Vista Community Clinic (VCC) has successfully completed phase 2 of the Promoting Pediatric Primary Prevention (P4) challenge, set up by the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) and was chosen as one of only 20 winners in the country. This competition was developed by HRSA to support solutions to the issue of declining rates of immunizations and well child visits due to the COVID-19 pandemic. VCC is being awarded a prize of $25,000 for this recognition.
The clinic serves nearly 70,000 patients and 33% of its population is 19 years old or younger.
Care visits for young patients have dropped during the pandemic, and are just now beginning to rebound. There is a vital need to make sure kids are getting the care they need as they grow up so they can become healthy adults.
With VCC’s Pediatric Director, Dr. Sujana Gunta, as its leader, the clinic followed through with big plans to reach local children and make up for the visits lost during the pandemic while keeping up with current demand in spite of the challenges of the pandemic. The healthcare providers increased outreach, education, and ease of access for families with weekends and evening hours. Particular attention was paid to inter-departmental collaboration and early initiation of the important Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) vaccine series. By offering vaccines early during their well visits, we achieved better immunization completion rates while being able to focus on whole person care. Adolescents and preteens were the focus of this challenge, but the clinic is always focused on helping families with all ages get the support they need for all aspects of health. Staff and clinicians are excited to have won this challenge and will continue to focus on the needs of our community.
VCC currently has nine clinic sites, with eight clinic offering pediatric care in Vista, Oceanside, La Habra, and Lake Elsinore. New patients are being accepted in all three counties they serve.
You can learn more about VCC’s pediatric services by visiting http://www.vistacommunityclinic.org/health-services/pediatrics/. You can also follow them on social media @VistaCommunityClinic to learn more about their new incentive events as they become available. The clinic can be contacted for appointments via text or phone call at 844.308.5003.
About Vista Community Clinic
With nine state-of-the-art locations in North San Diego, Orange and Riverside Counties, VCC provides affordable, high quality health care to more than 70,000 community residents. Services offered by VCC include primary care, pediatrics, prenatal and women’s health, optometry, chiropractic care, dental health, podiatry, acupuncture and behavioral health services. VCC also offers a wide array of community health education programs which are free and open to all community residents. VCC is recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as a Level 3 (highest) Patient-Centered Medical Home, and is the recipient of the HRSA National Quality Leader Seal for exceeding national clinical quality benchmarks. For more information call 760.631.5000 or visit www.vcc.org.
