private informationand whatever I need and make
sure I get it done.
Or if they can't help me, theypoint me to the right direction.
That is wonderful.
We are so glad because that'sthe whole point of us being
here, we want you to feelcomfortable.
(01:06):
We want you to gain knowledgeabout taking care of yourself
and your health and if can'tprovide the service, we
definitely want to make sure youare pointed to someone that can.
We're glad of that.
Is there anything else you'dlike to share about the clinic
you enjoy?
The young lady, Jalisa, shealways give us that warm welcome
feeling when we come around.
(01:27):
Even sometimes my mic come and Ibe talking a lot.
She don't run me off.
She listen to me unless somebodyelse comes to get Sandy.
She had to take care of thatperson, so I had to take a walk
for a little while.
Yeah, but that's nice.
We do have a wonderful nurse,Jalisa, that runs the clinic.
That's wonderful for people tounderstand that it means
something.
(01:47):
For someone to take time tolisten to you and your concerns
and make you feel warm andcomfortable.
That is exactly our goal here atthe clinic.
So we're glad to know that.
We want people to know thatwe're only able to provide the
clinic because of funding thatwe get from a foundation called
Three Arches Foundation.
(02:07):
And it's very valuable and wewant people to know, and we want
people to hear How important itis to have something like this
in your community that you canjust walk into.
We really appreciate y'all beinghere.
A lot of us wouldn't know whatto do if y'all wasn't here.
Yes.
So we hope y'all continue to bearound to help us.
We thank you, Marvin, forjoining us for this episode of
(02:30):
Project Rare Core Chronicles.
You have an awesome day.
You too.
We are so excited to let youhear from our nurse, Jalisa, We
are celebrating two years ofhaving our medical clinic open
which was made possible by theThree Arches Foundation.
Because it's the beginning ofthe year, we wanted to share
(02:52):
with you some of our statisticsof the people that have been
served.
At our medical clinic.
I'd like to take the time towelcome our nurse, Jalisa, to
this podcast Hello.
Thank you for being here,Jalisa.
Thank you.
Anybody listening to the podcastfor the first time learning
about the clinic.
We'll learn that we not onlyprovide services to the
(03:14):
community, but also services tothe clients we serve, as well as
providing services and outreachat two locations that are
included within the grant wereceived.
You have a number of areas wherepeople are coming to receive
services.
So can you share with us whatare our final numbers for the
(03:37):
Two year period.
Yes.
For the year 2023 and 2024 theRJEC medical Clinic serviced
over a total of 1,555 people.
And that included our onsiteclinic, our clients that we
serve, our health talks andhealth fairs, our outreaches,
(03:58):
including Arch Wood andLorraine, and also our pop-up
outreach.
That is amazing.
Can you specify the number ofwomen and the number of men and
the demographics for each group?
Yes, so we sent a total of 802females and 753 males.
(04:20):
And they were either white,black, Hispanic, or Asian.
That is amazing.
We are definitely reaching someof the underserved populations
in these areas within thecommunity where we're located
our outreach locations and evensome of the clients that are
being served.
(04:41):
Thank you so much for thosenumbers because that is pretty
powerful that we were able toserve that many people in a
clinic.
And we're grateful to ThreeArches Foundation for making
that possible for us.
One of the other things I'd likefor you to share with our
audience is what were some ofthe successes that we
(05:04):
experienced during this two yearperiod?
There were quite a few successesthat we experienced.
One thing that was veryimportant when starting the
clinic is building arelationship with the community.
Cause it was something new, youhave to build that trust with
them so that was something thatwas really successful.
Now we have regular people thatcome every time the clinic is
(05:25):
open.
Also, being able to help peoplewho really need the help.
Who doesn't have any medicalinsurance, or like it's some
type of language barrier, orit's the reason why they are
unable to see the doctor.
Yeah.
That's part of the biggestsuccess is being able to help
people and merge the gap betweenthe people in the community and
the healthcare system.
(05:46):
And that's very importantbecause sometimes those barriers
keep people from even seekingout any kind of care.
You said it was important tobuild relationships because as
we've heard from some of thepeople that attend the clinic
that's one thing that theyemphasized, how feeling welcome
and, being able to talk withsomeone and feeling comfortable
(06:09):
is very important to peoplecoming in and maybe haven't
received care, don't have accessto care.
Making it a comfortable placefor them to be is great.
In all the successes, we arealways happy about what we can
do, and we're always thinkingabout what we can do to improve.
Along with successes, we alsohad some challenges.
(06:29):
What are some of the challengesthat you experienced within this
two year period?
One thing was building arelationship with some people
with the drug epidemic that'sgoing on, they feel like they're
gonna be judged because of thescarring and different things
like that They embarrassed alittle to come in So that was a
challenge letting them know weare a judge free safe zone And
(06:53):
that we just here to help sothat was one of the challenges
that we had to overcome also,helping people with different
language barriers and differentcultures that was, one of the
things that was a littledifficult.
