Montreal Launches First-Ever Mobile Medical Clinic
Photo cred - Marie-Eve Shaffer for Journal Metro
Montreal's branch of Médecins du Monde has launched the very first mobile medical clinic in all of North America, which will roll out onto the city's streets for the first time today, offering medical services to the city's more marginalized citizens.
Heading the project is Marie-Ève Goyer, a known advocate for the medical treatment of "vulnerable clientele," which is a nicer way of saying those who have it a lot more rough in the city, specifically the homeless population and sex workers.
Doctors, nurses, and volunteers riding in the mobile clinic will be able to provide patients with standard health care treatment, and will also have a fully equipped examination table for more serious or involved medical care. Screening tests for STIs and hepatitis vaccinations will be a major medical-focus.
To gain access to the mobile clinic, all you need to give them is a first name (or even a nickname), the first letter of your last name, and a birth date. Seems a little strange/sketchy, but that's the point, as the mobile clinic is meant to be less intimidating and more welcoming to those individuals who are uncomfortable with giving out/can't provide formal documentation.
Denis Coderre is all for the mobile clinic catering to Montreal's marginalized communities, giving the project his "full support and collaboration," as quoted in the Gazette.
Médecins du Monde's mobile clinic is a great initiative to help the most needy citizens of Montreal, and we totally support the idea. We only wish there were more mobile clinics rolling around so we could hop in for a check-up, because we all know how awful it can be to wait for hours at a regular clinic.
For more on all things Montreal, follow Michael on Twitter @MDAlimonte
