Infant welfare society of chicago
ANGEL HARVEY FAMILY HEALTH CENTER
The Angel Harvey Family Health Center of the Infant Welfare Society of Chicago offers an innovative healthcare model that integrates primary medical care, dentistry, optometry, child development, and behavioral health services in a single central location. This “one-stop-shop” ensures barrier-free access to services and provides a multi-service healthcare home to children and their families.
COVID-19 IMPACT
Safety Measures
IWS redesigned operations and instituted COVID-related safety safety protocols from March to June 2020 to establish triage workflow, COVID-19 testing, and created a sick clinic to meet urgent patient needs. IWS fully re-opened in July 2020 in accordance with public health and safety guidelines. IWS is purchasing more PPE and the dental department is seeing fewer patients to maintain infection control standards.
Expanding Services to Meet Needs
Telehealth services remain critical to allow patients to access care, including mental health counseling, and the CHAT department opened a helpline to address needs. The lower level of the Angel Harvey Family Health Center was converted to a sick clinic. Now, more than ever, parents are unable to obtain necessities and provide essentials for their children, there have been spikes in anxiety and depression, especially amongst teenage girls, and there have been spikes in weight gain, especially teenage boys. The clinic hopes to obtain more rapid flu tests to determine who has flu vs COVID and install negative pressure rooms.
patient testimonials
A parent of a child in counseling emailed their counselor to express gratitude: "Thank you so much for updating me and all your kind words. I can't explain how grateful I am...you were one of the few people that supported and uplifted her in her life when she needed it the most. You are amazing. I know your profession can be such a thankless job, so I want you to know that your work has not gone unnoticed or unappreciated."
A parent, who has been an IWS patient for 15 years, now how brings his son with developmental delays to IWS and receives full medical, dental, and therapy to meet all of his healthcare needs in one spot. The parent expressed to IWS staff how grateful he is that his son can receive a dental checkup where he feels safe and secure due to sensitivities to noise and that it can be stressful, but the apppointment was a success and he saw his son with a bright smile after the dental cleaning.