We had to figure out a way thatwe can communicate with people
who have language barriers.
So we started to use translatorsand give information that's in
(07:15):
the language they canunderstand.
That was one of the things thatwas really big.
Yeah, I've witnessed that atoutreach seeing people come up
and a lot of times having someissues, feeling their blood
pressure was up, they werefeeling a little bit sick, and
they wanted to get checked outbut didn't know how to
communicate.
Like you said, that wassomething that we definitely
(07:35):
learned.
Now you have a translatormachine.
Can you share a little bit abouthow that machine is helping you
to communicate with those whomay speak a different language.
Oh, yes.
The translate machine iswonderful.
They're able to expressdifferent things and I'm able to
tell them exactly what's goingon or things that they need to
know or point them in the rightdirection.
(07:57):
It speaks to them, they're ableto read it too.
Yes.
It's amazing.
That is awesome.
That has been great to see.
How that is helping with thechallenge of not being able to
communicate the people I've hadthe opportunity to see, when
you're using that machine itmakes them feel really
comfortable that someone isunderstanding what they're
(08:18):
saying.
Very important.
Are there any other challengesyou may have encountered during
this couple years?
Yes, One thing that was a reallybig challenge that I noticed,
they have the new technologywhere they see the doctor
virtual to get refills onprescriptions or things like
that.
A lot of people really don'tunderstand so they either miss
the appointment or they missread the terms in order to get
(08:41):
insurance to even get refillsfor prescriptions and afford it.
Even myself as somebody thatgoes, for someone who is not
tech savvy, or maybe don't evenhave a cell phone the way things
are now that you have tovirtually, you gotta sign in.
It's so much general informationthat people really need to
understand.
(09:02):
If you don't do this on aregular basis, it can be quite
intimidating to say you have avirtual visit.
And most of the time, peoplewon't go.
That was something that wasreally big being able to help
them to understand virtual ordifferent questions they could
ask the doctor when they do goencouraging them to keep a log
of their blood pressure.
So when you go, it's oh, youhave a high blood pressure this
(09:23):
time, but every time you come tothe clinic, you have a really
good blood pressure.
Just encouraging them to dodifferent things to, okay.
I know that's one thing that wewant to be able to do more
information about too, aboutvirtual visits, what they can
ask questions, how to sign on,how to use your cell phone.
that way they can get the healthcare they need.
(09:46):
That's awesome.
Since we're talking about that,you developed a blood pressure
journal that's really importantand impressive to people when
they go to their doctor, theyget their journals where they
have kept track of their bloodpressures.
Teaching them how to takecontrol of their health.
In that journal you have whatother kind of information is in
there other than them trackingtheir blood pressure readings?
(10:09):
Yes.
It's educating them on bloodpressure, different things that
affects the blood pressure, theimportance of monitoring the
blood pressure, and the thingsthat high blood pressure can
cause, and taking control oftheir diet and fluid intake and
how it affects the bloodpressure, different things of
that nature.
I've witnessed people asking.
For those journals, I know atfirst it was a challenge, but
(10:31):
now they look forward to gettingthose journals and keeping track
of it, one of the people weinterviewed, she's a part of a
study at University Hospital onblood pressure.
So that experience of her comingto the clinic really opened her
up to be a part of that trial.
Yes.
So I thought that was amazing.
(10:51):
Along with all of thosechallenges, knowing that we see
a lot of people in the communitywho are addicted to drugs, and
like you said, there's a shamefactor.
They may not want to get theirblood pressure checked because
you may see their track marksOvercoming that challenge.
Has been really good.
I've seen the transformation inthe number of people in the
(11:13):
community.
And I would love for you toshare with the audience about
the kit that you put together tohelp those who are struggling
with addiction.
Yes.
I was thinking, sometimes Thedrug addictions is out of people
control, they try to fight theaddiction, but in reality This
is something that they do socame up with something to try to
(11:34):
make it safe as possible toprevent the spread of infection
or Someone becoming septus andhaving to go to the ER, so we
came up with a kit that includesdifferent things We have gloves
antibiotics, antibiotic ointmentwe have alcohol swabs, masks,
saline solutions to cleanwounds, and different types of
(11:56):
bandages to wrap wounds or trackmarks to prevent them from
becoming infected.
It was amazing that you came upwith that, I've witnessed how
important that kit is.
To those who come.
Now they know, that they cancome.
Yes, we would love for them tonot do drugs, but, you know
(12:17):
what, this is an addiction, andwe still want them to be safe
and healthy as possible, likeyou said, prevent spreading
infections, one thing that stoodout to me is when you started
doing this, I remember someonementioning That they no longer
would throw their needles on theground because you had given
them a kit.
(12:37):
It comes with a zipper bag wherethey can put everything in.
That really stood out to mebecause we don't want someone
walking past or a child see aneedle on the ground and pick it
up.
Spreading disease by leavingneedles on the ground.
Yes.
