SALYERSVILLE – A local health care services provider launched a mobile unit highlighting women’s health, bringing state-of-the-art services directly to women throughout the region.
Big Sandy Health Care’s Women’s Health Mobile Unit visited Magoffin County on Tuesday this week, bringing a fully functional clinic to the parking lot of the Lloyd M. Hall Community Center.
Big Sandy Health Care’s Director of Nursing Laken Meade told Mortimer Media Group, “Big Sandy Health Care has been providing access to quality health care for nearly 50 years. We began with our Hope Family Medical Center here in Salyersville. Since then, we have expanded services into Floyd, Martin, Pike and soon Johnson County. Currently, we offer medical, dental, optometry, podiatry, OB-GYN services and Black Lung counseling services.”
Nicholas Kellough, the outreach logistical support manager for BSHC, discussed the mobile medical unit, which is currently set up for women’s health care.
“We can do mobile ultrasounds, Pap smears, any OB-GYN needs possible,” Kellough said. “For our tech, we have a Starlink satellite system up top on the roof. Inside, we have a network closet – firewall, router, everything needed to access the internet anywhere as long as we have a clear picture of the sky. That allows access to our electronic medical record system, and we can communicate back home with the home clinics. We can communicate with any of our clinics in Big Sandy’s network.”
The unit is equipped to do everything from pre-natal visits, 4-D ultrasounds, electronic fetal monitoring, post-partum visits, well-women exams, family planning and labs on sight.
Cari Perry, the assistant director of nursing, told Mortimer Media, “We’re excited to introduce everyone to our women’s health mobile unit. We brought it out for the first time on October 16. The goal of the unit is to expand access to maternal health services – to expecting moms in the area – and we travel to many different counties providing this service and access to patients that may not otherwise have it. Today is just our second trip to Magoffin County and, while we were standing here, we’ve had two patients call to do walk-in appointments – one for confirmation of pregnancy and one for GYN services. This is a big deal. The unit is getting out there and spreading the word.”
Big Sandy Health Care has become really good at a lot of things over the past five decades, such as staying in touch, wanting to know how your visit went so they can improve the next one for you, your family, and everyone in Eastern Kentucky, and also letting you know just how much they appreciate you and your health, and bringing all of that care to you, if need be.
BSHC urges people who have a difficult time getting access to one of their clinics throughout the region to call 606-263-6195, reminding the public they can even help with arranging transportation to the mobile medical unit. They’ve had a mobile dental unit on the road for several years, as well.
“The unit operates on a scheduled basis,” Meade said. “Currently, we’re visiting different counties each week, offering maternal health services to Eastern Kentucky. Call our office for an appointment.”
