Thousands of youth live on the streets of Phoenix, many in desperate need of medical treatment. They are at an increased risk of illness, injury, and depression due to the hardships they face. Most lack health insurance and don't have access to appropriate health care.
In the fall of 2000, an innovative partnership was formed between Phoenix Children's, Children's Health Fund and HomeBase Youth Services. The result was the “Crews'n Healthmobile,” a 35-foot Mobile Medical Unit (MMU) that brought free, comprehensive medical care directly to this special population.
Over the past 18 years, the program has grown from one MMU hosting four weekly clinics to now, including three MMUs and three fixed-site clinics providing care to youth through more than 30 half-day clinics each week. The Program’s clinics span approximately 30 miles across the Phoenix Metropolitan area. Each mobile medical unit is equipped with exam rooms, an intake area, a pharmacy, a laboratory and a triage area which includes state-of-the-art technology.
In addition to the MMUs, the program provides care to youth and young adults via our three fixed-site clinics. The first is within UMOM New Day Centers, the largest shelter for homeless families in Phoenix, Arizona; Children First Leadership Academy, a K-8 charter school where the vast majority of youth are living at or below the federal poverty level and are at risk of homelessness; and, Phoenix Dream Center, an organization dedicated to providing shelter and services to those struggling with homelessness in our community, with our program serving their growing number of survivors of human trafficking and youth aging out of the foster care system with nowhere to go.
The program serves multiple shelters, residential/transitional living group homes, drop-in centers, and schools, all who serve the young homeless population living in our community. Each clinic is staffed with a Phoenix Children’s physician, clinical team member (nurse or medical assistant) and registrar. Additionally, nearly all the clinics that need immediate in-clinic behavioral health care have a behavioral health therapist or psychiatrist practicing in conjunction with the medical team.
The program treats infants, children and youth birth through the age of 24-years-old who say they are homeless or at-risk of being homeless. They are provided treatment regardless of insurance status and ability to pay. The mobile medical units and fixed site clinics operate Monday through Friday at numerous sites across the Valley. The mobile medical units travel to areas where homeless and at-risk children, adolescents and young adults are known to gather.
Crews’n Health and the Wellness Center at UMOM are Level III Patient-Centered Medical Homes recognized by the National Center for Quality Assurance (NCQA). This recognition authenticates our efforts to provide the highest level of care to homeless youth and young adults living in the Valley.
Our mission is committed to providing hope and holistic healthcare with respect and heart to homeless and at-risk youth.