Monday, August 17, 2009

Ronni Bennett Again!

This is from Ronni Bennett's excellent blog Time Goes By. Her posts are always well-researched, inspiring, informative, and well-written. She did this for a living as a journalist in NYC before she retired. This excerpt is from her post This Week in Elder News – 15 August 2009.

Desperation of the Uninsured So many people showed up for the first day of week-long, free health clinic in California that hundreds were turned away. Fifteen-year-old Ayana Kleckner slept on the sidewalk overnight to be sure to get an appointment:

“"This is a miracle, but people shouldn't have to sleep on the street to get medical care,' Ayana said while waiting for an eye exam. 'It was adventurous, if you could put it that way, but I don't think I should have to go through that to make sure I'm healthy.'"

A key point about this free health clinic is that it is run by the Remote Area Medical Volunteer Corps which, for 25 years, has provided health care services to third world countries.

Read more about the free health clinic in Inglewood here and here.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

That is so inspiring. It does remind me of how much teachers also do for kids and families in so many ways...providing food, counsel, clothes, making sure they get everything that other kids get, extra time tutoring the isolated kid. I know you have done all this.
Can't help laughing at Grace's unabashed selfishness with her husband who does Drs w/o Borders. Repeated again today, the dr goes to Will to find out how to break the news to Grace that he's accepting an assign for 6 mos.Grace manages to squelch the strategy in one sentence."Of course I want you to be happy, as long as it doesn't involve anything negative for me."

Ronni Bennett said...

Thank you again for the mention, Joy. Every free health clinic in the country overflows with people who have no other access to physicians.

Health care should not be a commodity like housing available only to people who have the money. Our system is shameful.