Transportation

Safe streets, safe pedestrians: an issue of equity
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Safe streets, safe pedestrians: an issue of equity

More than twenty percent of Cincinnatians do not own a car. City Council member Mark Jeffreys believes that walkable streets in Cincinnati are “not just about safety but tied to so many other issues. It’s an area of equity.”  If it seems to you that pedestrian safety has become an increasingly urgent issue in the…

“First, you have to get there”: Access to care and transportation obstacles 
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“First, you have to get there”: Access to care and transportation obstacles 

Getting to appointments can be the hardest part of staying current with medical care for Kia Davis’ clients. Davis is a Community Health Worker (CHW), who cares for pregnant mothers and children through Mercy Health. Mercy Health is a partner agency of the Southwest Ohio Pathways Community HUB, which Health Care Access Now directs. Davis…

The link between mental health and transportation barriers
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The link between mental health and transportation barriers

Transportation is a major social determinant of health and health equity. It’s one of the most frequently needed of the HUB Pathways that Health Care Access Now (HCAN)’s Community Health Workers (CHWs) address with clients. The ability to access reliable, convenient, safe transportation is intertwined with mental health. It goes both ways: Mental health issues…

Transportation to medical appointments: The effect of MCO-contracted rides
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Transportation to medical appointments: The effect of MCO-contracted rides

Imagine you didn’t have access to a reliable personal vehicle, or that your monthly budget for gas had already been spent. How do you get to your doctor’s appointments? You could call a friend or family member to give you a ride—but they have jobs from which it is difficult to get time off. You…

Overcoming obstacles to establishing a medical home
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Overcoming obstacles to establishing a medical home

People who have not established a medical home often have neglected to do so because they face obstacles that can seem insurmountable.  A medical home is the central provider (or group of providers) patients use for health care. A general practitioner serves as the fundamental health advisor, but other specialists—such as a dentist, optometrist, OB-GYN,…