They did really appreciate that.
And they really look forward tothe kids.
Sometimes they come to theclinic just for a kid.
(13:00):
Yes.
I'm just glad that we have themand we are able to help.
As much as we can while they'regoing through this struggle and
just let them know that we'rehere for them, no matter the
situation, and no judgment, andit's safe to talk about it or
ask questions.
I also incorporated differentthings so they know, like, when
to go to the ER or when to gosee about something, when the
(13:20):
infection is starting, yes, andthat is so important.
Now, another thing I want peopleto see, to know about is this.
When the clinic is open to thecommunity, we have a, entrance
on the lower level where peoplecan just walk in, it's easy for
them.
You have a lot of posters thereand they have a lot of good
(13:41):
information about drug andalcohol use and what it does to
the body and other things.
Can you share a little bit aboutthose posters and the effect
they have?
Oh, yes.
For example, we have quite a fewposters.
One that tells, like, how thebody reacts to alcohol, heroin,
(14:01):
and also cocaine.
Yes.
Because, sometimes people don'trealize how much damage
something is doing to theirbody.
Yes.
And so they actually sit downand you explain to them Oh I
drink, but I don't have, I'mfine.
My blood pressure is good.
And then you start to explain,you show them the posters and
you start to explain okay, itcan start with this, like it
affects the liver a largerstomach, And they be like, oh,
(14:23):
wow oh, I do have that a littlebit, so they are very good
resources.
Sometimes you see people walkpast and take pictures of the
poster.
Yeah.
Where they come in and just.
I was just like, oh my goodness.
I didn't even realize this.
I have this going on and this.
Maybe I should go talk to thedoctor.
I had a older gentleman thatcame into the clinic last week
(14:44):
that was a diabetic.
And he was outdone by the typeof things, like the diet that he
should be doing.
Or other things that high bloodsugar can cause.
He had no idea.
He took a lot of pictures toshow his wife they appreciate
it.
I remember one man come in, andhe actually wanted us to give
him the poster to put in hisbuilding.
Because he lives in a buildingwhere there's a lot of people
(15:06):
who are addicted to drugs.
And he wanted them to see whatit was doing to their bodies.
we're glad that you have theseposters and information is
available and they're able tolearn and feel comfortable about
asking questions.
Empowering other people with theinformation, which leads to my
next question about the programsoffered through the clinic, the
(15:29):
educational workshops, theannual health fair.
We have these quarterly healthtalks, you can talk a little bit
about some of the quarterlyhealth talks that are set up for
people to attend.
Yeah, so we have quarterlyhealth talks where we educate
the community on differenttopics, we educate them and let
(15:49):
them know how to take control oftheir health and their body.
Yes.
And we also make it veryinviting.
Where it's kid friendly and wedo different activities stress
relievers and different stationswhere you can learn more about
your health and how to takecontrol of it.
Yes.
I know when we first started itwas a challenge getting people
(16:10):
to come because they're not usedto coming to something like that
but the more we started to makeit family friendly with games
and activities and art therapyand adding all these components
we were able to get.
more participation in thesehealth talks and annual fairs.
We're grateful for that.
(16:30):
I wanted people to understand,not only are you serving a
community, but you're educatingthem through these events.
The biggest one we had was asuperhero.
I thought that one was so muchfun.
It was great for the entirefamily because they learned a
lot about their health.
But they also had a good timedoing it as well.
(16:51):
We've learned making it familyfriendly is very empowering for
the community.
So we're grateful for that., Ithank you, Jalisa, for all the
work you've been doing for thepast couple of years in the
clinic we are so excited we didreceive another grant for two
more years.
And we intend to continue to dogreat work.
(17:11):
We got a few new things thatwe're going to be adding.
Do you want to share a littlebit?
Yes.
So on Fridays between 9.
30 and 12.
30, we'll be having a coffee andtea with the nurse, where you're
able to come in and askdifferent questions and have a
one on one.
And that way you can get caughtup with your health and learn,
the questions that sometimes youdon't have time or you're afraid
(17:34):
to ask the doctor.
We can go over those things andI can help you go in the right
direction.
And that is wonderful.
I love that.
I think that will make peoplefeel more comfortable you're
empowering them to take controlof their health.
What questions Should they ask,and that they have the right to
ask those questions, and theywant to be knowledgeable when
they're going to the doctor.
(17:55):
To do it and, that way they canget the health care that they
need.
Yes.
Jalisa, thank you for joining usfor this very important episode
of Project Rare Core Chronicles,all about the medical clinic
here and the services, and thankyou again for all that you do
for the community.
Thank you.
Thank you for tuning in to thisepisode of Project Rare Core
(18:18):
Chronicles, learning all aboutthe RJEC Medical Clinic.
We are so thankful you tuned in.
Please remember to like andshare the podcast with your
friends and family and make surepeople learn about the services
available at the RJEC MedicalClinic.
Be aware and care.
(18:38):
Thank you.
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