Mercy Ministries Of Laredo

Programs: Mercy ministries of laredo provides primary healthcare services, with a focus on prevention and education, to families in webb county who are uninsured, indigent and reside in medically underserved areas. Services are rendered at mercy clinic located at 2500 zacatecas street and at fourteen outreach sites throughout webb county via a medical mobile clinic. Mercy mobile clinic delivers services to colonias (unincorporated areas), inner city and outlying areas where medical help is inaccessible. The main programs are primary healthcare, outreach & education, adult dental services, medication assistance and nutrition. Over 2414 unduplicated patients were served in fiscal year 2017. Primary healthcare: the primary healthcare program focuses on prevention and education. It includes annual physical and wellness exams with screenings for diabetes, hypertension and heart disease. The program also includes screenings for breast, cervical, colon and prostate cancer. There were 1,138 cancer screening tests performed in fiscal year 2017. Six patients were diagnosed during the year with some form of cancer and were referred to specialists for treatment. Mercy clinic collaborates with local oncologists and diagnosticians to assist patients with expenses for treatment. All cases are followed by case managers. Patients are seen by mid-level practitioners and are referred to physicians and or specialty physicians when necessary. The practitioners had over 6,690 medical encounters during the fiscal year. Case managers and social workers, with over 9,910 patient encounters, also play a critical role in the primary healthcare program. They guide patients through the medical system and make specialty and follow up referrals. Over 736 patients were referred to medical specialists for care. Diabetic and pre-diabetic patients are monitored closely by the clinic. Education, counseling, nutrition and exercise classes are provided in an effort to aid patients control their disease. In addition, a chronic illness manager works closely with patients who require one-on-one monitoring. Patients are also provided with eye and foot exams by specialty physicians. A total of 482 unduplicated diabetic patients were seen through the program. Behavioral health counseling has been integrated into the primary healthcare program to aid patients with behavior modification and control of anxiety and depression. There were 783 counseling encounters during the year.

outreach & education: a critical part of our program is reaching out to people who live in remote areas. The outreach program seeks to educate patients on the need for a medical home and regular physical exams. Outreach provides medical services via the mercy medical mobile clinic to patients at fourteen locations throughout webb county texas. These are remote locations where transportation is a barrier to care. Community healthcare workers play the greatest role in the education component of these efforts. Outreach efforts included 325 home visits and 149 platicas in fiscal year 2017. In addition there were 595 medical outreach encounters and 227 education encounters.

other program service mercy ministries of laredo's other programs include medication assistance, dental and nutrition. The medication assistance program guides patients through the process of securing free or low-cost medication through pharmaceutical companies. The program provided $2,168,022 of medication for patients. The dental program provides services to adult patients who are compliant with their medical regiment and screenings. Regular services include cleanings, fillings and extractions. Other services include root canals, dentures and crowns. The clinic is staffed one day per week by local volunteer dentists. During fiscal year 2017 dentists performed 2,992 procedures valued at $220,106. Over 308 patients were provided services accounting for 1,310 dental visits. The nutrition program addresses the general wellness of patients by teaching the importance of healthy eating. The program teaches participants to read labels, shop wisely, portion control, and provides healthy recipes.