COURTESY JABSOM
Students from the John A. Burns School of Medicine treat patients at a mobile medical clinic on Oahu’s North Shore.
A free mobile medical clinic is available for North Shore residents affected by recent catastrophic flooding this week.
It will be open from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. through Friday at Haleiwa Alii Beach Park at 66-167 Haleiwa Road.
The free clinic is run by the City and County of Honolulu in partnership with the University of Hawaii’s John A. Burns School of Medicine and its Hawaii H.O.M.E. Project.
Physicians and medical students from the H.O.M.E. (Houseless Outreach & Medical Education) Project will provide services, along with paramedics from Honolulu Emergency Medical Services and a nurse from the CORE (Crisis Outreach Response and Engagement) program.
The clinic will offer basic medical assessments, medications, and wound care, along with treatment for minor injuries.
JABSOM’s H.O.M.E. Project mobilized as early as Monday, when it set up a pop-up clinic at Waialua Elementary School. The H.O.M.E. Project will still offer its services 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. at Haleiwa Alii Beach Park on Saturday.
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“We’ve been seeing a wide range of patients,” said Dr. Jill Omori, H.O.M.E. Project Director in a statement. “We’ve seen a fair amount with wounds and infections, probably from the storm water.”
Health care workers have treated dozens of patients for eye infections, wounds, and diarrhea likely related to brown water after the storm.
Some have been given routine checkups after patients were unable to get to their scheduled appointments, and others are being checked for hypertension or diabetes.
Many patients lost their prescription medications in the flood, and some were able to get them through the clinic, depending on the condition.
Separately, the Hawaii Department of Health said it is working with nonprofits such as Healthy Mothers Healthy Babies Coalition to bring medical care and social services to the North Shore.